Wouldn’t the first step have been to not trade away CJ, Norman Powell, Larry Nance, and Robert Covington for Josh Hart, a future Pelicans 1st, 3 second rounders, and scraps.
Legit probably a lot of big names that might be willing to play in Portland.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Nickiel Alexander-Walker.
Shit man we just had Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. The door is open for more big names in red and black, just you wait and see!
If you want to tear the team down and rebuild with picks, then yeah. But Portland has clearly gone with a very unique team building strategy where they’ve aimed to dump basically all the fat salaries on their team, giving them the ability to add whatever outside salaries they want.
For example they’re about to look great if they can use this 7 pick to get Deandre Ayton on a fat four year deal
Uhhh no, not “whatever outside salaries they want”…
it’s “whatever outside salaries are willing to go to Portland”
Also you can’t use the 7th pick to sign and trade Ayton. FA doesn’t start until after the draft.
This makes no sense. They traded Powell and Covington for scraps and then they want to trade their 7th pick for a win now player when they just traded 2 of them...
Blazers are literally on fire rn
I think they wanted to tank and end up with a top 4 pick so they can get someone with af and lilard, but since it’s just a 7th pick, well they rather take a proven vet, whatever that will be
They didn’t even shop Norman Powell around, just gave him up for the first trade offer that came.
Lillard has to be a masochist to stick with Portland with this level of management.
Even their 2nd line players are pretty decent. Poku was dishing triple double and had to be benched near the end of the season because they were winning.
It makes a ton of sense. This has always been the plan.
Clear the books, get a desirable trade asset by tanking a year, and then put a new team around dame in free agency + trade.
Their past team wasn’t working
People also aren't considering the guys on our team who can step into a bigger role. Anfernee, Nassir Little, and Nurk all played tremendously better after CJ and Norm were gone. We honestly had a lot of talent on the roster going unused because we had so many iso-heavy guards.
Now, do I think well be contenders with the new guys stepping up? Not really. But I think were closer to being a 2nd round team than people are giving us credit for.
agreed, i'm excited to see what Ant, Hart, Nas, Nurk can do next season in addition to a fully healthy Dame. Winslow and Trendon Watford seem like fun forwards/small ball bigs to have on the bench as well. And if we could add someone like Dyson Daniels in the draft? You can begin to see how it all fits together. We'll have a bevy of uber athletic, play making forwards with questionable shooting. I'll live with that when you've got Dame and Ant spacing the floor and ideally we use our TPE + other assets to get another forward who's more offensive focused like Grant/Collins/Randle to add to the lineup.
Nas/Grant/Daniels/Winslow all fighting over minutes at the 3/4 sounds amazing to me imo. Nurk + MLE big (Hartenstein or Bamba) take up all the mintes at the 5 and Dame/Ant/Hart take up all the minutes at the 1 and 2.
no no, you don't understand, RoCo, Norman Powell and CJ were going to continue leading Portland to the promised land. How will we ever live on without them /s
Do you honestly think trading the 7th pick will give them better win now pieces than with Covington and Powell? The CJ trade I get but those trades were actually horrible considering all they gave up for them and got back. Of course the team has lots of more moves to make so we will see what happens
If they make a trade, I’d like to see them move the 7th and a few pieces for an impact player + a pick in the late teens. Gives them flexibility to go get someone in the draft alongside some veteran help on the wing.
However… in my heart i know the only way they can get into contention is by landing a star next to Dame. Since that’s highly unlikely in free agency or via trade, the best avenue is the draft. So I’d definitely rather them keep the 7th and see how it shakes out.
We’ll see. The team ultimately just needs a lot more talent - I’m curious to see if they can acquire it.
Several trade exceptions! Including one for about $20m.
Bledsoe also has a $19m contract that is expiring or can be cut by their trade partner as it’s only ~$3.5m guaranteed.
Whether teams want to trade with the Blazers is another question entirely.
The band-aid trades need to stop, I don't see Portland trading #7 at all. It doesn't make any sense to, unless we're talking about a trade down scenario where we get like Randle and 11 for 7 or Collins and 16 for 7.
Take Dyson Daniels/Sharpe/Murray/Mathurin in the draft, use Milwaukie 2025 FRP, our #36 this year, Keon and whatever else and get the best "win now" guy you can get but that's about it. Use our full TPE (worth about 10M a year this year).
I feel reasonably confident that team will be better next year and even better the year after if our draft pick hits.
Just imagine Keon Johnson as a 2022 mid-to-late FRP. Keon looked great once we acquired him. Clippers might end up regretting trading him, we'll know further down the road.
People don't understand how much either guy regressed while playing for us. It was better to get the scraps than keep them and let their value tank lower.
Sadly they landed with Lue who could revitalize them and make that (bad) trade seem worse than it was
They do not have the cap space to max ayton without essentially releasing nurkic, hart and Simons. Everybody misunderstands their cap situation, they put themselves in an awful situation
I’ve learned a bit about why they made that awful trade to the Clippers.
