The Portland Trail Blazers have officially entered their next era. Gone are CJ McCollum, Norman Powell, Robert Covington, and Larry Nance Jr. In return for shipping out their old guard at the NBA trade deadline, the Trail Blazers added on Josh Hart, Justise Winslow, Keon Johnson, and a few other ancillary pieces.
It appears that both Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkic are expected to be foundational cornerstones in Portland’s next era of basketball alongside the face of the franchise, Damian Lillard.
Those that were hoping to poach away Portland’s impending free agents need not prepare any room for them, however, as it appears that both Simons and Nurkic are expected to remain with the Trail Blazers, as Marc Stein reported.
“Similar pessimism has been conveyed to me about Portland’s Jusuf Nurkić and restricted free agent Anfernee Simons. Both are widely expected by rival teams to land new deals with the Trail Blazers after free agency opens.”
One of those other pieces was the Milwaukee Bucks’ 2025 first-round pick, an asset that was flipped to the Detroit Pistons in return for Jerami Grant. Although the trade isn’t technically finalized, yet, all expectations are that it’s a done deal.
LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMORS: Portland Trail Blazers Trade For Detroit Pistons Star Jerami Grant
Due to their roster turnover last season and Damian Lillard’s season-ending surgery, Portland was able to enact a pretty shameless tank job to maximize their lottery odds. Their efforts were rewarded by way of the seventh-overall pick, a selection that they used on enigmatic Kentucky guard, Shaedon Sharpe.
That selection may have raised some eyebrows, as it seems the one piece that the Blazers don’t need is another guard. With Dame, Hart, Johnson, and Nassir Little already on the roster, Portland’s depth chart was already chockfull of players that could feature in the backcourt.
LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMORS: Portland Trail Blazers Trade For Detroit Pistons Star Jerami Grant
Rival NBA executives perhaps surmised that Shaedon Sharpe was an indicator that the Portland Trail Blazers were preparing for Anfernee Simons’s exit in free agency or were at least open to the idea of a sign-and-trade deal for the young, promising guard.
