The Wizards don’t have a second deal lined up for Khris Middleton, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link), who says Washington’s plan for the time being will be to hang onto the veteran forward after acquiring him from Milwaukee.
As Mannix and Varun Shankar of The Washington Post outline, the Wizards were willing to trade Kyle Kuzma, Patrick Baldwin, and a first-round pick swap for Middleton, AJ Johnson, and a second-round pick because they like Johnson, wanted to open up more playing time for young wings like Kyshawn George and Justin Champagnie, and will create some additional financial flexibility in 2026 (Kuzma was signed through ’26/27).
I wouldn’t expect Middleton to have a long-term future in D.C., but if he can use the second half of this season to get closer to full health, he could have a little trade value in the offseason — he holds a player option for 2025/26 and would be on an expiring contract if he opts in, which seems likely.
As cap expert Yossi Gozlan notes (via Twitter), Middleton’s 2024/25 cap hit for the Wizards will adjust from $31.7MM to $31MM because his bonus for making the playoffs is no longer considered “likely” (because Milwaukee made the playoffs last year, whereas Washington didn’t). That will also cause the cap hit for next season’s player option to dip from about $34MM to $33.3MM.
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference with the trade deadline just over 24 hours away:
- Jason Lloyd of The Athletic advocates for the Cavaliers to make an effort to duck below the luxury tax line at this season’s trade deadline, pointing out that delaying the repeater taxpayer clock for another season could pay off for the franchise in the long run. Shedding the minimum-salary contracts of Tristan Thompson and Sam Merrill would do the trick, Lloyd notes, though Merrill has been a part of the regular rotation.
- Jarace Walker has been in and out of the Pacers‘ rotation as of late, getting his first DNP-CD of the season on Saturday. The second-year forward acknowledges that his inconsistent role hasn’t been easy to deal with, but head coach Rick Carlisle lauded Walker for the effort he has shown during workouts and practices, per Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. “I wish all top 10 picks in the NBA could learn about being the pro the way that he is learning about it and the way he’s adapting and the way he’s managing everything in his life to stay ready,” Carlisle said. “His teammates trust him. The coaching staff trusts him. Trust is earned and not given. I got a lot of respect for that kid. For where he came from his first year to the early parts of this year to now, he’s a man.”
- Cameron Johnson, who had missed six straight games due to an ankle sprain, is no longer on the Nets‘ injury report, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Barring a last-minute development, that suggests Johnson should be available for Wednesday’s game vs. Washington. In case you missed it, multiple reports this week have indicated that the Brooklyn forward appears increasingly unlikely to be traded.
- On the heels of trading two-time All-Star Zach LaVine, the Bulls had to be encouraged by what they saw from rookie forward Matas Buzelis on Tuesday, as Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times writes. One of the club’s long-term building blocks, Buzelis enjoyed the best game of his NBA career in a win over Miami, scoring 24 points on 10-of-10 shooting (4-of-4 three-pointers). “My confidence right now is high, but you’ve got to stay humble,” Buzelis said after the game. “My dad always tells me the sun comes up tomorrow, so you’ve got to go back to work. You guys can call it [a breakout game], it doesn’t matter to me. Breakout, I’m going to play the same way every night.”
Buzelis would easily be an All-Rookie selection if Donovan gave him regular minutes all season. Hopefully he can sneak back into the race
Bro is too busy dancing on TikTok…
Cavs still might get something in return for Thompson or Merrill? Or they really need to attach assets?
Lakers need a center :)
Don’t think Ben Simmons gets a buy-out, as he might have some value in a sign-and-trade, but there might be some good opportunities in the buy-out market.
Only choice is trading those two to me. Unless you look at Porter Jr., Wade or Niang instead, but those two make more sense…
Thompson and a second or two for a backup PF/C would probably work out. Merrill might get something small, he’s a very good shooter.
I would rather trade Caris LeVert for a slightly smaller deal.
Why would they need to attach two 2nd round picks to Thompson?
Wouldn’t he be of value to the Lakers?
Think they would need to replace Thompson by a buy-out player to duck under the luxury tax?
Anyone who can rebound and protect the rim even slightly would be of value to the Lakers. Jaxson Hayes is their only functional Center right now (Koloko is still not back to form, Vando is a PF). In order to actually get something *back*, the Cavs would need to attack some kind of sweetener.
If they take salary back in a trade like that they won’t be able to duck the luxury tax
Buzelis…God I Love this Kid!!!
And I’m soo Thankful The Bulls Have Him!!!
Wasnt Carlisle Lukas Head coach from 2018-2021? Might be a stretch but he throwing shade with his comments lmao.
Don’t see who would take on Middleton, unless if it’s for a worse contract within salary matching range without aggregation or to make salary-matching rules work.
Rule is up to 125 percent plus $250,000, so can be up to 39,8 million.
He could be a third-team player in a Ingram, LaMelo Ball, Porter, Ayton, McCollum, Randle or Grant trade.