Portland Trail Blazers: Trade Value Rising
Chris Phillips
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The Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard is out. Which means other players will need to step up. Subsequently, raising their trade value with good performances.
The Portland Trail Blazers have been without their superstar, Damian Lillard due to an abdominal injury. Normally, this would be a devastating situation. However, this year has not gone anywhere close to according to plan. Portland is 16-25 on the season, sitting just outside the play-in tournament.
Regardless of whether this team makes it into the play-in tournament or not, right now is the time for many of the Blazers’ players to prove themselves. Anfernee Simons, Robert Covington, Jusuf Nurkic, and Cody Zeller’s current deals are ending after this season. Simons is the only one of the four who will be a restricted free agent. The other three can walk with no compensation. In the NBA, expiring contracts on their own hold value.
The Untouchable?
NBA teams making a playoff push will be reviewing players on such kinds of deals. I won’t speculate on what type of return the players might get. Consequently, I can say that Simons will bring in the most significant return. However, the Portland Trail Blazers may not be likely to trade him as he’s young and most likely the franchise’s future.
The Usual Suspects
Covington and Nurkic are the two most significant pieces to move. To a smaller extent, Zeller could, if played right by Blazers’ management, bring back something useful. Maybe a “diamond in the rough” type of situation.
Covington will most likely have the largest market. In his career, RoCo showed versatility along with being a good defender and capable three-point shooter. There will be many teams that will express interest in him, which should allow the Portland Trail Blazers an opportunity to choose from the best offer. However, Nurkic may be more difficult to move as traditional centers aren’t in high demand.
In my opinion, here are a few teams that could be in the market for Nurk. Golden State (maybe Gary Payton, Jr., Moses Moody or Jonathan Kuminga), Chicago (maybe Coby White or Ayo Dosunmu), Milwaukee (maybe Jordan Nwora or Donte DiVincenzo), and maybe Dallas (maybe Jalen Brunson). These three have some young, intriguing pieces that could interest the Portland Trail Blazers. Both Milwaukee and Dallas may need to include more draft picks to get a deal done. There is still time before the NBA trade deadline hits, so we will see what the team does with these players. Consequently, we’ll see what the players do regarding their play.
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Who do you think the Portland Trail Blazers are likely to trade? Let us know in the comments section below.