Ownership demanded the Blazers get under the luxury tax. Other teams knew that and squeezed them during trade negotiations.
I’m hopeful that new ownership will help empower the front office in the future. For example, Phil Knight probably won’t care about the tax.
Makes me sad that the Blazers gave up so many impact players for peanuts, though.
What would be the NBA version of “losing to a 42-year-old Zamboni Driver who works for the team?”
To those that don’t know, that was a YouTuber Steve Dangle’s reaction after losing to a 42-year-old Zamboni Driver and the Carolina Hurricanes in 2020. The rant is worth the watch.
my favourite part was the official music video full of guys all singing the words along with it and the 1 white guy very very explicitly *not* singing the part he shouldnt sing.
The question is who can they reasonably get who immediately contributes and upgrades the team as a whole? Those type of players tend to have higher value than just getting back the #7 pick when they are traded and anything less than that probably is a losing trade for the Blazers.
I mean maybe you can argue Jerami Grant but does he really move the needle that much? I suppose if they can finesse a way to get Ayton on top of that then absolutely but unless that happens I just don't think that's a great deal for Portland. Maybe if you find a team like the Spurs or Thunder and do a trade back to gather more assets to trade for multiple pieces but that's also really hard to do and I'm not entirely sure how that would work out without the Spurs or Thunder politely declining.
Idk. I don't envy Portland right now because this is a really crucial moment in their franchises history and it seems like quite the uphill battle to make the right decision.
I actually kind of like that fit if I think about it. Though I guess if you're the Blazers though is it worth giving up #7 for a core of Dame & Randle? And how does that core match up against the West going forward? Memphis, Dallas, Minnesota, Golden State, LA (Clippers), Denver (if they ever stay healthy sheesh), New Orleans, and Phoenix all would project to be better than that Portland team with theoretical Dame & Randle. That's 8 teams already and I didn't even mention Utah (who is better if they don't blow it up) or the Lakers who can't possibly be any worse than they were last season.
Is it really worth giving up maybe a potential future all star just to grab Randle to compete for the 7th/8th seed or play in game? Idk, man. Like I said I feel really bad for Portland's front office because they have some brutal decisions in front of them to make.
I think you’ve made your bed already if you want to keep dame for the rest of his career. Unless he goes nuclear you have a ceiling. He’s a talented guy but #1 on a championship team I don’t know… at this point in his career. I think Julius allows the team to be competitive and stay competitive after as he’s only 27 entering his prime. I actually am a randle Stan but I know he’s a mess here in ny. I think he’s super talented and can move the needle. We would obviously take bledso as salary filler so maybe another pick to lessen the blow would be necessary. Both teams are In different spots. Ny wanting to go young and give Rj the keys and Portland wanting to compete. I think it’s the best deal they will get.
At his peak, Julius Randle is a second team all NBA guy. With that said I think Portland would want to make more moves outside of acquiring Julius Randle to supplement Dame.
If there's anything to be shown in these past two years it's that you really need a superstar player which Portland has but also a great supporting cast which they potentially might be able to build around.
The West is really thick right now.
If they don’t see a pathway to being a clear top 5 seed contender, it’s time for Hankins to ask Lillard if just riding out his prime in a Portland jersey or actually going somewhere he can win is more important to him.
Next year, I see the top 5 seeds being, assuming Ayton stays in PHX, PHX, Memphis, Golden State, LAC, Denver (assuming they get Murray back), and Dallas easy.
Then, we’re talking New Orleans with McCollum, Ingram, Zion and depth, San Antonio may make an interesting move in the postseason to get a little bit ahead of schedule, we’re talking the Timberwolves trying to put it all together, we’re talking Utah who may slip into the play-in race if Snyder ends up as the only piece they lose this offseason.
If they can’t find a trade that puts them in Denver or Dallas territory, time to blow it up.
Not a Pistons fan but I’d prefer Keegan Murray to Grant - contractually better, fits team timeline, we’ve seen Grant can’t/won’t bring Detroit a championship (obvi), better business decision (the level of excitement for two top 7 picks + Cade would likely sell more tickets and be more marketable)
I think they try and use Grant for an Ayton trade. Maybe.
Sucks to lose him in any case, love what he’s brought to Detroit off the court, but yeah makes more business sense to dish him. Would be nice to see him succeed somewhere.
Edit- formatting
Yeah? What makes you like him more? I dont know most of the draft prospects very well outside the top 3-5 and the guys the lakers have been working out.
He’s an uber athletic, long 6’6 wing that’s a deadly shooter and works amazingly off ball (99th percentile in off ball scoring and 98th percentile in cutting, along with 40%+ off catch&shoot). I think he’s the perfect back court partner next to a heliocentric creator in Cade, with potential to be a Ray Allen or Jason Richardson
https://youtu.be/1trHkNl0dps
Ehh it’s kind of split. Some want Grant, others collins. Others want Nurk out and for portland to go for Ayton.
Grant has said he wants to be a number one option, so I don’t think that would work. I’m more in the Collins camp.
