I think they might have figured Lowry was a goner and they were ready to rebuild. In Trent, you get a much younger guy with some similar qualities to Powell. My suspicion is the Powell trade happened when they expected to do something else, which, for whatever reason, didn't come to pass.
I really think that Dame/Powell will be a better pairing than Dame/CJ is. If Portland can re-sign Powell to a reasonable contract - that would allow Portland to move CJ....
I think we also shouldnt dismiss his playoff and Championship experience. Was Ariza the only player with a title that Dame has actually played with? (Ezeli doesnt count). His impact on the team's overall mindset changed once we got Ariza. Good to have players like that.
The thing I like about Powell is he’s gonna give the team a guy that can carry a load offensively if dame and CJ are off. The guy has scored 30+ points in five of his past ten games, including a game with 43. And he does it on all levels. Melo isn’t really a ballhandler so it’s easier to take him outta the game, and he’s more inconsistent anyway. Trent was a pretty rudimentary ball handler as well and the only way he’s ever scoring 40+ is if he hits 10+ threes.
I'd be interested in people's rank of the following player's defense. Here's mine: 1) Powell 2) Dame 3) CJ 4) Trent
it’s weird because Trent was a menace on defense last year. Thought he was our best perimeter defender. This year though he hasn’t look as hungry defensively. So which guy is he?
This was written about Powell yesterday by Woj. That last part. You just know he’s getting that info from Olshey, so hopefully this isn’t just a rental.
i never knew he was this explosive. he's like monta ellis. but he can shoot 40+ from the three on high volume.
So our rotation will basically be: G--Dame/CJ/Powell W--Jones/Roco/Melo/Little P--Kanter/Nurk Would be nice if one of our posts had the ability to play on the perimeter, or if they were capable of playing together. But aside from that, that's a pretty well balanced squad.
G--Dame/CJ/Powell W--Jones/Roco/Melo/Little P--Kanter/Nurk/Collins Too bad he’s not healthy cause that would of been a nice 10 man rotation.
Let's not make this too complicated. Powell > Trent + Moving Hood is addition by subtraction AND frees up minutes for NAS = The Bert abides
I know that the trade was a net positive for this season but the fact that we didn't make bigger moves means that the management of this team isn't pushing for a chance at a championship this season. That makes me think about the fact that what I didn't want was to let Gary's value walk out the door at the end of this season, leaving us with nothing. Unfortunately this trade makes that a very real possibility and leaves us with no control over that.
