Pelicans, Wizards Complete Trade Featuring Marvin Bagley III

The NBA trade deadline is weeks away, but NBA teams actively seek opportunities to make roster changes well in advance. The first deal to go down involved the Toronto Raptors sending OG Anunoby to the New York Knicks. There was a new trade to go down on Sunday.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Detroit Pistons will send Marvin Bagley III, Isaiah Livers, and two second-round picks to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala.

“The Pistons and Wizards are finalizing a deal to trade Marvin Bagley, Isaiah Livers, and two second-round picks for forwards Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala, sources tell ESPN,” Wojnarowski wrote.

The motivation behind the trade is clear: the Pistons wanted to dump Bagley’s salary ahead of having to pay him $12.5 million during the 2024-25 season. While neither Ganillari nor Muscala consistently earns minutes, both players are on expiring contracts.

Bagley has averaged 10.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 18.4 minutes per game over the course of 26 appearances. With Daniel Gafford as the main center option in Washington, there should be plenty of opportunity for Bagley to earn playing time after being involved in a frontcourt logjam in Detroit featuring Jalen Duren, James Wiseman, and Isaiah Stewart.

Among the various NBA teams linked in trade rumors to Pascal Siakam, the Pistons will now only have $74.4 million in committed salary for the 2024-25 season, barring any additional trades or roster moves. Detroit has the financial flexibility to make no shortage of moves with nearly $64 million in projected cap space.

It remains to be seen how the Pistons will utilize that financial flexibility. Regardless, the team must make strides in putting winning pieces around Cade Cunningham and the rest of the core, considering they have gone 3-36 through 39 games as the NBA’s worst team.