Tension within the Portland Trail Blazers organization has never been higher and while they still have questions to answer about Damian Lillard’s future and this team’s immediate future after starting the NBA season 11-12, they now will have some major front-office questions to answer after Neil Olshey was relieved of his duties as General Manager and Team President.
The Trail Blazers announced on Friday that Olshey has been terminated from his position as GM and President of Basketball Operations due to violations of the team’s Code of Conduct policies, stemming from an investigation into workplace misconduct over the last month or so.
With Neil Olshey now gone, the Blazers have promoted Director of Player Personnel, Joe Cronin, to interim General Manager at a critical point in the season for this team. As mentioned, the Trail Blazers are struggling to find success on the floor and with all the buzz surrounding Damian Lillard wanting to win this past offseason, this organization could be on the brink of some major changes.
Right now, they are not close to being a real contender in the Western Conference and with almost no cap space or real assets to work with, trading CJ McCollum may suddenly become something that this organization has to do.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Could Blazers Look To Trade CJ McCollum After Firing GM?
Their backcourt of Lillard and McCollum have been one of the strongest scoring duos in the league for years, but at the end of the day, Portland needs to better themselves defensively and they need to do everything in their power to keep Damian Lillard.
If they lose their MVP-caliber point guard, then this team will be rebuilding for the next several years, which is why leveraging CJ McCollum for more high-level talents right now could be a move the Blazers need to make.
Should they make McCollum available ahead of the trade deadline this year, there will be plenty of teams across the NBA lining up to try and acquire him. On the season, CJ McCollum is averaging 20.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists and is shooting 42.6% from the floor, 39.6% from three-point range.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Could Blazers Look To Trade CJ McCollum After Firing GM?
The return the Blazers could get in a trade involving their high-level scoring guard could be immense, which is why Cronin and this front-office could be willing to make this kind of move right now.
With the Trail Blazers struggling to find success on the court and now dealing with turnover in their front-office, now would be the best time for them to try and make a “last ditch effort” to save the season, Trading away CJ McCollum could be something they have to do, so let’s take a look at three teams to watch for in trade discussions surrounding the Blazers’ guard.
