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Washington Wizards Should Consider Trading Marcin Gortat

By Ben Mehic

Jan 30, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat (13) grabs a rebound during the first quarter against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat (13) grabs a rebound during the first quarter against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Washington Wizards have five big men on the roster and Marcin Gortat seems like the odd man out. Could the Polish Hammer be traded soon?

The Washington Wizards entered the summer with hopes of landing a top free agent. After falling just short of convincing Al Horford to sign, the Wizards seemed to be content with their starting lineup, opting to then add pieces to their bench in order to improve their depth.

Washington then signed Ian Mahinmi, Andrew Nicholson and Jason Smith – all big men who are expected to be a part of next season’s rotation.

The Nicholson move was a prudent one.

The 26-year-old power forward averaged 17 points and 9 rebounds Per-36 minutes with the Orlando Magic this past season, showing an expanded offensive game. The Wizards needed to get younger up front, and Nicholson will provide scoring both inside and out.

The other two moves were kind of head scratchers.

Mahinmi, who was a starting center for the Indiana Pacers last season, agreed to a deal that will pay him $16 million annually for four years to back up Marcin Gortat.

Jason Smith also received a multi-year contract, but likely won’t get much playing time behind Markieff Morris, Gortat, Mahinmi and Nicholson.

Washington currently has over $46 million invested into their front court, including paying Mahinmi more than Gortat, who’s started over the past several seasons.

There’s only so much playing time to go around and investing that much money into big men doesn’t seem to make much sense, unless a trade is brewing.

Out of all the aforementioned bigs, Gortat likely had the most trade value.

The Polish Machine is set to make $12 million next season and he’s undoubtedly the most productive center Washington has on the team. That’s essentially the problem with paying Mahinmi $64 million.

Washington could have avoided a potential and seemingly inevitable trade involving their second best player if they didn’t sign Mahinmi.

Now they’re almost forced to look for a trade, unless the team is fine with completely depending on Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre.

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The Wizards still need to add a wing player and could dangle Gortat for someone who’s on the trade block – like Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay, who’s been linked to Washington since he played for the Memphis Grizzlies.

Gay is capable of playing both forward spots, giving Scott Brooks more versatile options to work with.

While he would likely take Porter’s starting spot, Porter would still get to share the court with John Wall if the minutes are allocated correctly.

Gay is also known for his isolation scoring, which would take pressure off John Wall and Bradley Beal on the offensive end.

More importantly, Gay is big enough to defend some of the league’s premier forwards.

Ever since Trevor Ariza decided to join the Houston Rockets, the Washington Wizards have lacked a true defender on the perimeter.

Gay could fill that void

By adding a player like Gay, the Wizards would replace most of the scoring that was provided by Gortat.

With Mahinmi in the lineup, the Wizards will be a better defensive team than they were with Gortat on the floor. He’s a better rim protector and rebounder than Gortat, which were two needs the Wizards had to address this summer. He’s also shown improvement in his pick-and-roll game.

In the hypothetical trade above, the Washington Wizards would be sending Gortat to the New Orleans Pelicans, who lack a true starting center.

Following the departure of Ryan Anderson, Anthony Davis will likely spend a lot of time at the four next season. Omer Asik has shown that he’s unreliable and cannot share the court with Davis. Gortat would be a better fit next to the Pelicans’ star.

The Pelicans also made a long-term investment in a forward after signing Solomon Hill. They also selected Buddy Hield in the lottery and need to clear up playing time for him.

The Kings have too many bigs and might welcome Tyreke Evans back to where his career originally started, allowing the Pelicans to develop their young players.

Right now, there aren’t many teams around the league that haven’t locked up a starting center. The Houston Rockets, Trail Blazers and Pelicans are some of the only teams in the league that need to address that position.

With the Rockets in mind, the Washington Wizards could target a reunion with Trevor Ariza.

Dwight Howard is gone and the Rockets are likely going to depend on Clint Capela as their starting center unless they make a move.

Capela, who just turned 22, has limited NBA experience and counting on a young big man this early into his career could be a recipe for disaster. Instead of starting Capela, who’s raw offensively, the Rockets could develop him under Gortat for a few seasons.

Gortat is one of the best pick-and-roll big men in the NBA and prefers to play in an up-tempo system.

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The fit with Mike D’Antoni is nearly perfect.

His role in Houston would be very similar to the role he played in Washington.

James Harden is a willing passer and would utilize Gortat the same way John Wall did in D.C.

Washington would then get the wing depth that they need in return.

Ariza is obviously familiar with the Wizards and has built a strong chemistry with the core in place.

He’s spent plenty of time on the court along side Wall and Beal. He also played a big part in mentoring Porter during his rookie season.

As a lock-down defender and outside threat, Ariza would fit in seamlessly. The leadership aspect is incredibly important too, especially since Washington will depend on Oubre and Tomas Satoransky.

K.J. McDaniels is an athletic wing with a ton of untapped potential. He would be considered a throw-in by many, but there’s no reason why he couldn’t develop into a productive player under Scott Brooks and the rest of his staff. Washington needs more depth at small forward and McDaniels provides that.

Trading Gortat wasn’t a scenario I envisioned prior to the beginning of the summer, but the Washington Wizards have a lot of money tied up into big men and playing time is limited. Gortat is the most movable piece on the roster and Washington has the opportunity to improve their depth on the wing.

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Having five big under long-term deals doesn’t make too much sense, so a move could be on the way.

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