WASHINGTON — Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic played against his former team several times before Saturday’s meeting. For the first time, the Indiana-Washington matchup occurred without Otto Porter Jr. on the Wizards’ roster.



Don’t ignore the connection.



The focus on Washington trading Porter ahead of the Feb. 7 deadline involved the almighty dollar. For some, the good-not-great forward received too much based on production. Others focused more on the salary cap-strapped Wizards clearing space for next season. We can quibble over specifics, but some level of truth lies within both views.



Neither reason, alone or in conjunction, fully explains the Wizards trading a talented player they developed after selecting him third overall in the 2013 NBA Draft.



Next season’s roster plays an enormous factor.



When John Wall underwent season-ending heel surgery in early January, the 6-8 month recovery time meant Washington’s All-Star point guard would be available for opening night 2019. Subsequent news that Wall’s ruptured Achilles and would sideline him approximately 12 months from February’s surgery changed the plan.



That’s what Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld told NBC Sports Washington and other outlets after the team traded Porter to the Chicago Bulls for forwards Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker along with a second-round selection. Washington created future salary cap space and eliminated its remaining luxury tax payment for this season by trading Porter and, in another maneuver, Markieff Morris to New Orleans.



Those financial considerations existed before Wall’s Achilles tear. It’s the roster outlook that changed.



Washington’s projected salaries exceeded the 2019-20 cap with only five players under contract. That included Wall, who at the least misses the first half of next season and possibly the entire campaign, two-time All-Star Bradley Beal, Porter, rookie Troy Brown Jr. and center Ian Mahinmi.



Considering Brown’s limited usage this season and Mahinmi falling out of the rotation three seasons into his four-year, $64 million contract, that meant two proven rotation pieces for next season.



Trading Porter removed one of the team’s building blocks but created space to re-sign their own free agents including Tomas Satoransky, Trevor Ariza and Portis, or target non-elite free agents from other teams.



Ignore how the roster shakes out next season and or the takes on Porter’s pay vs. potential. The Wizards traded away one of their better players in large part because fielding a viable team next season otherwise would prove challenging.



Washington signed free agents Mahinmi, Andrew Nicholson and Jason Smith to multi-year contracts in the summer of 2016. Nicholson’s four-year, $26 million contract became problematic quickly.



Added to provide frontcourt shooting, Nicholson received a DNP-CD six games into the season. He played at least 10 minutes just four times before Washington traded him to Brooklyn before the February deadline. The Wizards attached a 2017 first-round pick to Nicholson’s contract.



In return, Washington created financial flexibility knowing Porter entered restricted free agency that summer. They also acquired Bogdanovic, a hard-nosed forward with an expiring contract. With their new sixth-man, the Wizards came within a game of reaching the conference final.



The Wizards then allowed the restricted free agent to walk that summer while matching Porter’s $106 million free agent offer sheet from the Brooklyn Nets.



“[The Wizards] had a strategy. They didn’t offer me anything,” Bogdanovic told NBC Sports Washington Saturday night.



He signed a two-year, $21 million deal with Indiana. This season Bogdanovic is thriving for the overachieving Pacers.



“I’m really happy that I had this opportunity to be with the Pacers and be one of the leading guys,” he said.



We can debate whether the Wizards should have been more proactive (probably) before Porter put pen to the Nets' paper. Put yourself in the summer of 2017 mindset. Considering the draft investment in Porter and the fourth-year forward was coming off a breakout campaign, the Wizards had no choice but to match.



The Bogdanovic deal made sense then and in retrospect. Washington moved into contender status within the Eastern Conference but needed help for a porous bench. The trade shed Nicholson's contract -- and also removed a future asset.



The Wizards traded their 2017 second-round pick to New Orleans for Tim Frazier. The point guard played one season for Washington. Satoransky is the only second-round pick to play more than one season for the team since 2012.



If Nicholson offered bench production, maybe they never trade for Bogdanovic, which means keeping the first. Even if one of those second-round picks stuck, perhaps the Wizards have enough bodies to avoid changing the plan after Wall’s latest surgery.



Playing the “What if” game becomes tricky because of the butterfly effect. What we know is this: Each move, even if justifiable at the moment, created the situation where the projected salaries put the Wizards over the salary cap next season with only four healthy players. It’s a primary reason why they traded Otto Porter.



One of those choices led to Bogdanovic signing with Indiana.



“I enjoyed every single second [With Washington],” Bogdanovic told NBC Sports Washington shortly before exiting the arena with his friend Satoransky. Bogdanovic also said, “It was really good for me to sign with the Pacers."

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