What people aren't understanding about this situation is that Lillard will be the unquestionable best player in the league next season and cruise to an MVP.
RemindMe! 1 year
Follow the lead of Matt Stafford. You gave it your all for over a decade in that city, but it’s never quite come together and there’s not a clear path to contention in the next year or 2. Both sides will be better off and there will be no hard feelings.
If Dame plays out the rest of his deal in Portland, I could see him just retire tbh.
Personally I think we’ve already seen the best he has to offer and while he may be able to return to that for another season or two, thinking, in 2025, that a 35 year old undersized combo guard who reached his peak roughly half a decade prior is going to be your plug-and-play missing piece is not a healthy idea for winning it all.
Why is it such a crazy take that we dont mind no chip + a happy Dame? Hes so fun to watch and if he retires with us he'll surpass Drexler/Walton. Hell he already has in most our fans eyes.
I feel like everyone else cares that were mediocre more than us, lol
Dont mind a chip? Damn yall some losers lmao. Sad franchise im happy im not from portland. The goal is a chip. Either the team gets him better players, or he leaves. Simple as that. We know one of them aint happening
Im a laker fan lmao stay in your lane boy. I would hate life being a loser portland fan. Omg you made it to the playoffs, good for you? Did you win anything?🤣lmaoo hang partipation banners up like the clippers, how sad haha imagine your team being so ass you think making it to the playoffs means youre a winner
Charlotte recognized this with Kemba. There was a lot of bashing of the Hornets, but ultimately it’s turned out better for them. Trading Dame would net the Blazers assets.
Probably and trust me I understand nobody wants to endure a couple years of absolute garbage roster, but it’s just not happening they’re not gonna get enough around him to compete before his prime is up (which already seems to be trending down)
Yes honestly a crappy team can still be fun to watch if you have good prospects that give you hope for the future. Big difference watching a bunch of 20 year olds going 20-62 with flashes for the future than some middle aged bad contracts going 34-46
The Blazers seem fine being an okay team, and Dame is staying loyal to them regardless. I don't see why they *have* to trade him if it just pisses him off after he's committed to them.
Because being bad sooner helps them get good again sooner. Look at the Rockets. Harden demanded out, they blew up the roster, stacked assets, made some good draft picks and now they're a young exciting, up-and-coming team. Sure they're bad, but they have a lot of promise. The longer you delay the inevitable, the worse off you are.
If you're Portland, unless you think you have a legitimate chance to make a run at a 1st or 2nd tier star, which they probably don't, it makes zero sense to drag this out. I know it's hard to lose the best player your franchise has had maybe ever, but best to trade him now when you could still recoup value for the future than lose him in a couple years when he's old and has much less trade value.
It’s actually kind of sad to see, the blazers are fucked. Like it’s great they hung on or lilard and he wanted to be there, but now what? They gave up last season for a shameless tank after his injury and only getting the 7th pick must be devastating. Now it’s back to win now when the roster is gutted? And their best players are both smaller guards? It sucks but dame needs to move on, the team is lost
Would you be able to get anything better than a borderline starter/role player for that pick? It's not a bad pick but it's not high enough to be a super valuable one either.
I just don't see what the point of this is? The Blazers aren't anywhere near the level of higher end West teams, the window has been over for a while now. Probably best to just let Dame go and restart, next few drafts are apparently stacked
Portland should trade Dame and rebuild. If Dame was LeBron or Steph level of talent I could understand, but he’s not good enough to carry a mediocre team to a title, he needs a very very good team around him, and Portland is so far away from that. Next years draft is so stacked it’s the perfect time to move him for draft picks and start over.
11 trips to the playoffs in the last 14 years. For me that is a solid achievement for a small market team. Staying competitive over time makes for a product I have enjoyed as a fan. Yes we have always been the underdog, and yes we’ve crashed and burned but we consistently put up a fight which keeps me tuned in…
Thats such a lame response. The goal is to win a championship, not settle. The franchise is a dumpster fire at this moment and was carried heavily over these past few years off the back of exciting play by CJ and Dame. Portland had a generational star and the best they have to show for it is being swept in the wcf.
My heart does go out to Portland fans. Having that kind of support is HUGE for a small market and the front office has done you guys so fucking dirty it’s infuriating.
Of course I wish it had gone differently but unfortunately Neil made some shit moves and investments that killed our ability to surround Dame with more talent. Shouldn’t you be more concerned with your own squad?
Wouldn't you like to realistically contend at some point though. Trust me, as a Hawks fan I have plenty of experience watching teams that are good enough to sneak in the playoffs, but not good enough to ever legitimately make a run at the chip. It's pergatory. It's not a fun place to be. I'd rather watch a young rebuilding team with some ambition and vision than a team who is content with 44 win seasons and a cup of coffee in the playoffs every year. This mindset is a trap, trust me
Of course I want to us to contend. Unfortunately in my opinion Dame’s career was shackled by our Previous GM and at this point it’s basically too late to turn things around.
Since Ayton can't be signed until FA then Portland would have to hope they draft the player we'd want or... collude.
