The Washington Wizards have acquired Deandre Ayton from the Los Angeles Lakers, ESPN's Shams Charania reports. In exchange, the Wizards sent Jaden Hardy and two second-round picks in 2031 and 2032.
It's a puzzling move that makes us put our fingers up like Brian Windhorst wondering "now why is that?"
With Anthony Davis and Alex Sarr already on the roster, Washington had solidified its frontcourt. Adding depth is one thing, but it seems like securing a third big should've been less of a priority. In that sense, it raises the question of whether the Ayton trade is a precursor to AD being on the move.
Could the Wizards still trade Anthony Davis?
This is an interesting development for the Portland Trail Blazers in particular, considering they've previously expressed trade interest in Davis. When Portland was in pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo, it was rumored that Davis was the star trade target they considered as their backup plan.
Though Portland missed out on Antetokounmpo -- and several other stars for that matter -- trade talks pertaining to Davis have since died down. The Wizards have suggested they view Davis as part of the plan heading into the 2026-27 season, but it would be foolish for them not to at least entertain offers considering where they are in their timeline.
Acquiring future assets to build around No. 1 overall pick AJ Dybantsa should be considered a top priority rather than any immediate impact a 33-year-old Davis will have in the short term. They should only feel more comfortable in embracing that timeline now that they have a cheap stopgap in Ayton.
Even if this opens the door to a Davis trade, it remains to be seen how drastically the Ja Morant trade has changed Portland's plans. With Jerami Grant's massive contract now out of the picture, they'd likely have to include Jrue Holiday as the salary filler in a package to help match Davis. That's one downside to pursuing him following the Morant deal, though the hefty salary should be even more of a reason for the Wizards to be willing to part ways.
Anthony Davis fits Blazers' value-driven trade approach
Part of the reason Davis appealed to Portland's front office was how relatively cheap he would be to acquire in terms of assets surrendered. We just saw that play out in the Morant deal, where the Blazers overlooked the poor fit because they landed a star without having to send any draft capital.
The Wizards' asking price for Davis is higher than that, but it's the same thought process for a Blazers front office looking to make trades they deem to be good value. Better yet, unlike Morant, Davis is actually a great fit to help round out this incomplete Blazers roster.
The injury and floor spacing concerns are real, but the Blazers desperately need more forward depth. After extending Robert Williams III, they have the center position solidified, which would allow Davis to slide down to his preferred position at power forward.
Additionally, Portland has gone away from its defensive identity this summer. They plan to start an undersized, offensive-minded backcourt of Ja and Dame and could use another elite defender like Davis to help compensate for those limitations.
It's hard to understand the Wizards' reasoning behind trading for Ayton unless they view it as a stepping stone to a larger deal. Hopefully for Portland's sake, that's the case, as Davis could not only be another relatively cheap star to acquire for good value, but also a solid fit to better make sense of this roster.
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