The Washington Wizards are preparing for a busy next few days as the NBA trade deadline approaches on Thursday,
Washington is position to be both a seller and facilitator at the trade deadline as the team looks to position themselves for their much needed rebuild and free up minutes for the team's young core to develop on the court.
With multiple veterans at their disposal, the Wizards will be one of the most monitored teams at the deadline as contenders continue to inquire about Washington's players. Veterans like Jonas Valanciunas, Kyle Kuzma and Malcolm Brogdon have garnered plenty of interest on the market which seems to be trending towards a major roster shakeup for the Wizards.
That said, here's a look at the three things that general manager Will Dawkins must do ahead of the February 6th deadline.
Offload Kyle Kuzma's contract
Kyle Kuzma may be the most likely Wizard to get dealt ahead of Thursday's deadline following his growing frustration with the team's lack of wins this season. Considering his large contract, lack of desire to help mentor a young roster and the interest from playoff contending teams, it must be the first order of business for Washington as the deadline approaches.
If the Wizards can move off of Kuzma, not only will it give them some sort of financial flexibility moving forward depending on what the the return is, but it could be their best asset to get draft capital to use this offseason and/or in future deals.
Find Malcolm Brogdon a new home
The Wizards landed Malcolm Brogdon in a draft night deal that sent Deni Avdija to the Portland Trail Blazers. Brogdon joined the Wizards and seemed excited about the fit on Washington considering his ties to the D.C. area.
However, there's no denying the fact that the veteran guard's timeline doesn't fit the Wizards rebuild and it only makes sense for Washington to move on from him sooner rather than later.
Bring in draft capital as a 3rd team in any deal
As mentioned before, outside of being a seller at the deadline, the Wizards are in position to be a facilitator as a third team in any potential big deals. Although they may not be able to bring in any win-now players, they could receive draft capital from teams if they're willing to take in contracts to make deals work for teams in need of help to pull off deals.
Regardless of what moves the Wizards do make, these three tasks should be at the top of their to-do list in the coming days.
The trade deadline is Thursday at 3 PM ET.