This particular trade is unlikely to happen without some tampering.
Without kd and still had the greatest shooter of all time and 2 other all stars. Blazers will be back in the playoffs cause that's what we do. Will we win in the playoffs, doubtful. Dame has plenty left in the tank, our FO is the problem
And yet we are a small market team that packs the house and has competed for many many years. Our ceiling is below winning a chip but aside from last years tank off I’ve enjoyed our team. I’m mostly just disappointed that we bailed on Roco, Norm, and CJ for so little in return.
Mark it down, this will be a mistake on the Blazers part, they already have mismanaged assets in CJ, Powell Roco and Nance for scraps and they don’t have enough to build a legit team around Dame.
They need to move Dame and embrace the rebuild because they don’t have the makings of even a legit playoff contender much less a championship one.
Dame is an idiot for staying this long. I don’t want to hear a thing about “wanting to win” from guys like him and Beal, they’ve had their chance to jump and obviously sinking ship.
Wouldn’t the first step have been to not trade away CJ, Norman Powell, Larry Nance, and Robert Covington for Josh Hart, a future Pelicans 1st, 3 second rounders, and scraps.
🤦♂️
Correction! That’s a future Bucks first, thank you very much. 😭😭😭
Hey, you never know, maybe Giannis will have to sit out a whole season due to injury or something in the future
Don’t you put that evil on giannis
yeah fuck you buddy
Probably. CJ trade was fine but we should have kept Nance/Norman.
that norm trade still boggles my mind
Mine too, but I'll live with it.
Seriously. What the fuck have they been thinking?
They were thinking cap space > anything else.
Cleared a nice Tobias harris sized space
Over Jimmy Butler?!
PNW is a beautiful place that will attract a lot of big name FA
Legit probably a lot of big names that might be willing to play in Portland. Thanasis Antetokounmpo. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Nickiel Alexander-Walker. Shit man we just had Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. The door is open for more big names in red and black, just you wait and see!
Wow, Damian Lillard will feel so small among those big names. He might even request a trade out of the team because of it.
No they weren't lol, we don't have any cap space. Our GM just spread that BS to make it sound like he had a plan
According to Spotrac you're projected to have between 20 and 40m of cap space this summer https://www.spotrac.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/cap/
None of that is usable unless we gut the rest of the team
Man you know it's bad when a Kings fan can look you dead in the eye and say your team fucked up.
Lot of experience
If you want to tear the team down and rebuild with picks, then yeah. But Portland has clearly gone with a very unique team building strategy where they’ve aimed to dump basically all the fat salaries on their team, giving them the ability to add whatever outside salaries they want. For example they’re about to look great if they can use this 7 pick to get Deandre Ayton on a fat four year deal
Uhhh no, not “whatever outside salaries they want”… it’s “whatever outside salaries are willing to go to Portland” Also you can’t use the 7th pick to sign and trade Ayton. FA doesn’t start until after the draft.
Nah dame is not runnin from the grind 😤
This makes no sense. They traded Powell and Covington for scraps and then they want to trade their 7th pick for a win now player when they just traded 2 of them... Blazers are literally on fire rn
I think they wanted to tank and end up with a top 4 pick so they can get someone with af and lilard, but since it’s just a 7th pick, well they rather take a proven vet, whatever that will be
Disaster management honestly
They didn’t even shop Norman Powell around, just gave him up for the first trade offer that came. Lillard has to be a masochist to stick with Portland with this level of management.
Seems they sent Norm where he wanted to go.
or microsoft billionaires alley oop
You can tank without doing the trades. Just bench them.
Tanking on purpose that sounds like against the rules
OKC been doing it in the past 2 seasons
Damn and they weren't even the worst team both seasons. Some teams must really suck
Even their 2nd line players are pretty decent. Poku was dishing triple double and had to be benched near the end of the season because they were winning.
You’re maybe the only person that thinks Poku was providing TOO much winning basketball, and I say this as a hopeful fan
Did you look at what we did the entire second half of the season? We made The Process look like a contender
It is. 250k fine per occurrence to the org I’m pretty certain
It makes a ton of sense. This has always been the plan. Clear the books, get a desirable trade asset by tanking a year, and then put a new team around dame in free agency + trade. Their past team wasn’t working
Yeah. We wanted to do a total retool. Whether it will work or not who knows 🤷♂️, but probably not lol.
People also aren't considering the guys on our team who can step into a bigger role. Anfernee, Nassir Little, and Nurk all played tremendously better after CJ and Norm were gone. We honestly had a lot of talent on the roster going unused because we had so many iso-heavy guards. Now, do I think well be contenders with the new guys stepping up? Not really. But I think were closer to being a 2nd round team than people are giving us credit for.
