Sorry I know this is really early With 2 starters and key reserve (Simons) contracts up this summer we have some tough decisions to make. Actually the decision might come by this years trade deadline or even by December. Simons looks like the player we keep hearing about during practice (similar to what we heard about O’Neal) he’s been very good and dare I say he looks like he could be a starter someday or at very least 6th man. My take is like many on here CJ is odd man out. Simons is quickly becoming untouchable (ok not untouchable but close) Roco- boy he’s been just as invisible as Dame offensively and defensively. Really thought he’d be ideal fit in Billups system but something is off. I was extremely reluctant to trade him and still am but for the right deal I’d trade him. Nurk- unlike many i think Nurk has a lot of value, he rebounds extremely well, plays better than average defense which more than makes up for his shooting woes and is a better than average passer. Could we do better of course but I think he’s a good fit. Still 100% like to get Ben even more now after seeing our team play. Ben would make us so much better defensively and create lots of open looks for Teammates. Offensively and defensively he and Powell would be a tremendous duo on defense and on fast breaks. i would be willing to part with two draft picks plus CJ and combination of Roco or Little.
Simons looks like a younger version of CJ, with more of a ceiling. He keeps playing even close to the way he has and it becomes a pretty obvious decision imo. And yes it will be a decision, because we’re not a particularly balanced team right now. We could use more size and those two are our best assets.
I agree that Simons is ready for the jump to 6th man playing starters' minutes, preferably next to a strong 1/2 with handles that can run the b/u pg on occasion. I'd also much rather give Roco's minutes to Nance, but Roco looked like shit at the beginning of last year too and ended up being valuable. I wish we could find a way to accommodate Ben Simmons to Sac and snag Davion Mitchell but I think Mitchell probably is too valuable and the Kings may balk at giving up him/Barnes to make the salaries work (if Heild was going to Philly then we wouldn't make sense as a team to include CJ).
I think CJ is gone unless we go on a massive winning streak Simon keeps playing like he has been they won’t be able to afford so many guards on this team.
well, the toughness of one choice will be determined by the market for Simons. If he gets an offer sheet of 20M/year, how can the Blazers afford that for a backup SG? And how can Portland afford 115M/year for four 6'3 and under guards? something would have to give. The logical decision would be to move CJ but does anybody really think Olshey would do that?
Love Little too but if it meant getting Simmons then I trade him, sorry. May have to choose between Simon and Little in big trade other team always wants one young player to go with border line all star like CJ
Choice is not tough. CJ has to be traded and we know that for years. We see what happens after that. No reason to trade Simons if we can get rid of that 30M contract of CJ and upgrade our forward spots. CJ been playing well so far so there is no better time to do that really.
neil olshey wont trade cj mccollum, he fits dame lillard timeline, simons is not on cj mccollums level yet im not saying thats correct thing to do, but thats the way itll be if it comes down to that
Pretty obvious to me you move CJ if possible and you keep Simons. Pretty much everyone on this board agrees on that point.
Everybody has been saying for years that CJ must go, but nobody can ever say what team wants him. Finally the Sixers' Simmonsgate comes along and we decide YES - that's the team that wants CJ!!! Only there's no evidence that they do.
Powell will take CJ’s spot assuming we were to get Simmons and Simons would still be the back up 1st man off the bench role.
Yes, Olshey would absolutely trade CJ if he found a deal that made the Blazers better. The narrative around here that Olshey is attached to CJ so closely that he would never trade him is, IMO, pure forum fiction. His record of basically trading a similar player he loved (Eric Gordon) to snatch Chris Paul is pretty convincing proof. The problem isn’t willingness to trade CJ, it’s his max contract. So far, CJ hasn’t proven that he’s worth that money by being able to be at least a #2 player on a contender. Olshey’s issue isn’t an unwillingness to trade CJ, it was overpaying him so that now it’s really hard to find a willing trade partner.
