The Washington Wizards pulled the trigger on a rebuild a couple of seasons ago when they elected to trade away star guard Bradley Beal. In a deal that expanded further than just the initial blockbuster trade with the Phoenix Suns, Washington may have made one of the biggest mistakes they could have.
In return for Beal, one of the biggest assets the Wizards acquired for the former lottery pick was future Hall of Famer Chris Paul. The floor general quickly garnered interest on the trade market and Washington could have likely found a better package in return than they ultimately did.
The Wizards opted to deal Paul to the Golden State Warriors in return for a huge package that ultimately landed them Jordan Poole. At the time, the deal seemed like it made perfect sense. Washington was able to move off the veteran while bringing in a premiere young talent that had shown flashes with the Warriors.
However, fast forward to now, this deal looks like it did the opposite of fast forwarding their rebuilding process. Instead, the Wizards now have an inefficient guard leading the way who at times seems to care more about his individual stats rather than the success of the time.
Fortunately for them, a recent report may reignite the light at the end of the tunnel.
Nuggets showing interest in Jordan Poole
For awhile, it seemed as if the Wizards may be stuck with Jordan Poole for the forseeable future and forced to pay the guard the lucrative contract that he signed with Golden State. And while that may still be true, there's reportedly interested teams on the market that have internally discussed the idea of dealing for the Michigan product.
The Denver Nuggets are the reported team that has pondered the idea of dealing for Poole. This report comes out a week after the guard put together a 39-point outing against the Western Conference squad in a Wizards upset win on December 7th. And while it may come as a surprise, this deal could work out for both sides.
By no means is Poole a bad player, but the guard is certainly not a player that benefits the Wizards in the current position they're in. However, on a squad like the Nuggets where they have a three-time MVP winner leading the way in Nikola Jokic, Poole could be an underrated addition. Especially if head coach Michael Malone can get him to accept a role on the roster.
Although no deal is imminent, this could be a report that's worth monitoring moving forward.