Getty John Wall
John Wall is a five-time All-Star and one of the biggest names in the league, but something about his team, the Washington Wizards, just isn’t clicking. Even with a roster that includes names like Wall, Bradley Beal, and Dwight Howard, the team has tanked so far this season–they’re a dismal 5-11–and it’s been evident even in the body language of the players that something’s gotta give.
Adrian Wojnarowski reported this morning that the Wizards are now giving the impression that nobody on their roster is exempt from trade talks as they desperately try to right the ship. This includes Wall and Beal, who had been previously unavailable as the Wizards held discussions in the recent past to acquire Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler (they came up 0-2 on that).
Wall leaving the franchise would be a blockbuster trade, but it won’t be an easy task. The All-Star has a 15% trade kicker in his deal and the Wizards will want a lot in return for giving up their franchise player. That being said, there are more than a few teams that could benefit from Wall’s dominant presence.
Could Wall End up with the Detroit Pistons?
GettyAndre Drummond
John Wall is a pick-and-roll mastermind, and what better team to utilize that skillset with than the monstrous Detroit Pistons? The Pistons boast All-Star bigs Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin, both of whom are juggernauts in the paint and, of course, huge threats on the pick-and-roll. The team could certainly use an All-Star point guard in Wall to make for their own “Big Three”.
The time would be now for the Pistons to make the call since they won’t have cap space to sign a max free agent until 2020. Add to that the fact that Blake Griffin is entering the last few years of his prime–that athleticism won’t last forever–and the Wizards’ current woes start to sound like a gift from above.
The question is: Who can the Pistons trade, keeping Griffin and Drummond, to make up for nabbing the All-Star? Reggie Jackson and Jon Leuer would be almost sure to go, but who else? It would be tough for the team to make the right moves and acquire their three-headed monster. But if they pull it off, the already-roiling Eastern Conference could continue its unprecedented renewal into an NBA superpower to rival the West.