The Wizards made a move just before the NBA trade deadline Thursday, when they swapped veteran point guard Andre Miller for point guard Ramon Sessions of the Sacramento Kings.
Yahoo! Sports first reported the exchange.
Miller was traded almost a year after he was acquired. The Wizards were part of a three-team deal Feb. 19, 2014 in which they dealt Jan Vesely to the Denver Nuggets and Eric Maynor plus a protected second-round pick to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Miller helped the second unit after his arrival last season, but his time on the floor this year had dwindled. In January, he played a season-low 11.5 minutes per game. Coach Randy Wittman constantly pressed Miller to run the team at a higher pace than he was.
Sessions is in his eighth season and will join his 11th team. He’s averaged double-digit scoring in the past, putting up 15.8 points per game as recently as the start of the 2013-14 season when he was playing 32.5 minutes per game in Milwaukee an shot 46.1 percent from the field.
In 36 games off the bench this season for the Kings, Sessions has not played well. He is shooting what is by far a career-low 34.4 percent from the field and has a woeful player-efficiency rating of 8.26. League average is 15.
Though, he will give the Wizards’ second unit more scoring punch and the ability to create off the dribble, two things that group desperately needed. The best-case scenario for the Wizards is that Sessions is able to become a double-digit scorer with the second unit, allowing starting point guard John Wall to shave down his minutes a bit during the final 28 games of the season. Wall is still dealing with a sprained right ankle after an active All-Star break.
Numerous other trades were made throughout the league Thursday right at the 3 p.m. trade deadline. The Wizards were among the quietest clubs, with their basic trade of backup point guards.
• Todd Dybas can be reached at tdybas@washingtontimes.com.
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