Chandler Hutchison

Five-Team Russell Westbrook, Spencer Dinwiddie Trade Now Official

The five-team trade involving the Lakers, Wizards, Nets, Spurs, and Pacers, headlined by Russell Westbrook (to Los Angeles) and Spencer Dinwiddie (to Washington) is now official, according to press releases from multiple clubs.

The deal began as a two-team trade sending Westbrook from the Wizards to the Lakers, an agreement that was completed around the start of the draft last Thursday. Later that night, the Wizards and Pacers agreed to a deal sending Aaron Holiday that would be folded into the Westbrook blockbuster.

Subsequently, during free agency, the Wizards and Dinwiddie wanted to find a way to get the point guard to D.C. and ultimately convinced the Nets to accommodate a sign-and-trade. The Spurs entered the mix late to accommodate Washington’s salary-dump of Chandler Hutchison.

Here’s the full breakdown of the deal, based on reports to date:

  • To Lakers:
    • Russell Westbrook (from Wizards)
    • The Bulls’ 2023 second-round pick (from Wizards)
    • Either the Wizards’ or Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable; from Wizards)
    • The Wizards’ 2028 second-round pick (from Wizards)
  • To Wizards:
  • To Nets:
    • Either the Wizards’ or the Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Wizards)
    • The right to swap the Warriors’ 2025 second-round pick for the Wizards’ 2025 second-round pick (from Wizards)
    • The draft rights to Nikola Milutinov (from Spurs)
  • To Spurs:
    • Chandler Hutchison (from Wizards)
    • Either the Bulls’, the Lakers’, or the Pistons 2022 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Wizards)
  • To Pacers:

The Nets also generated the most significant trade exception of any team in the deal — it’ll be worth about $11.5MM.

While it was a fairly minor move for Brooklyn, San Antonio, and Indiana, the deal will significantly reshape the Lakers’ and Wizards’ rosters for the 2021/22 season. Los Angeles consolidated its depth, acquiring a star player who wanted to team up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, then filled out its roster in free agency.

The Wizards, meanwhile, traded one star for several depth pieces and managed to replace their old point guard with one who will earn less than half of Westbrook’s salary for the next couple seasons. The deal should increase the club’s cap flexibility while fortifying its bench.

Wizards To Acquire Spencer Dinwiddie Via Sign-And-Trade

11:56pm: The Spurs are sending the draft rights to 2015 first-round pick Nikola Milutinov to the Nets in the five-team trade, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). That will satisfy the “touching” requirements we outlined below and allow the deal to be officially completed once the moratorium ends on Friday.

Katz adds (via Twitter) that the Wizards have also agreed to trade one more second-round pick (Chicago’s 2023 selection) to the Lakers. Washington is giving up five second-round selections in the deal (three to the Lakers, one to the Spurs, and one to the Nets), as well as a second-round swap (to the Nets).

Finally, Katz reports that the third year of Dinwiddie’s contract will be partially guaranteed (Twitter link).


5:04pm: The Wizards and Spencer Dinwiddie are in agreement on a three-year, $62MM deal that will land the veteran point guard in Washington, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The club will acquire Dinwiddie from the Nets via sign-and-trade.

That $62MM figure had been expected for Dinwiddie’s deal with the Wizards, since it’s the most the team could pay him by looping his sign-and-trade into the larger Russell Westbrook deal with the Lakers, notes Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

According to Charania (Twitter link), the Nets will receive a second-round pick and a draft-pick swap from the Wizards in the sign-and-trade agreement. The move will also create an $11.5MM trade exception for Brooklyn.

Additionally, the Wizards will trade Chandler Hutchison and a second-round pick to the Spurs as part of the multi-team deal, Charania reports (via Twitter). Moving Hutchison’s $4MM+ salary will allow Washington to remain out of tax territory for now, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link) provides the details on the draft assets, reporting that the Wizards are sending a 2022 second-rounder to San Antonio and a 2024 second-rounder to Brooklyn, as well as a 2025 second-round pick swap to the Nets.

The 2022 second-round pick headed to San Antonio will be the most favorable of the Lakers’, Bulls’, and Pistons’ second-rounders, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic.