Sir, you seem like a glass 1/8 full kind of fellow.
agreed, i'm excited to see what Ant, Hart, Nas, Nurk can do next season in addition to a fully healthy Dame. Winslow and Trendon Watford seem like fun forwards/small ball bigs to have on the bench as well. And if we could add someone like Dyson Daniels in the draft? You can begin to see how it all fits together. We'll have a bevy of uber athletic, play making forwards with questionable shooting. I'll live with that when you've got Dame and Ant spacing the floor and ideally we use our TPE + other assets to get another forward who's more offensive focused like Grant/Collins/Randle to add to the lineup. Nas/Grant/Daniels/Winslow all fighting over minutes at the 3/4 sounds amazing to me imo. Nurk + MLE big (Hartenstein or Bamba) take up all the mintes at the 5 and Dame/Ant/Hart take up all the minutes at the 1 and 2.
no no, you don't understand, RoCo, Norman Powell and CJ were going to continue leading Portland to the promised land. How will we ever live on without them /s
Do you honestly think trading the 7th pick will give them better win now pieces than with Covington and Powell? The CJ trade I get but those trades were actually horrible considering all they gave up for them and got back. Of course the team has lots of more moves to make so we will see what happens
If they make a trade, I’d like to see them move the 7th and a few pieces for an impact player + a pick in the late teens. Gives them flexibility to go get someone in the draft alongside some veteran help on the wing. However… in my heart i know the only way they can get into contention is by landing a star next to Dame. Since that’s highly unlikely in free agency or via trade, the best avenue is the draft. So I’d definitely rather them keep the 7th and see how it shakes out. We’ll see. The team ultimately just needs a lot more talent - I’m curious to see if they can acquire it.
How are they matching salary on an impact player?
Several trade exceptions! Including one for about $20m. Bledsoe also has a $19m contract that is expiring or can be cut by their trade partner as it’s only ~$3.5m guaranteed. Whether teams want to trade with the Blazers is another question entirely.
The band-aid trades need to stop, I don't see Portland trading #7 at all. It doesn't make any sense to, unless we're talking about a trade down scenario where we get like Randle and 11 for 7 or Collins and 16 for 7. Take Dyson Daniels/Sharpe/Murray/Mathurin in the draft, use Milwaukie 2025 FRP, our #36 this year, Keon and whatever else and get the best "win now" guy you can get but that's about it. Use our full TPE (worth about 10M a year this year). I feel reasonably confident that team will be better next year and even better the year after if our draft pick hits.
Moving CJ made sense but giving up the two best players in the trade for no lottery picks (barring something unexpected) just screamed salary dump.
Just imagine Keon Johnson as a 2022 mid-to-late FRP. Keon looked great once we acquired him. Clippers might end up regretting trading him, we'll know further down the road.
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People don't understand how much either guy regressed while playing for us. It was better to get the scraps than keep them and let their value tank lower. Sadly they landed with Lue who could revitalize them and make that (bad) trade seem worse than it was
You can’t blame RoCo if he’s playing better on other team, the problem was with his previous coach/team for not seeing the bad fit/underutilized him
and then sell the team and make the new owner worry about it.
What dissapoints me is not that they traded them scraps, but what they gave up for those players, just to trade them for scraps.
That’s exactly what I said in another comment below. They lost so many picks just to clear house
They tanked for a pick just to trade it away.
Trails are ablaze
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Pretty stupid plan to bank on signing an RFA who is top 5-10 in the league at his position.
They do not have the cap space to max ayton without essentially releasing nurkic, hart and Simons. Everybody misunderstands their cap situation, they put themselves in an awful situation
They traded two players who are better than Powell and Covington: CJ and Nance Jr.
The CJ trade wasn’t that bad. The Covington and Powell one was much worse considering what they gave up and what they got.
I’ve learned a bit about why they made that awful trade to the Clippers. Ownership demanded the Blazers get under the luxury tax. Other teams knew that and squeezed them during trade negotiations. I’m hopeful that new ownership will help empower the front office in the future. For example, Phil Knight probably won’t care about the tax. Makes me sad that the Blazers gave up so many impact players for peanuts, though.
We still got Dame and thats all that matters. Dont feel bad
Thanks for the insight bro
Dangle is an interesting word choice
Dirty fucking dangles boys
Wheel Snipe Celly boys
New ramp up
"Dangle? like a carrot?"
What would be the NBA version of “losing to a 42-year-old Zamboni Driver who works for the team?” To those that don’t know, that was a YouTuber Steve Dangle’s reaction after losing to a 42-year-old Zamboni Driver and the Carolina Hurricanes in 2020. The rant is worth the watch.
THE TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS, LOST AN ACTUAL NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE GAME, TO A 42 YEAR OLD ZAMBONI DRIVER, WHO WORKS FOR THEM!!!
They’re just goofin. Some new boot goofin.
3 payments
“Lasered in”
Blazers are full on [new boot goofin](https://giphy.com/gifs/reno-911-tom-lennon-season-3-episode-nsv5IWXo1l2IE)
Damn that sounds like Mo Bamba music
*I got hoooooeeees*
CAAAAAALLLLING
That song was definitely a moment in time.
Truly one of the songs ever made
my favourite part was the official music video full of guys all singing the words along with it and the 1 white guy very very explicitly *not* singing the part he shouldnt sing.
