Why This Trade Makes Sense For The Portland Trail Blazers
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, when healthy, are the top two players on the Portland Trail Blazers and with key role players next to them in Carmelo Anthony, Derrick Jones Jr, Gary Trent Jr. and Robert Covington, this team has a legit shot to take down some of the top teams in the West, but they are missing that one extra high-impact player in the frontcourt.
Enes Kanter is one of the top rebounders in the league and is good for a double-double every night, but they need a reliable power-forward who can play in the low-post next to him. LaMarcus Aldridge is not only one of the best forwards of the last decade, but he is one of the most lethal mid-range scorers in NBA history.
The guy can score from virtually anywhere on the court and while he is not the same All-Star level player he once was with Portland, he can really make a difference for them in the starting rotation or off-the-bench.
At full strength, it is safe to say that Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum could score 50+ points a night for the Blazers and they have the role players/bench to put up 50+ points a night, but they need that extra talent who can take attention away from other players on this roster. Aldridge is not the player he once was, but teams still have to respect him as a player because of what he is known to do.
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When he is open, LaMarcus Aldridge can still knock down shots in volume and since teams will have to respect him, he will open up the court a lot more for both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. Getting him for Nurkic and Hood would actually be a really good deal for the Portland Trail Blazers because of what he can do for them offensively.
LaMarcus Aldridge is a better offensive talent than Jusuf Nurkic and because of his ability to knock down jumpers from virtually any spot on the court, he can open up things for others in Portland’s offense. It is definitely a risk to trade for Aldridge at his age and given his contract size, but he could be the difference in them dethroning the Lakers, Jazz or Clippers in the West come playoff time.
