NBA Trade Rumors 2013 Updates: Washington Wizards Could Trade Marcin Gortat, Nene If Team Continues To Struggle

The Washington Wizards came into the season oozing with confidence that they can finally end their long playoff drought, but things are looking bleak for them in the first few weeks of the season.

If the Wizards do not turn things around, Jose Kaiser of ESPN reported that the team could look to trade veteran assets in exchange for young talents or draft picks to continue their rebuilding process in the offseason.

One of the names that Kaiser mentioned is Marcin Gortat, who was just acquired by the Wizards a week before the season opener in a trade that sent former second-overall pick Emeka Okafor to the Phoenix Suns.

"Marcin Gortat has already been traded once this season, and if Washington doesn't turn it around in the next couple weeks, he could very well find himself on the trading block again," Kaiser, an ESPN insider, reported. "The scuffling Wizards are in a familiar place, buried at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, despite all the hope and optimism that surrounded this team over the summer."

Gortat is having a solid season, averaging 12.7 points to go along with 9.9 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game for the struggling Wizards, which currently have a dreadful 2-7 record.

Teams that are expected to contend for the title or at least a spot in the playoffs could be interested in acquiring the 29-year-old center, whose contract will expire after the season.

"Wizards continue to lose games then the team would be wise to see what it can fetch for Gortat in the trade market. At 29, Gortat is young and talented enough to upgrade a contending team like Oklahoma City or teams like Portland and New Orleans that could also find itself in the playoff hunt. Gortat's reasonable salary of $7.27 million is due to expire after the season, which prospective suitors would also have to take into account," said the ESPN insider report.

Aside from Gortat, Nene could also find himself moving to another team later in the season if the team continues to struggle. The Wizards might be hesitant to deal him, but the veteran power forward could demand for a trade.

After absorbing their sixth loss of the season, Nene expressed his frustration over the lack of focus and commitment to winning on the team, saying that their young players are thinking about their individual stats and not about winning.

"We still think about stats. Our young guys must take their heads out their butts and play the right way, because I'm getting tired of this," Nene said in a Washington Post interview.