Portland Trail Blazers NBA Trade Rumors: Blazers Not Done Making Moves
The Portland Trail Blazers have been quite active in the trade market lately. First, they shipped Mason Plumlee and a 2018 second-round draft pick to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Jusuf Nurkic and a 2017 first-round draft pick. Then there was talk about that the team was done with Festus Ezeli and they were looking to unload him.
The Blazers are clearly looking to shake things up before the trade deadline and they are probably not done making moves. Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype said an opposing general manager told him the Blazers were planning to acquire draft picks and cut payroll. Aside from Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, everybody else on the roster is reportedly available for the right price.
"The general manager I spoke to made it clear that Portland would listen to offers for Allen Crabbe, Evan Turner, Al-Farouq Aminu and Ed Davis among others if the potential trades allowed them to stockpile draft picks and save some money," Kennedy said in the same HoopsHype publication.
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The Blazers are still fighting for a playoff spot, so this is a little risky. But Kennedy pointed out that despite having the second-highest payroll in the entire league this season at $119 million, the team has been struggling.
"That's not a bad thing when you're the defending champion Cavs, but it's a tough pill to swallow when you're the ninth-best team in the Western Conference standings," Kennedy continued.
When LaMarcus Aldridge signed with the San Antonio Spurs, Lillard became the undisputed leader of the team and he led them to the playoffs last season. McCollum also came into his own as a starter when Wesley Matthews left, and he has been lighting up the scoreboard ever since with his backcourt partner.
The Blazers want to make the playoffs, but they also need to address their payroll issues. Chances are they will continue to stay active while the deadline nears.