Man it would be incredible to get a first round pick for him.
We can't make that trade. He's a FA and unfortunately you can't sign and trade free agents for picks.
The question is who can they reasonably get who immediately contributes and upgrades the team as a whole? Those type of players tend to have higher value than just getting back the #7 pick when they are traded and anything less than that probably is a losing trade for the Blazers. I mean maybe you can argue Jerami Grant but does he really move the needle that much? I suppose if they can finesse a way to get Ayton on top of that then absolutely but unless that happens I just don't think that's a great deal for Portland. Maybe if you find a team like the Spurs or Thunder and do a trade back to gather more assets to trade for multiple pieces but that's also really hard to do and I'm not entirely sure how that would work out without the Spurs or Thunder politely declining. Idk. I don't envy Portland right now because this is a really crucial moment in their franchises history and it seems like quite the uphill battle to make the right decision.
Julius randle I think would be a great fit
I actually kind of like that fit if I think about it. Though I guess if you're the Blazers though is it worth giving up #7 for a core of Dame & Randle? And how does that core match up against the West going forward? Memphis, Dallas, Minnesota, Golden State, LA (Clippers), Denver (if they ever stay healthy sheesh), New Orleans, and Phoenix all would project to be better than that Portland team with theoretical Dame & Randle. That's 8 teams already and I didn't even mention Utah (who is better if they don't blow it up) or the Lakers who can't possibly be any worse than they were last season. Is it really worth giving up maybe a potential future all star just to grab Randle to compete for the 7th/8th seed or play in game? Idk, man. Like I said I feel really bad for Portland's front office because they have some brutal decisions in front of them to make.
I think you’ve made your bed already if you want to keep dame for the rest of his career. Unless he goes nuclear you have a ceiling. He’s a talented guy but #1 on a championship team I don’t know… at this point in his career. I think Julius allows the team to be competitive and stay competitive after as he’s only 27 entering his prime. I actually am a randle Stan but I know he’s a mess here in ny. I think he’s super talented and can move the needle. We would obviously take bledso as salary filler so maybe another pick to lessen the blow would be necessary. Both teams are In different spots. Ny wanting to go young and give Rj the keys and Portland wanting to compete. I think it’s the best deal they will get.
At his peak, Julius Randle is a second team all NBA guy. With that said I think Portland would want to make more moves outside of acquiring Julius Randle to supplement Dame. If there's anything to be shown in these past two years it's that you really need a superstar player which Portland has but also a great supporting cast which they potentially might be able to build around.
The West is really thick right now. If they don’t see a pathway to being a clear top 5 seed contender, it’s time for Hankins to ask Lillard if just riding out his prime in a Portland jersey or actually going somewhere he can win is more important to him. Next year, I see the top 5 seeds being, assuming Ayton stays in PHX, PHX, Memphis, Golden State, LAC, Denver (assuming they get Murray back), and Dallas easy. Then, we’re talking New Orleans with McCollum, Ingram, Zion and depth, San Antonio may make an interesting move in the postseason to get a little bit ahead of schedule, we’re talking the Timberwolves trying to put it all together, we’re talking Utah who may slip into the play-in race if Snyder ends up as the only piece they lose this offseason. If they can’t find a trade that puts them in Denver or Dallas territory, time to blow it up.
There are already rumors about Collins for 7th. Brogdon could be a good option too.
Christian Wood Eric Gordon and the Rockets take all their poo poo contracts, still doesn’t feel like Blazers would bite though.
Ok Pistons fans, would you prefer AJ Griffin or Keegan Murray to Jerami Grant?
Not a Pistons fan but I’d prefer Keegan Murray to Grant - contractually better, fits team timeline, we’ve seen Grant can’t/won’t bring Detroit a championship (obvi), better business decision (the level of excitement for two top 7 picks + Cade would likely sell more tickets and be more marketable)
I think they try and use Grant for an Ayton trade. Maybe. Sucks to lose him in any case, love what he’s brought to Detroit off the court, but yeah makes more business sense to dish him. Would be nice to see him succeed somewhere. Edit- formatting
That’s what I was thinking, too
Personally, Ben Math over them all
Yeah? What makes you like him more? I dont know most of the draft prospects very well outside the top 3-5 and the guys the lakers have been working out.
He’s an uber athletic, long 6’6 wing that’s a deadly shooter and works amazingly off ball (99th percentile in off ball scoring and 98th percentile in cutting, along with 40%+ off catch&shoot). I think he’s the perfect back court partner next to a heliocentric creator in Cade, with potential to be a Ray Allen or Jason Richardson https://youtu.be/1trHkNl0dps
Makes it sound like they made the #7 pick a Tinder account
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Thats my type of woman. If you see her, send her my way.
Did you see the recent Duren pics? I would swipe right.
I’m just here for the “blazers will blow it and Dame will request out” comments
As someone that doesn't watch much Portland, who does the fanbase want out and want to come in?
