Last offseason, the Washington Wizards executed one of the smartest and most underrated trades in recent franchise history. They traded Jordan Poole and Saddiq Bey for CJ McCollum and Kelly Olynyk (who was later flipped to the San Antonio Spurs). This move freed up a lot of future cap space and allowed the Wizards to trade for Trae Young a couple of months later.
With McCollum playing well enough to be a centerpiece for the Young trade to come to fruition, and Poole falling completely out of the rotation at times with the New Orleans Pelicans, it's easy to say how easily the Wizards won the deal.
They did win the deal, no question; however, there is one part of it that the front office might be regretting in hindsight: including Bey in the trade.
Saddiq Bey had a pretty phenominal year in New Orleans
Overlooked amid the Pelicans' disastrous season, Bey was arguably the most consistent player on their team. He had a career-best season nearly across the board, with averages of 17.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists on 45.1/36.7/84.1 splits. Coincidentally, he had a much better season than Poole despite being looked at as a throw-in in the trade.
Bey had a weird couple of years; he was a solid wing on a playoff-caliber Atlanta Hawks team before he tore his ACL midway through the 2023-24 season. He would obviously miss the rest of the season, and because he was in a contract year, he didn't return to Atlanta. He would instead sign a three-year, $20 million deal with the Wizards.
However, he never played a single minute for the Wizards and was traded to the Pelicans in the aforementioned deal. Following his successful season with the Pelicans, he was extended on a new three-year, $55.5 million contract.
He would be a perfect piece on this current Wizards team
Obviously, at the time, Bey didn't provide much value to the Wizards given how he was just a throw-in to the deal, but the Wizards could certainly use his production now. He's listed at 6-foot-8 and 215 pounds, but he's strong and can easily play power forward if needed.
This would come in handy in the event that Anthony Davis misses time, which, based on recent history, is more than likely. He would also instantly become the sixth man on the team, and if he replicated last season's production, he could even be in consideration for Sixth Man of the Year.
The current backup wings on the roster are Bilal Coulibaly, who struggles offensively, Khris Middleton, who's effective but on the older side, and Will Riley, who's still extremely young. If the Wizards kept Bey, he would be by far the best of that bunch. Hindsight is 20/20, but having Saddiq Bey on this current Wizards team would make them an even stronger Eastern Conference threat.
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