Karl-Anthony Towns at NBA All-Star Game (photo by Erik Drost, via Flickr).
With both the Portland Trail Blazers and Minnesota Timberwolves seasons officially over, rumors are starting to spread on the internet about certain players being available for trades.
One such rumor has Portland acquiring former All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns from Minnesota. In return the Portland Trail Blazers would send back a combination of young players and draft picks.
We start with a look at what a trade like that would look like and how it would impact the team.
Some of the hypotheticals surrounding a Blazers/Timberwolves trade have revolved around a package of Simons, 3 future firstst round picks, and another young player like Shaedon Sharpe or Nassir Little. Right away, including Sharpe AND Simons together in any trade for Towns is a gross overpay.
Regarding future draft picks, Portland has to be careful with them because they would still need to retain enough assets to acquire a player to fill in at the starting small forward spot. So the most General Manager Joe Cronin should give up for Towns would be a package of maybe Simons, Little, and a future lottery-protected pick.
Trying to spin the acquisition of Towns into a positive is more of a “Devil’s advocate” type position. If Portland were able to acquire Towns for the package listed above, the team would immediately have to change its structure and identity.
The Portland Trail Blazers would try to utilize Damian Lillard and Towns and turn them into a lethal, over-the-top, offensive powerhouse combination. The offensive potential of that pairing would be huge.
Forget Chauncey Billups defensive-minded coaching philosophy. That goes completely out the window.
They would have to move on from Billups and hire a Mike D’Antoni offensive-first type coach to maximize that scoring potential. The 2023 Lottery pick would likely have to be packaged out to get Portland a legit starting small forward, and the team would try and outscore opponents.
In this hypothetical, the Blazers would have to have a small forward who can defend and hit the 3-point shot. Maybe a Dorian Finney-Smith type player or an OG Anunoby if they are willing to include the lottery pick and a future firstst rounder while sending Nurkic to a third team.
Rip City would be rocking with a starting lineup of Lillard/Sharpe/Anunoby/Grant/Towns. They would likely be one of the best offensive teams in Blazers history.
That same offensive team I mentioned above would simultaneously be the worst defensive itineration that the Portland Trail Blazers ever put out. As fun as it could be watching high-scoring games and endless highlights, we’d also see endless highlights by other teams against Portland.
For all his offensive upside, Karl Anthony Towns has been one of the worst defensive big men in recent history. Imagine adding him to a team with problems playing D.
Power forward Jerami Grant also doesn’t protect the rim very well. Point guard Damien Lillard is below average on defense and Shaedon Sharpe is an unproven defender. That sounds like a recipe for a playoff disaster.
This potential lineup reminds me of those great offensive-oriented Steve Nash-led Phonex Suns teams. They performed well in the regular season but constantly choked in the playoffs.
Those Suns teams were stacked with more talent than this Blazers team would have left after a Towns trade. Yet Phoenix couldn’t make it to a single NBA Finals.
“Defense wins championships” there’s a reason that’s one of the main quotes often mentioned in professional sports. If the Portland Trail Blazers were a team full of defenders that just lacked offense, then Towns would be a perfect fit.
Reality is the polar opposite. Nurkic is a solid defender but looked horrible at times trying to cover for his teammate’s many defensive lapses.
The elephant in the room might be that Minnesota would take the trade package mentioned earlier. They will absolutely want at least 2 of the 3 between Simons/Sharpe/2023 lottery pick, and in no way should the Portland Trail Blazers give up that much.
KAT still has value but for the right team. Portland is not that team. Depleting most/all of their future assets for a player that hasn’t been able to keep his current team above water is a huge risk without a safety net if the risk fails.
Lots of rumors float to the surface this time of year. I don’t think there is much interest from the Portland Trail Blazers’ side in Townes.
Minnesota will find a trade partner if they decide to move on from him. It just won’t and shouldn’t be the Portland Trail Blazers. And it looks like the majority of Rip City fans feel the same.
Do you think the Blazers should go after Karl-Anthony Towns this summer? If so, what do you see as a fair trade for both sides?