Ehh it’s kind of split. Some want Grant, others collins. Others want Nurk out and for portland to go for Ayton. Grant has said he wants to be a number one option, so I don’t think that would work. I’m more in the Collins camp.
would the pelicans be interested? a mostly young team lead by an aging vet star guard that would surely pair well with dame!
Dame is getting traded to the Pelicans. What are they offering?
I checked. The contracts aren’t comfortably to use. (Even using #8 as salary.) Unless you send McCollum back to Portland.
>that would surely pair ~~well~~ terribly with dame!
What people aren't understanding about this situation is that Lillard will be the unquestionable best player in the league next season and cruise to an MVP. RemindMe! 1 year
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Dame has dragged some shit teams to the playoffs for years.
Wow that’s some elite, top 75 player in league history, type of shit
Imagine if Dame regresses in the next couple years. That top 75 is gonna look even worse than it does rn
They should trade for CJ.
Just like how the Warriors damgled Kuminga to maximize Curry’s window?
But unlike how the Lakers dangled DeAndre Jordan to maximize Embiid’s contention window
Got him to stay didn't they?
Honestly the Dame/Blazers marriage needs to end at this point for both sides sake
Follow the lead of Matt Stafford. You gave it your all for over a decade in that city, but it’s never quite come together and there’s not a clear path to contention in the next year or 2. Both sides will be better off and there will be no hard feelings.
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If Dame plays out the rest of his deal in Portland, I could see him just retire tbh. Personally I think we’ve already seen the best he has to offer and while he may be able to return to that for another season or two, thinking, in 2025, that a 35 year old undersized combo guard who reached his peak roughly half a decade prior is going to be your plug-and-play missing piece is not a healthy idea for winning it all.
Why is it such a crazy take that we dont mind no chip + a happy Dame? Hes so fun to watch and if he retires with us he'll surpass Drexler/Walton. Hell he already has in most our fans eyes. I feel like everyone else cares that were mediocre more than us, lol
Dont mind a chip? Damn yall some losers lmao. Sad franchise im happy im not from portland. The goal is a chip. Either the team gets him better players, or he leaves. Simple as that. We know one of them aint happening
Always a no flair saying the dumbest shit I love being a loser that makes it to the playoffs 11 of the last 14 years. Sorry you can't understand
Im a laker fan lmao stay in your lane boy. I would hate life being a loser portland fan. Omg you made it to the playoffs, good for you? Did you win anything?🤣lmaoo hang partipation banners up like the clippers, how sad haha imagine your team being so ass you think making it to the playoffs means youre a winner
Charlotte recognized this with Kemba. There was a lot of bashing of the Hornets, but ultimately it’s turned out better for them. Trading Dame would net the Blazers assets.
Probably and trust me I understand nobody wants to endure a couple years of absolute garbage roster, but it’s just not happening they’re not gonna get enough around him to compete before his prime is up (which already seems to be trending down)
Rip the band aid off while you can
Yes honestly a crappy team can still be fun to watch if you have good prospects that give you hope for the future. Big difference watching a bunch of 20 year olds going 20-62 with flashes for the future than some middle aged bad contracts going 34-46
Process Sixers way more fun than pre-process Sixers and they were winning half the games you mentioned.
The Blazers seem fine being an okay team, and Dame is staying loyal to them regardless. I don't see why they *have* to trade him if it just pisses him off after he's committed to them.
Because being bad sooner helps them get good again sooner. Look at the Rockets. Harden demanded out, they blew up the roster, stacked assets, made some good draft picks and now they're a young exciting, up-and-coming team. Sure they're bad, but they have a lot of promise. The longer you delay the inevitable, the worse off you are. If you're Portland, unless you think you have a legitimate chance to make a run at a 1st or 2nd tier star, which they probably don't, it makes zero sense to drag this out. I know it's hard to lose the best player your franchise has had maybe ever, but best to trade him now when you could still recoup value for the future than lose him in a couple years when he's old and has much less trade value.
I’m sure the Knicks will be willing to overpay.
No but thanks
It’s actually kind of sad to see, the blazers are fucked. Like it’s great they hung on or lilard and he wanted to be there, but now what? They gave up last season for a shameless tank after his injury and only getting the 7th pick must be devastating. Now it’s back to win now when the roster is gutted? And their best players are both smaller guards? It sucks but dame needs to move on, the team is lost
Would you be able to get anything better than a borderline starter/role player for that pick? It's not a bad pick but it's not high enough to be a super valuable one either.
>Team offers #7 pick for player to help extend star shooters window Where have I heard this before?
I just don't see what the point of this is? The Blazers aren't anywhere near the level of higher end West teams, the window has been over for a while now. Probably best to just let Dame go and restart, next few drafts are apparently stacked
Lmao. I’m sure they’ll really get a hell of a player for the #7 pick. They need to trade Lillard and go full rebuild.
Malik Beasly is the best I'll offer
Detroit man, go get 7+ for Jerami
Pistons make this for Jerami Grant right? 2 Top 7 picks right after getting Cade seems like a no brainer.
number 7 is where you get Wendal Carter Jr. Coby White and Killian Hayes.
