Portland Trail Blazers should move away from Rodney Hood
It’s March 3. Today is the day when NBA teams can trade players they signed use their Larry Bird exceptions. Players like Portland Trail Blazers swingman Rodney Hood.
A few months back, I wrote an article about the impending trade deadline. I thought part of the Portland Trail Blazers’ reason to re-sign Rodney Hood was to maintain a movable salary to help in potential trades. When he’s on his game, Hood is a valuable long-range shooter and defender.
Rodney Hood comes to Rip City
Back when the Portland Trail Blazers traded for Rodney Hood near the 2019 deadline, I thought they took a swing and brought in the exact kind of bench help the team sorely lacked. A solid three-point shooter with the size and skillset to back down smaller players and create his own shot.
It didn’t take long for the swingman to buy into the Blazers’ culture. He seemed like the perfect fit for head coach Terry Stotts’ system. Hood had some big games and hit some big shots (who can forget that three-point shot at the end of the quadruple overtime game against Denver?).
He was a big part of Portland’s run to the Western Conference finals, averaging 23.3 minutes and 9.9 points-per-game. For all intents and purposes, the five-year NBA veteran looked like a piece to push the team toward contender status.
Hood appreciated the team and city so much that he took a “home town” discount to stay with the Blazers as a free agent later that year. His ability to play either wing position and defend earned him an opportunity to move into Portland’s starting lineup. This was a chance for Hood to utilize his skillset and take the pressure off the rest of the starters.