After striking out on landing Lou Williams to bolster their bench, the Washington Wizards completed a deal with the Brooklyn Nets to add Bojan Bogdanovic. Washington sent Andrew Nicholson, Marcus Thornton and a 2017 lottery protected first round pick to Brooklyn to acquire Bogdanovic and Chris McCullough.

The Wizards' bench had ranged from bad to horrendous for most of this season. Kelly Oubre Jr. was the only regular contributing reserve and he was inconsistent. Washington had hoped for good production from Trey Burke, acquired this summer from Utah, and Tomas Satoransky, who they brought over after several years in Europe, but neither has given them much production off the bench. Burke has continued to struggle with the size and speed of NBA players and Satoransky has flashed at times, but overall isn’t ready to contribute to a playoff team.

All this has meant the Wizards are relying on their starting five more than any other team in the NBA. The good news is that Washington’s opening group of John Wall, Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, Markieff Morris and Marcin Gortat has been the second best five man lineup in the NBA in terms of +/-, trailing only the regular Golden State Warriors' starting five. The downside is that relying on just five players is unsustainable for a team hoping to make a deep playoff run.

Bogdanovic will give Washington a good bench weapon who can play either shooting guard or small forward and fits in any lineup the Wizards want to run. Unlike Williams, who couldn’t really play alongside both Wall and Beal at the same time for defensive reasons, Bogdanovic has the size and strength to play alongside the two guards. 

Bogdanovic is averaging career-highs across the board in nearly every meaningful category. In his third NBA season, he’s blossomed into a good outside shooter that is also capable of making plays off the bounce. He also has good high pressure experience, as he has carried the Croatian National Team in recent international competitions. He scored over 21 PPG in the 2014 FIBA World Cup and followed that up with over 25 PPG in the 2016 Olympics, showing his capable of rising to the occasion on the big stage.

Chris McCullough is more than just a throw-in in this deal too. After tearing his ACL during his freshman season at Syracuse, he missed most of his rookie year with the Nets. This season McCullough has logged most of his time in the D-League, but has flashed the solid inside-outside game that had him pegged as a lottery pick by many before the ACL tear. With both Porter and Bogdanovic being restricted free agents this summer, the Wizards have a potential replacement on the roster to pair with Oubre Jr. for the future. McCullough can also play power forward and Washington doesn’t have much behind Morris, so he could eventually work his way into some minutes down the line there.

Grade for Washington: B+

The Nets had made it clear as far back as a month ago that they were shopping both Bogdanovic and Brook Lopez, along with most of their other veterans. Sean Marks and Trajan Langdon, who lead Brooklyn’s front office, see the picks the Nets owe to Boston as a sunk cost and have made it a priority to recoup assets for players who don’t fit their rebuilding timeline.

Brooklyn moved off their stated desire of two first round picks for Lopez, now asking for one first and a second, but had insisted on getting a first round pick for Bogdanovic. Mission accomplished for the Nets. They also picked up Nicholson and Thornton in the trade, which is solid work for a free agent to be and a young player who is caught in a numbers crunch.

Thornton is unlikely to have much, if any, impact for the Nets and could be a buyout candidate, as Brooklyn is stocked at the guard position. But Nicholson could step in and provide immediate help at the power forward position. In recent weeks, Brooklyn had turned to starting Bogdanovic and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson at the forward spots, as a way to get two of their better players on the floor together. Nicholson could take over the starting power forward spot or could back up Trevor Booker, the previous starter at the four. Nicholson’s ability to rebound and stretch the floor fits what Brooklyn is asking of their big men and his contract isn’t onerous for a team that is in the middle of a multiple season rebuild.

More importantly this trade brings some balance to the Nets lineups and frees up minutes for young players who need them. As previously mentioned, Brooklyn had been playing two natural threes at the forward spot. Bogdanovic being out frees up the starting small forward position for Hollis-Jefferson, who the Nets are very high on. It also opens the door for Caris LeVert, this year’s first round draft pick, to play more minutes. That is key as Brooklyn is hoping LeVert will develop into a 15-20 PPG scorer over time.

At the 2016 NBA Draft, Marks turned Thaddeus Young into the first round pick the Nets used on LeVert and now he’s turned Bogdanovic in to another first. Being willing to move on from the disastrous trade his predecessor made with the Celtics and not worrying about those picks is huge for the franchise to move forward. All too often, teams will make a bad move on top of another bad move, all while chasing after ghosts. Admitting defeat on that move, as Marks has done, has Brooklyn in good shape moving forward.

Grade for Brooklyn: B