Why The Portland Trail Blazers Do The Deal
Of course, the Blazers employ similar logic here. They won’t be interested in this deal unless they’re dissatisfied enough with their performance midway through 2022-23.
They may not be. The Blazers have made valuable additions to this roster like Jerami Grant and Josh Hart. If Anfernee Simons can continue to develop, and Lillard can bounce back from an underwhelming and injury-riddled 2021-22, the Blazers may be a legitimate title threat.
Where have we heard that before?
If the Blazers are mediocre or worse by the time Lillard is eligible to be traded, they would move him. This organization has been treading water and putting difficult decisions off for years. If they wait any longer, Lillard will lose the bulk of his trade value. By that logic, this is a good trade for the team.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers & Denver Nuggets Updates
They get two long-term building blocks in Murray and Porter Jr. Adding them to a young core already featuring Simons and Shaedon Sharpe gives the Blazers a headstart on their rebuilding process.
This time, they’ll hope to get the recipe right in building their contender.