Luol Deng to the Wizards?

Luol Deng to the Wizards?

By Joshua Oleksiak

Luol Deng, the starting small forward for the Chicago Bulls since he was drafted in 2004, may be headed to our nation's capital. A rumor has recently surfaced that the Washington Wizards are prepared to offer the Chicago Bulls their 1st round pick, number three overall, straight up for Luol Deng. Last year, Luol Deng average 16.5 points per game on 42.6% shooting. He also averaged 6.3 rebounds last year, an above average stat for a small forward.

Bulls

From the perspective of the Chicago Bulls, I think this is a terrible trade, mainly because of the weakness at the top of the draft. I think the Bulls are targeting small forward Otto Porter from Georgetown. Last year, Porter average 16.4 points per game on 48% shooting. He also averaged 7.5 rebounds last year, a very good mark for an NBA small forward. Porter also shot 42.2% from the three point range, 10% higher than Luol Deng's mark last year. That being said, I do not think Porter will be that much of an improvement, if any, over Deng.

Wizards

I absolutely love this trade for the Wizards. They would get an athletic small forward that can guard people like Lebron James and Paul George. Deng would fit in perfectly with the Wizards system. They are an up-tempo, fast paced team. With Deng, who is a huge improvement over incumbent Martell Webster, they keep their paced and get more offensive.