That 2025 swap will give Brooklyn a chance to send Golden State’s second-rounder to Washington in exchange for the Wizards’ 2025 second-rounder, tweets Tim Bontemps of ESPN. The 2024 second-rounder will be the more favorable of the Wizards’ and Grizzlies’ selections, Bontemps adds.

In total, Wojnarowski tweets, the deal will include five teams: the Wizards, Nets, Spurs, Lakers, and Pacers. The Westbrook trade agreement and the Wizards’ deal for Aaron Holiday will become part of this larger deal once it’s officially completed after the moratorium lifts on Friday.

Here’s what the full trade should look like, based on the details reported to date:

  • Wizards to acquire Dinwiddie (via sign-and-trade), Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, Holiday, and the draft rights to Isaiah Todd (No. 31 pick).
  • Lakers to acquire Westbrook, either the Wizards’ or the Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is less favorable; from Wizards), and the Wizards’ 2028 second-round pick.
  • Nets to acquire either the Wizards’ or the Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable; from Wizards) and the right to swap their the Warriors’ 2025 second-round pick for the Wizards’ 2025 second-round pick.
  • Spurs to acquire Hutchison and either the Bulls’, Lakers,’, or Pistons 2022 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Wizards).
  • Pacers to acquire the draft rights to Isaiah Jackson (No. 22 pick).

As Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report points out (via Twitter), there will likely be at least one more piece involved between the Nets and Spurs in order to satisfy the rule that every team in a multi-team trade must “touch” two other teams in the deal. As reported so far, Brooklyn and San Antonio are each only receiving assets from (or sending an asset to) the Wizards. That last piece would likely be something minor, such as cash or the draft rights to a stashed player.

In Dinwiddie, the Wizards are getting a 28-year-old point guard who is coming off a lost season. He appeared in just three games before missing the rest of the 2020/21 campaign due to a partially torn ACL. However, Dinwiddie was reportedly cleared for all basketball activities in June and the expectation is that he’ll be good to go for the fall.

In his last full season, Dinwiddie averaged 20.6 PPG and 6.8 APG on .415/.308/.778 shooting in 64 games (31.2 MPG) for Brooklyn in 2019/20.

Word broke on Monday night that the Wizards and Dinwiddie were nearing an agreement, but the club didn’t have the cap space necessary to acquire him without getting the Nets’ cooperation in a sign-and-trade. Because Brooklyn didn’t want to take on any salary but wanted an asset or two for agreeing to play ball, it took all involved parties a couple days to work out the details of the deal that would get the point guard to D.C.

Free Agency Rumors: DeRozan, Bulls, Wizards, McLaughlin, Rose, Heat

A sign-and-trade deal that sends DeMar DeRozan to the Bulls remains a possibility for the veteran free agent wing, league sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link). Chicago has previously been mentioned as a possible suitor for DeRozan, and Stein’s report suggests the team remains interested even after reaching agreements with Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso.

A Monday report from Brian Windhorst of ESPN suggested that a double sign-and-trade sending DeRozan to the Bulls and Lauri Markkanen to the Spurs could be one possibility that the two sides would explore. Chicago also expiring contracts belonging to Thaddeus Young ($14.19MM) and Al-Farouq Aminu ($10.18MM), both of which would theoretically make for good salary-matching pieces.

Here are a few more rumors related to free agency:

  • As Spencer Dinwiddie and the Wizards continue to work toward a possible agreement that would land the point guard in D.C., Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report says (via Twitter) that Washington has begun exploring the possibility of trading Chandler Hutchison and a second-round pick as part of a potential sign-and-trade deal for Dinwiddie.
  • Jordan McLaughlin and his camp are optimistic about reaching a new multiyear contract agreement with the Timberwolves, according to Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link). McLaughlin, a restricted free agent, met face-to-face with the Wolves when free agency opened on Monday, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
  • The Knicks are expected to re-sign Derrick Rose using his Early Bird rights, which means they can keep his smaller cap hold on their books for now and then eventually go over the cap to complete his deal, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday. Popper estimates that New York could still have upwards of $9MM in cap room to work with, or even more if the team waives Luca Vildoza‘s non-guaranteed salary.
  • The Heat had interest in Rudy Gay, but weren’t going to match Utah’s two-year, $12MM offer, preferring to commit most of their mid-level to a strong defensive player in P.J. Tucker, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Southeast Notes: Oladipo, Vucevic, Collins, Hutchison

