I have extreme doubts he is going to do anything his freshman year, but if we wanted help off the bat we would have traded the pick for a vet. Its an interesting pick given he didn't play college but that didn't stop people from raving about HS players 14 years ago when we could draft them out of HS. We got a player who has upside to be a scorer coming off the bench and creating his own shot, even though he is going to be coming off the bench with the 24th pick if you picked a rotation player then you did extremely well in the draft, and if you drafted a starter you destroyed it in the draft. I don't really see anyone who screams we should have drafted them over Simmons so I don't hate the pick and Simmons upside looks a lot like an instant offense guard off the bench, something this team could definitely use.
Its a fun piece for Media to do because 26 other teams would LOVE to have Lillard on their team and he is fun to watch so it makes an easy piece to get clicks and views regardless if it has any merit or not.
You want to win with Dame, you come to his team....he doesn't go to your team. CJ however is an east coast guy from Ohio...would be an allstar in the east..if anybody gets moved for a Cleveland player it'll be him. His girlfriend lives in NY...he's an avid Browns fan.
C He's mystery meat, so for now it's a "pass." As in, "I'm gonna pass on making judgement until we see if he's able to play in two years." If you were hoping for reinforcements next year from a guy taken at 24, then you're probably a dumbfuck.
B- I have a feeling that he'll be a solid roleplayer but not much else. Not much the Blazers could have done in that situation, honestly. I have a feeling they wanted someone else but Simons was the BPA at #24.
I was thinking about this yesterday, and there is actually a package I would trade Lillard for. Such a package would not likely be offered, but here it goes: BKN 2019 1st unprotected BKN 2021 1st unprotected BKN 2023 1st unprotected BKN 2025 1st unprotected BKN 2027 1st unprotected Doesn't have to be BKN, but it can't be certain teams like LAL or the Spurs.
The thing about that first trade was that the big 3 was old and on their way out. With Dame, they'd be a playoff team for the next decade and we'd be complaining about how every pick we got from them was on the 20s and we couldn't find the next Dame.
Makes sense. I guess my thinking is that there is some number of unprotected 1st rounders that every player is worth. For Dame I randomly chose 5.
I'm not betting against Dame. We trade him to BKN or CHA or you-name-it in the East, and they're fighting BOS and whoever gets LBJ for HCA in the East every year. "I'll take 'What do 5 straight years of 25-and-above picks look like for $400, Alex.'"
You trade the face of your franchise you set back the attraction of good players to Portland by several decades...no Blazer ever has had the marketing savvy or global brand Dame has brought to Portland....you'll be trading MJ for Sam Bowie when all is said and done
As a tiny 6-3 SG who mocks projected between #36-39, this new Jerryd Bayless will be a scorer after many years of many coaches. But your poll question is not complete. It doesn't include these related poll questions: "Grade Olshey's failure to trade the #24 pick, with a player, for an experienced player, or at least a higher draftee." "Grade the damage to the team of not drafting a more developed player, to contribute for the last 3 years of Lillard's peak." "Grade Olshey drafting 2 players at the same position, so that one's development is frozen permanently while the other is developed, for 2 years in a row."
No grade, because not a SINGLE NBA player got traded on draft night. Nobody was trading down in the first round outside of the lottery, and nobody was trading an experienced player for #24. Me and @Gronk Brady are known as Neil haters, and even we realize this. Draft a more developed player? You realize that there's no one available at 24 that would have the potential to give us something that we couldn't otherwise find in the trade or free agent market? Wait, so you seriously think that only one player can be developed per position? You really think one of these guys development will be "frozen" by the other one? That's rediculous. Plus, Trent is a wing (SG/SF), while Simons is a combo-guard (PG/SG). They're not only playable at the same position. My Grade (of this post): F+ *The "+" is for effort*
You honestly don't think that #24 + Anybody gets an experienced player already in the league who is better than Anybody? Substitute into Anybody: Aminu, Davis, or anybody. Exception: Meyers Leonard. Using that logic, we should throw the worthless pick into the garbage, to save money to spend on the free agent you're talking about. It has always been conventional wisdom since the league began. For example, Collins' development squashed Swanigan into 189 minutes last season. Like McCollum, Simon won't be ready for PG for years, and probably never. Till then, Simon and Trent will play the same position.
