Wizards not inclined to trade Kyle Kuzma

January 24, 2024

There have undoubtedly been rumors that Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma is available. And why not? The Wizards have been abysmal and are looking to clean house.

But while they’re garnering interest from Kuzma, they aren’t looking to move him, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

“Washington has been very reticent with Kyle Kuzma,” Wojnarowski said on his podcast. “People are calling them. Teams tell me they call them and they’re not getting counters from Washington. If you want to register an offer for Kuzma, fine, you can do it. But they’re not at the point now where it seems like they’re really active in maybe seriously trying to move him.”

The Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings are among those who reportedly have at least some interest in Kuzma.

Washington is seeking two first-round picks as part of the return, should they indeed become open to a deal, per Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

“And the implication is they will be seeking higher quality picks than Toronto received from Indiana in the (Pascal Siakam) trade; two of the three future first-rounders sent to the Raptors by Indiana are from the oft-maligned 2024 draft this June,” Stein wrote.

That said, Washington is feeling no pressure to trade Kuzma, who’s in Year One of a four-year, $90 million contract, Stein added.

“Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma has drawn exploratory trade interest from several teams around the league, league sources told HoopsHype, and that interest could intensify with teams missing out on Pascal Siakam,” Michael Scotto of HoopsHype wrote late last week. “Following reports that Washington wants two first-round picks to potentially part with Kuzma, there is further clarity and caveats to that. The Wizards would need future first-round picks beyond the 2024 draft with the potential to become lottery picks to consider parting with their best player, league sources told HoopsHype.”

Kuzma, 28, is averaging 21.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists, shooting 45 percent overall and 34 percent on 3-pointers. He’s due to make $25.6 million this season. He carries NBA career averages of 17.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists with the Wizards and Los Angeles Lakers.