Victor Oladipo‘s defense is an underrated component of why the Heat targeted him in a trade with the Rockets, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Players guarded by Oladipo are shooting just 40.5% this season, far under their normal 46% rate. That ranks second in the league among shooting guards. Among Miami’s current backcourt, the defensive rates are 43.3% for Tyler Herro, 43.8% for Goran Dragic and 45.8% for Kendrick Nunn.

Oladipo is still a productive scorer, averaging 20.3 PPG this season, but his efficiency and three-point shooting have fallen off from his peak years. He also hasn’t played on back-to-back nights yet this season.

“Houston wasn’t the best situation for him,” a Western Conference scout told Jackson. “He had moments where he played very, very well, and I think with more veteran players around him, he will be fine. I’m not so sure how much he wanted to make it work in Houston. This is what Victor has talked about over a year, going to Miami. There will be a lot more buy-in, a lot more want-to. This is what he wanted. He had no three-point shooting around him in Houston. He’ll have that in Miami, at least guys who should be that. Opposing teams will say Oladipo is not the same until he scorches somebody.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

  • Before making his debut with the Bulls Saturday night, Nikola Vucevic offered an emotional message to Orlando, where he spent the past nine years, relays Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “Obviously, it meant a lot to me,” the All-Star center said. “Like I said, I came there as a kid and left as a man. I guess you guys know the answer with my reaction. Leaving that place after so many years obviously was hard.” Vucevic said he knew the Magic were shopping him and he wasn’t surprised when the deal with Chicago was announced.
  • Hawks forward John Collins was “super-duper relieved” to remain with the team through the trade deadline, according to Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Collins’ future has been up for speculation since he failed to reach an extension during the offseason, and he’s now on the way to becoming a restricted free agent.
  • Wizards forward Chandler Hutchison, who was acquired from the Bulls on Thursday, won’t play for his new team until he participates in a full practice, tweets Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. Chicago had been listing Hutchison as out indefinitely for personal reasons, and he hasn’t been in a game since February 5. However, he told Wallace his conditioning is “off the charts.”

Celtics Trade Daniel Theis To Bulls In Three-Team Deal

6:27pm: The trade is now official, per a press release from the Wizards.


2:57pm: Ryan McDonough of Radio.com provides the full details on the trade, explaining (via Twitter) that it’ll be folded into the previously-reported Bulls/Wizards swap that involved Wagner. The breakdown is as follows, per McDonough:

  • The Bulls will receive Theis, Green, Troy Brown, $1.3MM in cash from the Celtics, and $250K in cash from the Wizards.
  • The Celtics will receive Kornet and Wagner.
  • The Wizards will receive Daniel Gafford and Chandler Hutchison.

The C’s will end up $950K below the tax line as a result of their series of moves, tweets Marks.


2:31pm: The Celtics and Bulls have agreed to a deal that will send Daniel Theis to Chicago and Moritz Wagner to Boston, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links). K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago first reported the talks between the two teams (Twitter link).

According to Johnson and Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald (Twitter links), Jeff Teague and Javonte Green were also discussed leading up to the deadline, with the possibility of a third team joining the mix. Teague will be sent to Orlando as part of the Evan Fournier trade and will subsequently be waived, per Josh Robbins and Jared Weiss of The Athletic.

It’s not clear if a third team will take on Green or if he’ll be end up going to the Bulls, but the Celtics are believed to be acquiring Luke Kornet from Chicago in the deal, tweets Murphy.

The move will get the Celtics get out of luxury tax territory following their acquisition of Fournier, as Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Meanwhile, it gives the Bulls a solid backup center following their earlier deal for Nikola Vucevic.

Bulls Acquire Troy Brown In Multiplayer Trade

3:00pm: The trade has been expanded to include the Celtics as well. The full details can be found right here.


