It’s been a wild month or so for the Washington Wizards.
The Wizards made two giant trades, acquiring former All-Star point guard Trae Young from the Atlanta Hawks and future Hall-of-Fame big man Anthony Davis from the Dallas Mavericks.
Unfortunately, both players have suffered injuries, and it seems like it will be some time before the duo sees the court together.
Trae Young Could Return to the Court After the NBA All-Star Break
The Wizards shocked many around the league when they dealt for Davis. The Mavericks traded Davis to the Wizards in an eight-player blockbuster trade. Dallas sent Davis, Jaden Hardy, D’Angelo Russell, and Dante Exum to the Wizards while receiving Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham, Marvin Bagley III, two first-round draft picks, and three second-rounders.
Davis averaged 20.4 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game before the injury. He has been out since January 8 because of ligament damage in his left hand. Davis previously missed time with a calf strain earlier this season and also has a groin issue.
It was reported that he will not be playing again this season. That is clearly disappointing, but not everything on the injury front has been negative for the Wizards.
Wizards’ GM Will Dawkins, who has seemingly been the busiest man in the league over the last month or two, delivered good news on Young’s status.
“Yeah, I think right now we did some evaluation and tests,” Dawkins said. “And it’s going to take him a few weeks to get him where he needs to be. So we decided to push it until the All-Star break. And then we’ll reevaluate him at that point.”
Dawkins and the Wizards want to get him back on the floor so he can see just what it’s like to play with the Wizards’ young core.
Also, Wizards GM Will Dawkins expects Trae Young will play after All-Star break: “It’s important because Trae has a decision to make. He’s got the power of choice as a free agent. So you want to make sure that he’s comfortable playing with the young guys.” https://t.co/gugimU2snH https://t.co/QLJX6NCbAf
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“It’s important because Trae has a decision to make,” Dawkins explained. “He’s got the power of choice as a free agent. So you want to make sure that he’s comfortable playing with the young guys.”
Young has been limited to just 10 games this season due to knee and quadriceps strains and didn’t play very well when he was on the floor. Young put up 19.3 points, 8.9 assists, and 1.5 rebounds per game while shooting 41.5% from the field, 30.5% from three, and 86.3% from the free throw line, all below his career averages.
The Wizards, however, believe his shooting and play-making are just what their young squad needs to reach the next level.
Young signed a five-year deal worth $215,159,700 before the 2022-23 season and has a player option for next season, meaning he could become a free agent following the season.
“We have good relationships with his reps,” Dawkins said.” So we’ve had communication on what it would look like to be a Wizard because he really wanted to be here, and that was important to us. And we want to make sure everybody feels comfortable and builds that partnership and relationship until we have any real conversations.”
That adds some intrigue and explains why the Warriors want to see how Young fits in before potentially giving him a massive payday this summer.
