NBA trade grades: Rockets and Wizards swap Russell Westbrook and John Wall
By Duncan Smith
The Houston Rockets and Washington Wizards pulled off the NBA’s latest blockbuster, swapping Russell Westbrook for John Wall. We’ll grade the trade.
The Houston Rockets and Washington Wizards found themselves in mutual no-win scenarios early in the 2020 offseason. After Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni stepped down and general manager Daryl Morey departed following the end of last season, Russell Westbrook requested a trade. Similarly, John Wall requested the same of the Wizards
The problem is that both players have gargantuan contracts, and moving either one seems like a virtually impossible task. Unless, of course, they were traded for each other.
On Wednesday night, the Rockets and Wizards did just that and swapped All-Star guards.
The deal is simple, and looks like this:
The Rockets get to rid themselves of one complication as the season goes on by moving Westbrook, who hadn’t even reported to camp in Houston yet. They also managed to do the impossible and get a draft pick out of it, rather than having to incentivize a trade partner as most expected they would have to.
As for the Wizards, they get rid of Wall, who hadn’t played in two years thanks to an Achilles rupture and bone spurs in his heel, and they replaced him with a player in Russell Westbrook who finished Third Team All-NBA this past season. In spite of the big names changing locations, the trade itself might not move the needle much for either team.
Let’s grade the deal for both sides, starting with the Houston Rockets.