The Washington Wizards are a team that nearly every contender has their eyes on ahead of the NBA trade deadline in February.
Washington is in position to become a seller at the deadline and with multiple veteran players that could become an immediate boost for playoff teams, the Wizards are in the forefront of all conversations and rumors at the moment.
One player that has continued to garner interest on the trade market is big man Jonas Valanciunas. The center signed in Washington during the offseason looking to cash in on a long term deal while being able to help mentor the Wizards young roster in the meantime.
Originally, the plan was to capitalize on their offseason signing and potentially send the 32-year-old to a contending team. This would be beneficial to both parties as the Wizards would get half a season of leadership from Valanciunas for their youth movement, and the reliable big man would get the opportunity to suit up for a contender before the deadline.
However, rumors suggested that Washington could be interested in keeping Valanciunas around for the long haul as the big man continued to gain fans in the front office. While this report could be to drive the price up for one of their top assets, there could also be plenty of truth behind this report.
Nonetheless, the idea that the Wizards could be inclined to keep the big man around for the forseeable future undoubtebly turned up the heat for opposing teams to let their interest be known. After months of speculation of the Los Angeles Lakers being the fit for the veteran, another top team has put their interest out publically and should be considered a team to watch moving forward.
Knicks eyeing Valanciunas
The New York Knicks have reportedly been monitoring Valanciunas for quite some time as they continue to look for a reliable backup center to sure up their front court down the stretch and leading into the playoffs.
New York currently has both Mitchell Robinson, Precious Achuiwa and Jericho Sims manning the reserve spot right now, but with each players future uncertain, they could turn their attention to Valanciunas who has served as a more than reliable big man for the Wizards as a starter and off the bench as needed.
Valanciunas returns to action on Thursday for Washington as the Wizards battle the Suns. Despite that, each game moving forward could be the veteran's last game in a Wizards jersey.