Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers need a shakeup on the roster. They have been eliminated from the first round of the playoffs in four out of the last five years, which resulted in head coach Terry Stotts being relieved of his duties. Chauncey Billups will be taking over as head coach, but it would be difficult for even the most experienced coach to get this roster over the hump.
Portland needs to balance things out. They have a dynamic backcourt in Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, but they struggle to slow teams down on the other end of the court. The Trail Blazers are often involved in shootouts, as they had the second-best offensive rating in the NBA last season, but also had the second-worst defensive rating.
The biggest trade chip the Trail Blazers have is Lillard. Even if he requested a trade, the team would receive monster trade packages for him. He is a legitimate superstar and would turn multiple teams into championship contenders upon acquiring him.
Lillard has yet to request a trade, so breaking up their backcourt with a McCollum trade could still happen. McCollum is one of the best shooting guards in the NBA and would also help plenty of teams with his scoring punch and playmaking.
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Breaking up their backcourt will be a difficult decision, but one that needs to be done for the team to continue improving.
