It's only a matter of time before New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson plays for another team, and the Washington Wizards should use him to advance their rebuild.
The Wizards are developing their young core as they lose enough games to make sure they keep their top-eight protected 2026 first-round draft pick, but this season has shown that they desperately need a point guard. They've utilized second-year guard Bub Carrington in that role, but he has yet to show enough consistency to nail down the job long-term.
The bright side is that the 20-year-old, who entered the NBA as a combo guard, still has plenty of time to adjust and improve. However, Washington ranks last in basketball with a 108.3 offensive rating (per NBA Advanced Stats), which is one of the main reasons why it has already lost nine games by 20-plus points and two by 19 despite playing just 22 contests thus far. It's one thing to secure next summer's lottery pick, and it's another to waste valuable game minutes for emerging talents like second-year center Alex Sarr, second-year wing Kyshawn George, and rookie guard Tre Johnson by constantly getting blown out.
The Wizards must thread the needle better between accomplishing their draft capital goal and also using competitive losses to help their young talent develop in the meantime. Getting a veteran point guard by the Feb. 5 NBA Trade Deadline would help accomplish that, as their offense would improve with better facilitation.
Williamson isn't a point guard, but they could get one from the Pelicans as payment for absorbing his contract.
Option 1: Trade for Zion Williamson in-season
The conservative option would be to wait until after the 2026 NBA Draft, when Washington would possibly have players like Kansas point guard Darryn Peterson or Louisville point guard Mikel Brown Jr.. But that would subject Sarr and company to a full season without a consistent facilitator to get them open looks, as previously stated.
Enter Dejounte Murray. The 29-year-old is rehabbing from an Achilles tear and is expected back around New Year's, per ESPN's Shams Charania.
Shams with an update on Dejounte Murray stating a likely return at the end of 2025.
— Justin (@ProPelsTalk) September 24, 2025
The Pelicans no longer need Murray after drafting Jeremiah Fears No. 7 overall this past summer, right after the Wizards snagged Johnson at No. 6. Fears is an on-ball player while Johnson is best off-ball, which is why Washington still needs a consistent on-ball threat.
Here's a trade that would work for both sides:
Wizards get:
- F Zion Williamson
- G Dejounte Murray
- C Yves Missi
- 2030 second-round pick
Pelicans get:
- G Bilal Coulibaly
- F Khris Middleton
- G Corey Kispert
- C Marvin Bagley III (can't get traded until Dec. 15)
- 2026 first-round pick (least favorable of OKC, HOU, or LAC)
- 2026 second-round pick (via PHX)
- 2027 second-round pick
This deal would not only put a band-aid on the Wizards' point guard issue, but it would also net them Missi as a long-term backup to Sarr. The 21-year-old finished with 9.1 points per game on 54.7 percent shooting with 8.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.3 blocks across 26.8 minutes as a rookie last season, but his counting stats are down this year due to decreased playing time.
Meanwhile, Washington would move off of the oft-injured Coulibaly, who is extension-eligible this offseason. The 21-year-old is the team's best perimeter defender, but he's on the injury report again with an oblique strain after not reaching 65 games played in either of his first two seasons, per the team's social media. His shooting efficiency is also worrisome, as he's down to a 37.4 percent field goal clip (26.8 percent 3-point) after shooting 43.5 percent (34.6 percent 3-point) and 42.1 percent (28.1 percent 3-point) in each of the last two campaigns, respectively.
Additionally, the Wizards would take a low-risk bet on Williamson, who averages 24.6 points on 58.5 percent shooting (31.7 percent 3-point) with 6.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists over his career. The 25-year-old has played 65-plus games in a season just once since he entered the NBA in 2019 and is currently out with an adductor ailment, but that's why the remaining two-and-a-half years of his contract are non-guaranteed, per The Athletic's Mike Vorkunov. He must hit certain games played and weight benchmarks to receive all of the money he's owed, so it wouldn't hurt Washington's pockets if his health doesn't improve. If it did, he would add star power to an organization that needs it.
As for Murray, he averaged 17.5 points on 39.3 percent shooting (29.9 percent 3-point) with 6.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists over 31 games for New Orleans before going down last season. The former Washington Huskie has a combined $63.5 million cap hit over the next two seasons before a $30.7 million player option in the 2027 offseason, but the Wizards could trade him after the upcoming draft if they land one of the point guards.
The Pelicans would get a first-round pick back after giving an unprotected 2026 first to the Atlanta Hawks for rookie center Derik Queen this past summer, although it will likely be at the end of the round at the pace the Oklahoma City Thunder (24-1) are on. Adding Coulibaly to their young core would be risky, but his defense gives him enough upside to gamble on.
Finally, Washington shedding Middleton and Bagley's expiring contracts as well as Kispert would make the money work in this deal, per Fanspo's NBA Trade Machine.
Option 2: Trade for Zion Williamson after drafting point guard
If the Wizards refrain from big trades this season and draft a point guard, they could still get Williamson to add to the frontcourt. In that case, the Pelicans could keep Murray, and Washington could send a package for Williamson and Missi centering around Coulibaly.
On the other hand, a Williamson deal would be redundant for the Wizards if they draft a premier forward like Duke's Cameron Boozer, BYU's AJ Dybantsa, or North Carolina's Caleb Love. If they land one of those prospects after doing Option 1, they could try to trade Williamson before his contract expires.
