Before he gave any inclination that he wanted to trade Russell Westbrook, general manager Tommy Sheppard’s wish list for the Washington Wizards centered around one idea. He wanted to get the team better at defense.
Specifically, the Wizards needed to add wings who could defend on the perimeter.
“We’ve got to get better defensively,” Sheppard said in June. “Everything starts and ends there.”
Two months later, Sheppard acquired those pieces — in players not originally known for their defense. By trading Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers, Washington got back a package that included guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and forward Kyle Kuzma, two versatile defenders who were a part of a Lakers defense that ranked first last season.