Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers make for a good trade partner with the Philadelphia 76ers. Like Philly, they could be looking to shake things up this offseason. Could a C.J. McCollum/Ben Simmons deal work for both sides?
Money-wise, that would work. Their salaries are close enough that a one-for-one swap would work under NBA guidelines. For the Trail Blazers, this trade could be what puts them over the top and convinces Damian Lillard to want to stay long-term.
Simmons would bring some much-needed defense to Portland, as they finished 29th in defensive efficiency this past season. The acquisitions of Robert Covington and Norman Powell were not enough to make up for the lack of defense at the point of attack with a Lillard and McCollum backcourt.
With a player such as Lillard entrenched at point guard, the Trail Blazers may be able to convince Simmons to play more in the frontcourt, something he would not do with Philadelphia. While an elite playmaker himself, Ben Simmons meandering around on the perimeter as a guard came to bite Philadelphia, again. Getting him close to the basket should help the offense from stagnating and put him in a better position to score.
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For the 76ers, McCollum would bring a perimeter scoring punch they are missing. He has not yet made an All-Star team but he has cemented himself as one of the best scorers in the NBA, putting up an efficient 23.1 points per game this past season.