11:32am: The Wizards will send Troy Brown and Moritz Wagner to the Bulls in exchange for Daniel Gafford and Chandler Hutchison, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Washington will create a $2.1MM trade exception in the deal, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN.

Brown, 21, was the 15th pick in the 2018 draft, but he has appeared in just 21 games this year, averaging 4.3 PPG. Brown is under contract for $5.2MM next season and will be extension-eligible this offseason. Wagner, 23, who has a $2.2MM expiring contract, was a part-time starter in Washington, averaging 7.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 25 games.

Since the Wizards declined Wagner’s team option for 2021/22, Chicago won’t be able to offer him a starting salary this offseason higher than what that option would have been worth ($3.89MM).

Gafford, a second-year big man, has a $1.8MM non-guaranteed salary for next season. He’s averaging 4.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 31 games. Hutchison, also a first-round pick in 2018, has appeared in just seven games this year. He will make $4MM next season and will also be eligible for an extension this offseason.

Bulls Notes: Porter, Hutchison, Markkanen, Trade Market

Bulls forward Otto Porter Jr. hasn’t played since February 1 because of a lower back issue and it doesn’t sound like he’ll return for a while, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Coach Billy Donovan said Porter has made only “incremental gains” in his rehab process and no timetable is in place for him to play again.

‘‘(Porter’s) still dealing with discomfort,’’ Donovan said. ‘‘It’s been very, very limited for him. Obviously, part of the rehab and recovery is to work on some strengthening and some mobility in his lower back, but he’s still dealing with some symptoms in his lower back. He’s made some incremental gains, but I wouldn’t say he’s really made some significant gains. Some of his rehab has been maybe limited to how he’s feeling a little bit, so there’s certain things he can do physically and other things he can’t do.’’

The Bulls are concerned that Porter’s back problems might be a recurring issue, according to Cowley. Porter is in the final year of his contract, so he’ll want to be careful not to damage his back any further heading into free agency.

There’s more from Chicago:

  • The Bulls aren’t putting any pressure on Chandler Hutchison, who is out indefinitely for personal reasons, Cowley adds in the same story. No details have been released on Hutchison’s situation, but Cowley says the team is giving him time to handle some personal matters. ‘‘He’s working on some of the things that are challenges right now, but a lot of it is going to be on his timetable on how he’s doing,’’ Donovan said. ‘‘But he’s in constant dialogue, he’s around the team, he’s around the guys and I have great respect for the way he’s handled himself and the line of communication, how open and honest he’s been. We’ll look forward to getting him back, but it’s really going to be on him to see how he’s progressing and how he’s doing.’’
  • Lauri Markkanen is sidelined two to four weeks with a sprained shoulder and he believes he can make his recovery time closer to two weeks, according to Jamal Collier of The Chicago Tribune. “When it happened, I was frustrated and disappointed,” Markkanen said. “I did everything on my part to not have this happen. That’s part of the game unfortunately. I feel better — I would say not every day, there are bumps in the road — but I do feel better now compared to when it happened.”
  • A 9-14 start could push the Bulls to become sellers on the trade market fairly soon, Cowley suggests in a separate story. He adds that no players should be considered untouchable, even first-round pick Patrick Williams.

Central Notes: Bayno, Hutchison, LeVert, Cavs, Holiday

Pacers assistant coach Bill Bayno has resigned due to mental health issues, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Bayno, 58, took a leave of absence two weeks ago. Both of his parents recently passed away and he needed to step away from the pressures and workload of the NBA grind amid the pandemic, Wojnarowski adds. He could return to coaching at some point. The team confirmed his resignation in a press release.

“I appreciate the impact Coach Bayno has had on our players and the Pacers organization over the last five years,” head coach Nate Bjorkgren said. “All of us at the Pacers wish him the very best as he transitions to his next chapter.”

