Wizards Acquire Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins

Washington Wizards President of Basketball Operations Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has acquired guard/forward Caron Butler and guard Chucky Atkins from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for forward Kwame Brown and guard Laron Profit.

“We are happy to acquire two talented and experienced players in this trade,” said Grunfeld. “Caron is a versatile player who can play both the guard and forward positions for us. Over his career, Caron has been a very productive player, a physical defender and a very unselfish player. Chucky has experience as a starter in this league, and also has been a valuable contributor off the bench. He is a good three-point shooter and a tough defender.”

“I’m pleased that we’ve added two talented players to our rotation, said Wizards Head Coach Eddie Jordan. “Caron is a proven scorer in this league, and Chucky will really stretch the defense for us. They also bring playoff experience to our roster.”

The 2004-05 season marked Butler’s best season as a professional as he averaged 15.5 points and 5.8 rebounds in 77 games played for the Los Angeles Lakers. Over the final 17 games of the season, he averaged 21.1 points on 46 percent shooting from the field and 7.1 rebounds per game. He finished the season ranked 17th in the NBA in free throw percentage (.862) and 16th in the league in steals per turnover (0.88). In his three-year NBA career, Butler is averaging 13.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.

Originally drafted by the Miami Heat with the 10th overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, Butler averaged 12.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in 146 career games with Miami. As a rookie, he started 78 games and averaged 15.4 points and 5.1 rebounds while leading the Heat in points (1,201), steals (137), minutes played (2,858), field goals made (429), field goals attempted (1,032), free throws made (309) and free throws attempted (375). He was named NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month on four occasions that season.

Atkins started a career-best 82 games in 2004-05 with the Lakers. He averaged career-highs in points (13.6) and rebounds (2.4) and added 4.4 assists per game last season. He finished the season ranked ninth in the NBA in three-point field goals made (176). Entering his seventh season, Atkins is averaging 10.7 points, 3.7 assists and 1.9 rebounds per game.

Atkins began his NBA career in 1999 with the Orlando Magic where he played all 82 games his rookie season and averaged 9.5 points and 3.7 assists per game in 19.8 minutes per play. He spent the next four seasons with the Detroit Pistons where he appeared in 265 games and averaged 9.4 points, 3.1 assists and 1.97 rebounds per game. He was traded to the Boston Celtics midway through the 2003-04 season and appeared in 24 games, averaging 12 points and 5.3 assists per game. On August 13, 2004 he was traded from Boston to the Lakers along with Chris Mihm and Jumaine Jones in exchange for Gary Payton, Rick Fox and a future first round draft pick.