CJ McCollum joins Wizards as part of 3-team swap

Jul 6, 2025 8:03 PM

As anticipated, the Washington Wizards have consolidated their separate trade agreements with the New Orleans Pelicans and Houston Rockets into a single, three-team transaction.

The move was made official via a press release issued by the Pelicans.

Here’s how the finalized trade breaks down:

Wizards receive:
- CJ McCollum
- Kelly Olynyk
- Cam Whitmore
- A 2027 second-round pick from the Bulls (via Pelicans)
Pelicans receive:
- Jordan Poole
- Saddiq Bey
- The draft rights to Micah Peavy (No. 40 overall pick)
Rockets receive:
- The draft rights to Mojave King
- A 2026 second-round pick from the Bulls (via the Wizards)
- A 2029 second-round pick from the Kings (also via the Wizards)

The original deal between the Wizards and Pelicans – the centerpiece of which involved McCollum and Poole – was reached on June 24, just prior to the start of the NBA Draft.

Meanwhile, the separate agreement involving Whitmore and the Rockets was finalized a day before this combined deal was announced.

By merging the two trades into one, the Wizards created a financial advantage for themselves. Had they acquired Cam Whitmore separately from Houston, they would have needed to absorb his $3.54 million 2025/26 salary using a cap exception.

Instead, by including him in a larger outgoing package that also features Jordan Poole and Saddiq Bey, Washington can utilize the NBA’s 125% salary matching rule, enabling them to legally acquire McCollum, Olynyk, and Whitmore in one consolidated move.

The only new wrinkle in the final structure of the trade is that the Rockets will now receive the draft rights to Mojave King from the Pelicans.

That inclusion was necessary to satisfy league rules requiring that all three teams be directly involved with one another – meaning Houston and New Orleans had to “touch” in the transaction for it to qualify as a legitimate three-team trade.

For more details, you can find our original reporting on the Wizards-Pelicans deal (featuring McCollum and Poole) [here], and our coverage of the Whitmore trade with Houston [here].