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Bulls guard Chandler Hutchison is out indefinitely due to personal reasons, Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago tweets. He’ll continue to be around the team and on the sidelines. Hutchinson played four minutes against Orlando on Friday but only appeared in one game in January after testing positive for the coronavirus.
  • Caris LeVert is attending Pacers practices two weeks after undergoing surgery for kidney cancer, according to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. “He’s obviously in all of our film sessions and our team meetings,” coach Nate Bjorkgren said. “He’s getting there, he’s walking around and that’s a good start.” Acquired in the four-team blockbuster deal that sent James Harden to Brooklyn, LeVert is out indefinitely.
  • The Cavaliers’ current road trip could determine the direction of the team for the remainder of the season, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. It could decide their approach to the trade deadline and whether they have a realistic chance at making the postseason.
  • Bucks guard Jrue Holiday was declared inactive on Monday due to the league’s health and safety protocols, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets.

Health Updates: Satoransky, Hutchison, Tatum, Fournier, More

A handful of NBA players who reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this season are close to returning to action, including Bulls veterans Tomas Satoransky and Chandler Hutchison. Head coach Billy Donovan said today that both players practiced and are on track to being available for Friday’s game vs. Charlotte (Twitter link).

Meanwhile, Celtics star Jayson Tatum will remain sidelined for Wednesday’s game vs. Philadelphia, but has a chance to get back on the court for Friday’s rematch vs. the 76ers after clearing the NBA’s health and safety protocols. Head coach Brad Stevens said during an appearance on Zolak & Bertand in Boston today that Tatum has about a 50/50 chance of playing on Friday, per Brian Robb of Boston Sports Journal (Twitter link).

Finally, Sixers guard Seth Curry is out of the league’s COVID-19 protocols, but isn’t quite ready to suit up for Wednesday’s game. Although he wasn’t listed on the club’s initial injury report, he’ll sit out tonight due to “post health and safety protocols reconditioning,” says Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

Here are a few more health updates from around the NBA:

  • Magic guard Evan Fournier, who has been on the shelf for the team’s last nine games due to back spasms, will be available for Wednesday’s game vs. Minnesota, the team announced (via Twitter). Orlando was 4-0 with Fournier healthy to start the season, but lost the game in which he was injured and has slumped badly since then. Fournier’s return will be a welcome sight for the 6-8 club.
  • Hornets center Cody Zeller, who suffered a broken hand on opening night, returned to practice today, according to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer, who notes (via Twitter) that the big man’s recovery timeline has him on track for an early-February return.
  • In case you missed it, the Trail Blazers announced this week that CJ McCollum (foot) and Jusuf Nurkic (wrist) will be out for at least four weeks and six weeks, respectively.

Central Notes: Jackson, Bulls, Doumbouya, Cavaliers

Following injuries to rookie Killian Hayes and veteran reserve Derrick Rose, two-way Pistons point guard Frank Jackson, a late addition to Detroit’s roster last month, has stepped up in an expanded role, according to Rod Beard of The Detroit News.

Pistons head coach Dwane Casey commended the 22-year-old. “I really like Frank,” Casey said. “He’s a quick-twitch kid, an offensive player who’s tough on the ball and he has a lot of toughness about him.”

There’s more out of the Central Division:

  • Bulls forward Otto Porter Jr., recovering from a lower back strain incurred on January 8, returned to team practice today, according to Rob Schaeffer of NBC Sports Chicago. Reserves Tomas Satoransky and Chandler Hutchison, having tested positive for COVID-19 at the beginning of the month, are in different stages of their recovery. Coach Billy Donovan noted that Hutchison, who had symptoms while ill with the virus, can return to Chicago’s practice facility. Satoransky remains in isolation, though Donovan said he was “a day or two away” from being permitted to use the Advocate Center.
  • Pistons are playing the long game with 20-year-old second-year forward Sekou Doumbouya, according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Doumbouya has yet to earn rotation minutes behind veteran starters Jerami Grant and Blake Griffin. “It’s a process,” head coach Dwane Casey said of Doumbouya’s minutes. Doumbouya is also slotted behind young forwards Saddiq Bey and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk.
  • Joe Vardon and Kelsey Russo of The Athletic posit that the Cavaliers have been winning their recent trades. They suggest that, following the acquisition of former Nets center Jarrett Allen yesterday, veteran center Andre Drummond, on an expiring deal, will now become a candidate for a trade or buyout. The team also added small forward Taurean Prince from Brooklyn. Russo and Vardon applaud the team’s various acquisitions of draft picks, young talent, and solid veterans.