CJ McCollum might've already played his final game for the Wizards

"CJ McCollum will miss his first game of the season for the Washington Wizards on Wednesday with what the team is calling right quad soreness. Maybe there is nothing more to it than that, but the timing is interesting, considering on Monday, NBA insider Marc Stein reported the team was having conversations with the Hawks about a Trae Young trade. Shortly after Washington said that McCollum would sit, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported that Young's top trade destination is the Wizards."

"Young, for what it's worth, will also miss Atlanta's game against New Orleans on Wednesday, his sixth-straight missed contest with a quad contusion. He might've already played in his final game for the Hawks, too. Jake Fischer reported on Wednesday that Atlanta would wait to see if any suitors outside of Washington emerged, but that was before Charania's report. That could still be the stance that the Hawks are taking, but they could be more motivated now to trade him sooner rather than later."

"Stein specifically reported on Monday that the Wizards and Hawks discussed a trade centered around McCollum and his $30.6 million contract. When he arrived in D.C. over the summer from the Pelicans, the expectation was that a trade would happen, but it's safe to say that no one thought it would be in a deal for Young. To think that outsiders didn't expect there to be much noise surrounding the rebuilding Wizards this season, much less that they'd trade for a star like Young."

CJ McCollum will miss Wednesday's game for the Washington Wizards due to right quad soreness, marking his first absence of the season. The absence coincides with reported trade conversations between Washington and the Atlanta Hawks centered on Trae Young. Shams Charania reported that Young views the Wizards as his top trade destination. Young has missed six straight games with a quad contusion and may have played his final game for Atlanta. Atlanta reportedly planned to await other suitors, but the emergence of Washington as a leading possibility could motivate the Hawks to pursue a sooner trade.

Read at Wiz of Awes