While it is very early in the NBA offseason, the Portland Trail Blazers are one of the big winners already. Looking to upgrade the roster around Damian Lillard this offseason, they landed one of the best two-way players available on the trade market in Jerami Grant from the Detroit Pistons.
Grant is an excellent fit alongside Lillard given his two-way play and versatility. He can play either frontcourt spot and provides Portland with an elite stopper on the defensive end of the court, something they have lacked in recent years.
He has also shown during his time with the Pistons that he can be a go-to scoring option, taking some pressure off of Lillard and Anfernee Simons, should he be re-signed. During his tenure with the Pistons, he averaged 20.9 points per game.
Acquiring Grant was an excellent first move, but Portland has more work left to do. They have plans of acquiring even more talent and they will use the No. 7 overall pick as the centerpiece of negotiations.
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According to Marc Stein on his Substack, the Trail Blazers have their sights set on two players; OG Anunoby of the Toronto Raptors and Luguentz Dort of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“The Trail Blazers have already lined up the acquisition of one Damian Lillard favorite with their looming deal for Detroit’s Grant and, in addition to Toronto’s OG Anunoby, maintain trade interest in Oklahoma City’s Lu Dort as well as they seek another wing upgrade in a potential swap featuring Thursday night’s No. 7 overall pick. As noted in the enclosed tweet from Yahoo’s Chris Haynes, Anunoby remains at the top of Portland’s wish list.”
Both Luguentz Dort and Anunoby will help bolster the Portland Trail Blazers’ wing rotation, providing them another strong defensive option as both excel on that end of the court. However, Anunoby is a much more versatile player, as he has the size to defend every position 1-5, while Dort can handle backcourt players and some wings.
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Anunoby has star potential, possessing prototypical size for two-way wings. He has drawn some comparisons to Kawhi Leonard, as they have similar builds and career arcs thus far. So, it makes sense that he is atop their wish list.
Would the No. 7 overall pick be enough of a draw for the Toronto Raptors to part ways with OG Anunoby? We will have to wait and see as negotiations are sure to be held right up until the teams are on the clock.