Wiz of Awes
Fansided

Washington Wizards could use their trade exceptions to acquire more assets

By Cem Yolbulan

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 30: (Left to right) Rui Hachimura #8, Monte Morris #22, and Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Washington Wizards share a laugh during the second half of a game against the Orlando Magic at Amway Center on December 30, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 30: (Left to right) Rui Hachimura #8, Monte Morris #22, and Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Washington Wizards share a laugh during the second half of a game against the Orlando Magic at Amway Center on December 30, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /
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The Washington Wizards may have gotten a weak return for Monte Morris in the trade with the Detroit Pistons, but they were able to create a significant trade exception worth $9.8 million. This could be a key asset to add more talent or draft picks for the Wizards going forward.

A trade exception occurs when a team gives up more salary than it acquires in a trade. This “credit balance remains as an exception that can be used within the next year to acquire salary via trade without further relinquishing additional salary.”

This is exactly what the Washington Wizards accomplished with the Monte Morris trade. Now, they can add a salary of $9.8 million for the next 12 months without giving up anything.

The Wizards also have a $6.2 million trade exception that they generated in the Rui Hachimura trade at the 2022-23 trade deadline.

So, what can they do with these two exceptions?

This opens the door for imbalanced trades where the Wizards can take on bad contracts from teams trying to shed salary. Washington can play a facilitator role in multi-team trades to take on any salary other teams don’t want in their books.

By doing this, the Wizards would receive additional draft equity or young players in the deal.

One example of such a trade was done by the Dallas Mavericks this offseason. After creating a $17 million trade exception by dumping Davis Bertans to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Mavericks used that “credit balance” to acquire Richaun Holmes’ unwanted contract worth $12 million a year from the Sacramento Kings. For their troubles, Dallas received Sacramento’s first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

This is a model Washington can replicate. The Wizards are in asset accumulation mode, so if any team is trying to get rid of their negative salary in exchange for draft picks, the Wiz need to take advantage of that. It could be a crucial asset for Washington’s rebuilding process.

It will be fascinating to see how the new front office uses these trade exceptions. The active offseason in Washington continues.

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