Portland Trail Blazers
It’s challenging to find a team that plays less impactful defense than the Portland Trail Blazers this season. They have used the bold strategy of playing an aggressive scheme with a liability center in Jusuf Nurkic that lacks the foot speed to make much of an impact out in space.
The Trail Blazers need to move on from Nurkic and find an actual impact player at the center position. The team lacks on-ball defenders out on the perimeter and requires not just a serviceable rim protector but one that is elite like Myles Turner to cover things up.
It remains to be seen when Damian Lillard will be back in the lineup after recovering from his abdominal surgery. Regardless, the Portland Trail Blazers will not be competitive come playoff time. Landing a rim protector like Turner could go a long way in the offseason.
One of the options the Trail Blazers have to use is the contract of Eric Bledsoe if they do not end up reaching a buyout agreement. A small portion of his 2022-23 salary is guaranteed, and he makes almost exactly a matching amount to Turner’s contract. Josh Hart’s contract could also be an option.
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To consider with Turner is that he still has some offensive upside and has not played with an elite shot creator like Damian Lillard. With Simons also being in the backcourt, whoever is playing center will get plenty of clean play finishing opportunities, and Turner has the tools to capitalize.
