Boston Celtics Receive: F Robert Covington
Portland Trail Blazers Receive: F Juancho Hernangomez, F Grant Williams, POR 2023 2nd Round Pick (via BOS)
Portland has been very underwhelming this season and with Damian Lillard out indefinitely after undergoing surgery for an abdominal injury, things are not looking good in terms of the Trail Blazers making the playoffs.
For eight consecutive seasons, the Portland Trail Blazers have been a playoff team in the NBA, the longest active streak in the league, but they just do not have the firepower right now to be a threat in the Western Conference.
At best, this team will win their way through the play-in tournament and be the 7-seed or 8-seed in the West, only to face the Phoenix Suns or Golden State Warriors in the first-round of the playoffs.
They are not going to have a chance at beating either of these teams, which is why it is time to rebuild in Portland.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: These 3 Teams Should Pursue Trade For Blazers’ Robert Covington
Trading away both Jusuf Nurkic and Robert Covington, since they are both in the final years of their contract, make the most sense for the Trail Blazers right now. Should the Celtics have interest in Covington, Portland will definitely be interested in hearing what they will offer.
Seeing as they would be looking to bring in Robert Covington using their trade exception, the Celtics are not going to be offering too much in return, especially since Covington is 31-years-old and would be a “one-year rental” acquisition.
Juan Hernangomez is someone Boston would likely trade for salary relief this season and maybe they would offer up Aaron Nesmith, but it is much more likely that the Celtics would trade Grant Williams in this scenario.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: These 3 Teams Should Pursue Trade For Blazers’ Robert Covington
Grant Williams is a young forward that Robert Covington would fill the role of this season, resulting in Williams moving to a reserve role for the Celtics. Being a former first-round pick and someone who presents upside on the defensive-end of the court, Portland could be interested in the 23-year-old.
The Celtics need to be “buyers” at the trade deadline and given their woes out West this season, the Trail Blazers need to be willing to become “sellers”.