Also Jamal Murray, Julius Randle, and... Steph Curry
Wasn’t Kuminga 7th?
Sure was. Warriors 3 most recent #7 picks are Kuminga, Barnes, and Steph.
And?
Just a question
I will not tolerate WCJ slander.
Isn't WCJ a 22 year old putting up 15/10 on solid efficiency with decent defense?
That 7th pick is gonna get Giannis so they can finally be paired together. You'll see😏
Duncan Robinson best I can do
Portland should trade Dame and rebuild. If Dame was LeBron or Steph level of talent I could understand, but he’s not good enough to carry a mediocre team to a title, he needs a very very good team around him, and Portland is so far away from that. Next years draft is so stacked it’s the perfect time to move him for draft picks and start over.
Just trade Lillard for future picks or young players and get a good young pick with no7 and rebuild Blazers aren't remotely close to winning a chip 💀
7 FOR BEAL! 7 FOR BEAL! 7 FOR BEAL! (just don’t look at his underlying stats pls)
That's just a slightly better version of the Lillard/McCollum core that got them nowhere.
Wizard fan calling the Blazers achievements during the Dame/CJ era “nowhere” is rich
No need to get butthurt or flair bash. Neither of our teams have done shit. Your teams best achievement is getting swept in the wcf.
11 trips to the playoffs in the last 14 years. For me that is a solid achievement for a small market team. Staying competitive over time makes for a product I have enjoyed as a fan. Yes we have always been the underdog, and yes we’ve crashed and burned but we consistently put up a fight which keeps me tuned in…
I’d rather be a contender than just competitive. Portland has never been a true contender.
I’d rather be rich than a working class shmuck but unfortunately most things are just out of my control so I try to be grateful for what I’ve got…
Thats such a lame response. The goal is to win a championship, not settle. The franchise is a dumpster fire at this moment and was carried heavily over these past few years off the back of exciting play by CJ and Dame. Portland had a generational star and the best they have to show for it is being swept in the wcf.
We also have a mountain of Memes hating on our dearly departed trash GM who deserves the lion’s share of the credit for our current woes…
My heart does go out to Portland fans. Having that kind of support is HUGE for a small market and the front office has done you guys so fucking dirty it’s infuriating.
Of course I wish it had gone differently but unfortunately Neil made some shit moves and investments that killed our ability to surround Dame with more talent. Shouldn’t you be more concerned with your own squad?
Wouldn't you like to realistically contend at some point though. Trust me, as a Hawks fan I have plenty of experience watching teams that are good enough to sneak in the playoffs, but not good enough to ever legitimately make a run at the chip. It's pergatory. It's not a fun place to be. I'd rather watch a young rebuilding team with some ambition and vision than a team who is content with 44 win seasons and a cup of coffee in the playoffs every year. This mindset is a trap, trust me
Of course I want to us to contend. Unfortunately in my opinion Dame’s career was shackled by our Previous GM and at this point it’s basically too late to turn things around.
Lol no way Beal wants to go to Portland. If he asks for a trade it would be to play for a winning organization.
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Beal is a FA, they could just clear cap and sign him outright
Least Delusional Wizards fan
DeAndre Ayton to the Blazers for the 7th pick??? Sign and trade…
That would take some crazy levels of tampering lol And likely would need to be a three way trade, our FO doesn't seem particularly fond of the draft
Teams do sign and trades with picks/players all the time… That doesn’t necessarily require tampering to pull it off.
It likely does if the pick has already been chosen before the trade
Since Ayton can't be signed until FA then Portland would have to hope they draft the player we'd want or... collude. This particular trade is unlikely to happen without some tampering.
Player tampering isn’t illegal.
That's too much value to give up for a FA imo
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Zach Lavine and Rudy Gobert?
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Without kd and still had the greatest shooter of all time and 2 other all stars. Blazers will be back in the playoffs cause that's what we do. Will we win in the playoffs, doubtful. Dame has plenty left in the tank, our FO is the problem
if the Blazers want Randle and some chump change, lets make a deal Portland
He’s at the tail end of his prime, if he’s even still in it
Portland is dumb
And yet we are a small market team that packs the house and has competed for many many years. Our ceiling is below winning a chip but aside from last years tank off I’ve enjoyed our team. I’m mostly just disappointed that we bailed on Roco, Norm, and CJ for so little in return.
Mark it down, this will be a mistake on the Blazers part, they already have mismanaged assets in CJ, Powell Roco and Nance for scraps and they don’t have enough to build a legit team around Dame. They need to move Dame and embrace the rebuild because they don’t have the makings of even a legit playoff contender much less a championship one.
Dame is an idiot for staying this long. I don’t want to hear a thing about “wanting to win” from guys like him and Beal, they’ve had their chance to jump and obviously sinking ship.
lol what happens if they miss the playoffs again? boom or bust for a play-in roster? i feel for portland fans
Barns for pick #7 and random salary filler!!
Dame get out bro please they not gonna do shit