Washington Wizards Mailbag Monday: Should The Wizards Trade Their First Round Pick?

This is a really good question that I’ve thought about a lot.

Injuries are inevitable. For the most part, the Washington Wizards have had luck on their side. Beal has dealt with some bumps and bruises, but hasn’t missed an extended period of time. The same is true for the rest of the starters.

And while the bench has increased production, having to rely on the likes of Trey Burke or Jason Smith for big minutes would be a disaster.

Washington might be able to withstand an injury to Morris or even Porter, but if Wall goes down, the team is going to be in disarray.

The Wizards could potentially trade one of their starters for more depth.

Here’s an example:

• Washington Wizards send Marcin Gortat, Kelly Oubre and protected pick to Denver Nuggets
• Denver Nuggets send Danilo Gallinari, Jusuf Nurkic to Washington Wizards

I didn’t even check if this works financially, but it’s an example of a trade the Wizards might consider.

Gortat is an effective center and Oubre has shown flashes of stardom, but Gallinari is proven and Nurkic would be the team’s big man for the future. Gallo would instantly become the team’s best bench player – and really, the best bench player they’ve had in years.

They could swap one of their starters for two solid backups, for example. That’s doable and it might be something the team considers, especially if Ian Mahinmi returns from the dead.