4. Anfernee Simons
The Portland Trail Blazers operated as a team with an eye toward the future.
With Damian Lillard possibly being sidelined for the duration of the season, the acting front office made three deals in total. Their intention with all of them was to clear some cap space to rebuild the roster around Lillard.
With wins and losses no longer being the main priority in Portland, they are going to give some young players plenty of playing time. One of the players who will benefit the most from this is Anfernee Simons, who will be looking to cash in this offseason as a restricted free agent.
Simons has played very well recently for the Trail Blazers and will likely operate as the team’s No. 1 option for the foreseeable future. With CJ McCollum and Norman Powell both being moved ahead of the deadline, Simons will get as many shot attempts as he can handle.
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If he can show that he is capable of handling a go-to scoring role, it could drastically increase the amount of money he can seek this offseason. He had a good stretch playing off of some veterans, but now he will be handed the keys to the offense at least until Lillard returns.
