A Little Wizards Trade Analysis

Written by Kevin Burke

Monday, 15 February 2010 11:25

caronpop

In what was the first of many projected moves for the Wizards, the team sent Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson to the Dallas Mavericks for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton and Quinton Ross.

The departure of Butler, Haywood and Stevenson leaves just four players that were on the roster at the time of the last Wizards playoff game. Of those four, only Antawn Jamison remains in the starting lineup. However, that may not be true for long as rumors float that Jamison may be on his way out of Washington, as well.

The departing trio now will become essential parts in the Mavericks' playoff run. Butler will more than likely become the small forward in Dallas' starting rotation, while Haywood and Stevenson could become key cogs off the bench. It will be great to see these three back in the playoff race after suffering through some dismal seasons in Washington.

As for the newcomers, Josh Howard brings an inside-outside combo player that could be a great complement to Jamison. Howard was named to the All-Star team in 2007, and has averaged 12.5 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, despite missing 21 games to various injuries. Drew Gooden is the other proven veteran, although his production has dropped significantly in previous years. Gooden averaged 8.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game for the Mavericks, his seventh team in eight years.

Quinton Ross, in his sixth year, has only averaged 2 points this season and only 4.5 for his career. The Wizards will be the fourth team for Ross in his six years in the league. Finally, James Singleton has averaged 3.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game during his four years in the NBA. Singleton was undrafted out of college and played in Europe before entering the league.

Now the Wizards fans (how many are left again?) will have to rely on the development of Andray Blatche and Josh Howard for a couple years. It's a sad fact to realize that the Washington Nationals now have a better chance of winning a championship than the Wizards do right now. Things could turn around quickly if DC gets lucky in the upcoming NBA lottery, but let's not bank on that happening.

Comments (5) Add Comment

Trade
written by Blatant Homerism, February 15, 2010

Hey Kevin,

Do you think Howard and Gooden will still be on the roster next year? I think the big appeal of getting those two is the roster flexibility. Gooden's contract is up at the end of this season. Howard has a team option on his current deal, so the Wiz can cut him loose at the end of the season.

I doubt either are on the roster next year.

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written by The Miz, February 15, 2010

BH,

If I had to put money on it, I'd say Gooden is probably gone and Howard stays. I personally think Howard is the on-court reason this deal went down, and Gooden is obviously expendable (he's played for what, 400 teams?). The Wizards do still have to field a team to even have a chance at drawing fans, which plays in Howard's favor. I'm not saying it's a guarantee that he's there, but my guess is that's the most likely scenario.

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written by K Burke, February 15, 2010

I think it will depend on whether or not the Wizards get lucky in the lottery. If they get a top 5 pick and a DeMarco Cousins or John Wall is a possibility, Howard may be gone (I think Gooden is gone regardless). Otherwise, Howard may stay just to provide some sort of an attraction like the miz said.

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written by tdbowles, February 15, 2010

I for one will not be happy seeing Butler, Haywood and Stevenson are in the playoffs because they will not have wizards uniforms on. i am still a fan ( i actually have tix for this friday's game which i bought before the season even started). there is no way howard will be here next year, nor will Gooden. Howard is a shell of what he used to be an we don't need another guy who shoots a lot that doesn't play that much defense at least from what i know of him.

the attraction for me will be to see the young guys play this year and next year, let's draft and build a young nucleus.
this trade is a sad day for all of us wizards fans.

Re: Howard
written by Blatant Homerism, February 15, 2010

I honestly see no reason to make this deal if the intention is to keep Howard past this season. Butler is a superior player who makes $1M less per season than Howard. However, Butler's deal is locked-in for next year, while Howard's contract has the team option. Not picking that up would enable the Wiz to cut $12M off the payroll for 2010-11.

If this deal is anything other than a salary dump, I'd be shocked. If the plan is to keep Howard on as some kind of building block, Grunfeld has reached Isaiah Thomas-level incompetence as an executive.