Washington Wizards Receive: G CJ McCollum, F Robert Covington

Portland Trail Blazers Receive: G Russell Westbrook, WAS 2021 1st Round Pick, WAS 2024 1st Round Pick

Again, this trade is strictly hypothetical and likely would not occur, but Russell Westbrook and CJ McCollum have had their fair share of NBA trade rumors surface and each team could benefit in different ways from this trade.

In three of the last four seasons, Russell Westbrook has averaged a triple-double and has been one of the best players of this generation. His pure athletic abilities make him one of the most dangerous players in the league and next to Damian Lillard, the Portland Trail Blazers’ backcourt could be extremely special. 

While they just traded for Robert Covington in the offseason, he has struggled to begin the year and has not been the same player he was with the Rockets last year. His shooting numbers and rebounding numbers are down and if Portland was to absorb Westbrook’s $41.3M contract for this season, then they would have to trade Covington. 

CJ McCollum has always been known as Damian Lillard’s “sidekick” and while he is a great player in his own right, he will never get the recognition he deserves as long as he is in the shadow of Lillard in Portland. As a result, McCollum has never been named an NBA All-Star, even though he performs better than guys who have been named an All-Star, and will never be more than a “second scoring option.” 

Portland also lacks draft assets over the years, which is another reason why this trade could be attractive to them. It would definitely be interesting to see how a backcourt of Russ and Dame would work out, but if there is one thing we know, it is both guys would continue to be high-level scorers. 

Let’s take a closer look as to why this trade would make sense for both the Washington Wizards and the Portland Trail Blazers.