And that’s why Dame isn’t pissed right now. I imagine that we have told him we are either hoping to get Wemby or trade the pick.
That would be stupid to trade the pick just because Dame wants us to. Number one, Dame himself was a traded pick so he should know how that can backfire and have repercussions for years. Number two, take a look at a team like Memphis. Ja Morant, drafted by Memphis. Desmond Bane, by using the 30th pick acquired from Boston. Jaren Jackson, 4th pick by the Grizzlies. Dillon Brooks, 45th pick obtained in a draft-day trade. That's 4 of Memphis's starters.
They're getting something this off-season if Joe is being real about going all in. If that's the Knicks pick or next year's first guaranteed, they'll get something.
We will now be all by our selves in the 6th position in the race for Wemby. After tomorrow night we should be a full game worse than Indy.
What's the logic there? The team will trade both first rounders this year and future first(s)? Dear Lord, I hope not. There's nobody good enough in the NBA to give that much along with matching salaries (which will be two of our best players) to make this team a contender. Or at least none that aren't cornerstones of their current franchises. If we had gotten Durant for, say, Ant and Nurk and three firsts... we're still not all that good, and we're leaning on two rather injury-prone studs nearing their mid-30s. Dudes like Siakem or John Collins? We'd be younger but I would argue worse off in the immediate term than we are right now and definitely worse off moving into the future (again, assuming we're giving up Ant and Nurk and picks, at minimum).
I don't know who the target is going to be but I think we will send out multiple future first round picks this off season to put a team around Dame that can contend... in order to do that we would have to in some free this team from the way what we owe Chicago ties up all of our future first round picks. The truth is that I don't see the logic in keeping Dame and not going all in this off season. If the team wants to build around the youth on the roster and the picks they have then they should trade Dame but if the team wants to keep Dame, I don't think there is really any logical choice other than trade more than what we have in just this draft to give Dame and the rest of the team a realistic shot at contending.
I disagree. I think we can build around youth and keep Dame. Dame isn’t dying at the end of next season. He has many good seasons left in him. Aiming for a 2026 or 2027 NBA Finals isn’t a bad thing. Aiming for the 2nd round in 2024 and never getting further for the rest of Dame’s career is much worse.
We'll have to, in some way, free our team from how what we owe the Bulls ties up all of our future first rounders.
Indiana with the SHOCKING upset/drilling of Milwaukee. That puts Portland into sole possession of the #6 Lottery spot!!!!
yeah it can be done. In fact the most successful teams lately have been teams that just drafted players well, not made trades for superstar. Look at last years finals for examples of that.
Blazers owe the Bulls one first rounder. They can trade 3 others plus give away 3 pick swaps, plus the Blazers and Knicks 2023 picks at the draft. The Blazers difficulty in contending next year isn't lack of available draft picks to trade, it's lack of contending players on the roster.