The Portland Trail Blazers have been painfully average this season. Aside from some flashes here and there, they’ve been unreliable all year long with a defense that ranks near the bottom of the league.
While this position is familiar territory for Portland these days, they are in a unique position to improve ahead of the NBA’s trade deadline next month.
Damian Lillard isn’t going anywhere, and Jerami Grant has already been offered an extension, but the latest report from Yahoo! Sports’ Jake Fischer says everyone else is fair game in trade talks.
The rest of the Blazers’ roster seems far more unsettled ahead of the Feb. 9 trade deadline. Portland has given rival teams the impression the Blazers are open to discussing the majority of their players, particularly Josh Hart and Jusuf Nurkic, sources said, as the franchise remains committed to building a playoff contender around Lillard. Portland has engaged teams with an eye toward size with athleticism, plus wing-shooting defenders, sources said. Hart has become one of the buzzier names among league executives this week, as he’s expected to decline a $12.9 million player option for the 2023-24 season.
The most likely move for the Blazers is a mid-level deal that sends out Josh Hart or Jusuf Nurkic for two-way depth on the wing and under the basket.
But if the Blazers want to go nuclear and use Shaedon Sharpe or Anfernee Simons in a deal, it could net them an even bigger haul for a player like Pascal Siakam.
Trail Blazers Are Committed To Building Around Lillard
While some are calling for a full rebuild in Portland, the Blazers may not be as far from contention as people think. They have Lillard, Grant, Simons, and a lot of assets to work within a trade.
Whether this season or this summer, Portland is bound to make a move to go all-in on the title. For now, they are stuck trying to look for ways to improve.
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