Portland Trail Blazers: 3 Trades that would drastically change the team
To reach the playoffs, the Portland Trail Blazers need something to shake them out of their funk. A big trade could be the answer.
Rob Ryan
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To reach the playoffs, the Portland Trail Blazers need something to shake them out of their funk. A big trade could be the answer.
With the NBA trade deadline days away, it’s now or never for the Portland Trail Blazers to make some season-redeeming moves. Here are three trade ideas that would shake up the teams’ recent funk that has seen them play under .500 ball since their 9-3 start to the season.
Trade #1- Portland trades Jusuf Nurkic, Josh Hart, and a pair of 1st round picks to the Phoenix Suns for Deandre Ayton.
This trade first has to be predicated by the Portland Trail Blazers either creating a side deal with the Chicago Bulls or removing protections on this year’s pick, thus opening up access to future picks. It might seem like an overpay, which it is. This is what it’s going to take to get a deal done finally.
Deandre Ayton currently looks like a slight improvement over Jusuf Nurkic on paper. But the Blazers would be rolling the dice on him, not reaching his potential in Phoenix. He’s still only 24 years old.
I’ve been a Nurkic fan for years, but his inconsistency is finally wearing thin. On his good days, he plays like a borderline All-Star, but those days are few and far between. This might be one of the only scenarios where it makes sense to move him.
It works for Phoenix because they maintain a starting-level center while obtaining draft picks and a solid rotation player in Josh Hart, should they choose to re-sign him or flip him for another asset.
At this point, Ayton seems to be wearing thin with the Suns, similar to Nurkic’s status with the Blazers. Fresh starts could benefit and motivate both players.