NBA Draft Rumors: 3 teams trying to trade up in the lottery

NBA Draft Rumors: Magic, Wizards, and Celtics are trying to trade up

Less than a month out from the 2020 NBA Draft, which is scheduled to take place on November 18, uncertainty has become the new certainty. While there are still a number of players that could end up being taken in the top 10, adding to the fact that there’s not even a consensus No. 1 pick, as expected, there are a few teams trying to move up in the lottery to take their coveted prospect.

According to a recent report, three (of the potentially more) teams that are trying to trade up in the lottery include the Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards, and Boston Celtics.

"[via The Ringer]"

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"League sources say both the Celtics and Magic are trying to move up into the mid-lottery using their own first-round picks, and the Wizards are angling to move up from no. 9."

It’s not surprising to see that the Magic are interested in potentially trading up into the lottery. This is a team that has perhaps reached its peak with their current core and are in desperate need of a new face of the franchise.

Orlando should be trying to trade up.

As far as the Wizards and Celtics, those are both interesting teams. Boston has the draft capital to do so – they have three first-round picks in this year’s draft and will almost certainly like to move at least one of them. The Celtics need help in the frontcourt – specifically at the center position – and could target one of the highly touted bigs if they can get into the 7-13 range.

The Wizards might be the most interesting team included in this report. Not because Washington isn’t a team that needs high-level talent, but because of the expectation that this team is not going to rebuild and will run it back with John Wall and Bradley Beal.

Not to say that this suggests the Wizards won’t be doing so, but that if Washington was entirely sold on their future with Wall and Beal, I’m not so sure they’d be “trying” to move up in the lottery.

The bigger question revolves around who they’d be targeting should they be able to move up? If that’s a guard, perhaps there’s more to those Bradley Beal whispers after all.

Either way, the 2020 NBA Draft should provide quite the theater.