NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on Davis Bertans' Trade Value, 76ers and Masai Ujiri

In today's up-and-down NBA, the pace of play has the game moving at a rapid rate.

Apparently, that applies to the rumor mill too.

The latest rumblings around the Association include a possible trade chip emerging in the nation's capital, insight into the restructuring of a contender and details of how one team tried to lure away the champion's top executive.

Davis Bertans Has 1st-Round Value on Trade Market?

The Washington Wizards seemingly lucked their way into adding 6'10" three-point sniper Davis Bertans this summer.

The sharpshooter only became available once the San Antonio Spurs thought they needed cap space to sign Marcus Morris, who had an agreement to come to the Alamo City but later second-guessed it and took a one-year, $15 million deal with the New York Knicks.

The Wizards' good fortune on the Bertans front has continued into the season. Powered by a career-high 27.8 minutes per game, he's posting personal bests almost across the board, including 3.1 threes per game and a 43.0-percent success rate on his long-range looks.

That combination of volume and accuracy is sure to draw attention around this shooting-crazed league, and it seems that's already taking place.

"Bertans is a difference-maker when it comes to his play on the court," a scout told ESPN's Bobby Marks. "Don't be surprised if teams are willing to give up a first-rounder for him closer to the deadline."

The 27-year-old sits 10th overall in threes per game, and his 43 percent splash rate ranks 12th among players with 30-plus triples. Any team with spacing concerns would be glad to grab him.

So why might the Wizards consider giving him up? Because they're going nowhere fast without John Wall this season, and Bertans isn't signed beyond it. While Washington could conceivably hope to keep him this summer, the reward of an extra first-rounder might be too enticing to pass up.

Chemistry Concerns Led to Sixers' Summer Changes?

The Philadelphia 76ers won 51 games last season. They were maybe one unfortunate bounce—or, really, four bad bounces—away from dispatching the eventual champion Toronto Raptors and perhaps positioning themselves for their first NBA title since 1983.

So it raised more than a few eyebrows when they underwent significant roster changes this summer. Jimmy Butler, Dario Saric and JJ Redick went elsewhere, while Al Horford and Josh Richardson joined the fray.

That's a massive adjustment for an on-paper contender, but there's a thought process behind all these moves.

"After Game 7 of their epic series against the Toronto Raptors," ESPN's Zach Lowe reported, "the parent of one Sixer confided to higher-ups that the team's chemistry felt off, sources say—that they seemed like a group that would rather ride home in separate cars."

Lowe later added that the Sixers did not put a five-year maximum offer in front of Butler. The ESPN scribe opined there may have been multiple motives behind that decision:

"Perhaps the Sixers pivoted after learning of Horford's interest in joining. Perhaps they were concerned about tension between Butler and some within the team, including on the coaching staff. Maybe those two things were interrelated. Like every team chasing Butler, they probably wondered how he would age."

The good news here is that, for now at least, none of the parties should be looking back.

The Sixers have surged out to a 9-5 start. Butler's new team, the Miami Heat, has fared even better with a 10-3 mark. So while this might go down as one of the more fascinating what-if questions in recent history, it feels more like a win-win at this point.

Wizards Offered Masai Ujiri 'Anything He Wanted?'

The Wizards had big ambitions for their front office this summer. They reportedly made big offers too.

After cutting ties with longtime general manager Ernie Grunfeld, the Wizards aimed for the stars. More specifically, they set their sights on Toronto Raptors top decision-maker Masai Ujiri, a former Executive of the Year who had just assembled a league champion.

Certainly, it would have taken something special to lure Ujiri away from Toronto, and Washington reportedly tried to deliver that. Trevor Cole shared the details for Toronto Life:

"Ujiri was wooed by the owners of the Washington Wizards, who made it clear to him, unofficially, that they would give him anything he wanted—including an ownership stake in the company that owns the Wizards, the NHL's Washington Capitals and various other properties—if only he would leave Toronto behind."

Ujiri declined the overtures—which ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski noted could have included an eight-figure annual salary—and stayed in Toronto, while Washington promoted Tommy Sheppard to the general manager role.