Thu, Feb 20, 2014 at 3:32pm

MILLER TO WIZ, VESELY TO NUGGETS, MAYNOR TO 76ERS

In a three-player deal, the Washington Wizards acquired point guard Andre Miller from the Denver Nuggets; the Nuggets acquired center-forward Jan Vesely from the Washington Wizards; and the Philadelphia 76ers acquired point guard Eric Maynor and two second-round draft picks from the Wizards.

What does it give the Washington Wizards
The Wizards are an emerging young squad currently in the thick of the East's playoff race, so Miller is a great veteran fit who can back up young star {P John Wall}. Miller's affordable contract lasts for one more year after this one, and he's an upgrade from Maynor. It's a bit curious the Wizards gave up on the talented Vesely (who made strong progress this summer), but they clearly want to win now.

What does it give the Denver Nuggets
With {P JaVale McGee} out indefinitely the Nuggets have been forced to play a lot of small-ball this season. Vesely has the athleticism to do well in that style, but he is also capable of giving the team an athletic and at-times dominant defensive prospect in the middle of the paint. Miller was on the outs with the coaching staff after clashes between the two, so this is a nice move all-round for a young and improving team.

What does it give the Philadelphia 76ers
Rebuilding young Philly gets another promising piece here in Maynor, who has starter-level talent but didn't quite pan out in stops at Oklahoma City and then Washington. The Sixers also land two draft picks in this deal (although they're second-rounders and so won't likely produce stars). Essentially, for Philly this deal is about taking on Maynor's (fairly) inexpensive salary so the other two teams could make the trade work, while giving Maynor a look in their backcourt. Nice manoeuver by the Sixers.

Fantasy impact
Miller's fantasy stocks immediately jumps, but not quite enough to make him a pickup at this point. While he wasn't playing recently and now will, he remains an aging backup. Vesely probably gets the biggest boost, as he dominated playing in Europe this past summer and might immediately get a chance in Denver's young frontcourt rotation. He should push {P Kosta Koufos} and {P Anthony Randolph} for minutes. Maynor looks like the Sixers' new third-string point guard moving forward, so it's hard to see this as a fantasy upgrade for him (even though he was barely playing in Washington).