The Portland Trail Blazers have been one of the more active teams thus far ahead of the 2022 NBA Trade Deadline. They have made two trades thus far and their intentions have been crystal clear; they are looking to clean house and start over around Damian Lillard.
The first trade that they completed was with the LA Clippers. It looks pretty much like a salary dump, as Norman Powell, who signed a five-year, $90 million contract in free agency, and Robert Covington were sent to Los Angeles. In exchange, the Trail Blazers received Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, Keon Johnson, and a future second-round pick.
In the second deal, Portland finally went through with breaking up their backcourt duo. CJ McCollum, Larry Nance Jr., and Tony Snell were traded to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Josh Hart, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Tomas Satoransky, and Didi Louzada. Portland will also receive a 2022 protected first-round pick and two future second-round picks.
This kind of shake-up is something that people have been expecting from Portland for a while now. Niel Olshey, prior to his removal of general manager earlier this season, put together a mismatched roster that only he believed could contend for a title.
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The first steps in rectifying his mistakes have now been taken. But, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic, expect a full-on tank job to occur in Portland. One of the moves that can be coming is Bledsoe hitting the open market as a buyout candidate.
“In the meantime, it’s tank season in the Rose City,” Hollinger wrote. “Expect Lillard to sit out the rest of the season and [Jusuf] Nurkić to be held out of games with any malady worse than a hangnail. Eric Bledsoe, who has missed the last two games with a ‘sore Achilles’ after not appearing on a Clippers injury report all season, is a likely buyout candidate along with [Tomas] Satoranský. Instead, you’re gonna see all the Greg Brown and [Didi] Louzada you can handle.”
If Portland is not going to actively try and win games, moving on from veterans such as Bledsoe and Satoransky makes sense. Bledsoe’s contract for 2022-23 isn’t fully guaranteed, while Satoransky is on an expiring deal this season.
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There is going to be a youth movement in Portland and the young guys are going to get as many minutes as they can handle. Bledsoe, should he reach the buyout market and not be flipped ahead of the deadline a second time, will have a strong market.
There are plenty of teams that need help at the point guard position that will court him. If Eric Bledsoe is looking for an opportunity to play the most minutes and start, the New York Knicks could also be an option as their point guard position has been a mess recently.
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Contenders such as the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls could use some depth in their backcourt. The Dallas Mavericks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Boston Celtics could also be in the market depending on how things shake out before the deadline Thursday.
