Three-team trade with Knicks, Mavericks costs little The Wizards bulked up their frontcourt and did a favor for New York, acquiring forward/center Ronny Turiaf and a pair of second-round draft picks in a three-team trade that helped the Knicks add center Tyson Chandler in a sign-and-trade deal.
Washington landed a 2012 pick from the Dallas Mavericks and a 2013 pick plus cash considerations — believed to be $3 million — from the Knicks. In return, the Wizards sent a 2012 protected second-round pick to Dallas. New York also gained rights to Ahmad Nivins and Giorgos Printezis from Dallas, while the Mavericks received Andy Rautins from the Knicks.
“Ronny brings us a tough, inside presence, and we’re looking forward to adding his defense and tenacity to our frontline,” Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement.
New York needed to shed Turiaf’s $4.2 million salary to make room for Chandler, one of the biggest free agent prizes of this offseason, and the Wizards had the cap space to help.
The cash considerations from New York will cover much of Turiaf’s salary, which prorated over 66 games will be closer to $3.4 million.
Turiaf, 6-foot-10 and 247 pounds, averaged 4.2 points and 3.2 rebounds for New York last season. The 28-year-old, who played in college at Gonzaga and was originally a second-round draft pick for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2005, scored in double figures six times for the Knicks, including 10 points in a 112-91 win over Washington at Madison Square Garden in which he was plus-23 on the floor.
A native of Martinique, the French-speaking Turiaf is also close with Wizards second-year center Kevin Seraphin and could play a crucial mentoring role.
The Wizards made a pair of similar deals during the 2010 offseason to help teams that were trying to lure LeBron James, acquiring Kirk Hinrich and $3 million from the Chicago Bulls and later Yi Jianlian and $3 million from the New Jersey Nets.
