The Washington Wizards are considered neither buyers or sellers ahead of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, according to Ava Wallace of the Washington Post. However, young forward Troy Brown and center Moritz Wagner are drawing the most trade interest among Wizards players.
A first-round pick in 2018, Troy Brown entered this season looking to build off his strong finish from the 2019-20 season. Brown was looking to compete for backup point guard minutes with Ish Smith. However, the team traded for Russell Westbrook and signed Raul Neto, dropping Brown out of the rotation.
Brown has seen limited action in 20 of the Wizards 41 games. He is averaging 4.1 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 13.6 minutes per game. At 6-foot-6 and 21 years of age, Brown is an intriguing option to add for any interested teams. He has the ability to be a secondary ball-handler with potential of progressing into a primary.
He is a better play creator than shooter. Throughout his career he is a 32.5% three-point shooter. This season his shot has took a hit with his decreased playing time. Brown is shooting a subpar 35.7% from the field, including 27.3% from three. According to Basketball-Reference, Brown has an offensive rating of 89 and 116 defensive rating per 100 possessions.
Meanwhile, Moe Wagner is expected to be a free agent at the end of this season. The Wizards declined his fourth-year option before the season. Acquired from the Lakers in 2019, Wagner has been a high-energy big for Washington the past two seasons.
He has started 13 games at center for the Wizards this season following Thomas Bryant’s torn ACL and struggles from veteran Robin Lopez. However, he has not played any minutes in the last five games. The 6-foot-11 big has taken a backseat to Lopez and Alex Len the past two weeks.
In 24 appearances this season, Wagner is averaging 7.0 points and 3.0 rebounds. He is shooting 50.0% from the field.
