Wizards Fielding Trade Market For Young Forward

The Washington Wizards are reportedly fielding the trade market for Rui Hachimura in order to clear their logjam at the forward position, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Wizards have started trade talks centered on Rui Hachimura, potentially clearing a logjam at forward, sources tell me and @JoshuaBRobbins.

More details, including what this could mean for Kyle Kuzma, at @TheAthletic: https://t.co/g6d34NVTCB
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 18, 2023

In addition, several Western Conference teams in need of an additional scoring punch are reportedly interested in bringing in Hachimura.

The Japanese-born player is averaging 12.9 points on 49.2 percent field goal shooting in 24 minutes per game off the bench for Washington. He shot a career-best 44.7 percent from long-distance a season ago, but is shooting a still-respectable 34.6 percent from three this season.

Apart from Hachimura, Washington also has the likes of Kristaps Porzingis, Kyle Kuzma, Deni Avdija, and Corey Kispert on its roster.

The Wizards acquired Kuzma and Porzingis through trade last season, while Avdija and Kispert were drafted by Washington in the lottery.

Like Hachimura, Kuzma has also seen his name pop up in trade talks, and several teams have also expressed interest in acquiring the former Los Angeles Laker. It'll be interesting just how the Wizards will navigate this trade season.