Well, if we get a top-2 pick then everything looks better, but even then I don't think that we're much better than we were heading into this season, when we were a borderline playoff team. Nobody coming in will be as good as CJ was, and I'm not sure that anyone new would be better than Powell, either. So, no. I don't think it's too early because unless a trade comes out of nowhere that's great for the Blazers, the upside for the next year or two is very limited even with lottery luck. I agree, assuming he's telling the truth. If he's lying out his teeth in order to drive up the price for a team to get Dame, then I'll give him credit. But telegraphing that you want to trade the future to prop up the team around Dame in the near term and then DOING it? That strikes me as dumb on a couple of levels.
Can't wait to hear all the spins on how Cronin is a genius if we lose the Pelicans pick and we just need to see his vision through.
Probably should change GMs every 6 months then I guess... that's probably the best course of action...
Cronin got rid of CJ, roco and Norm. That alone makes him a great GM in my book. But it really is not fair to judge the results yet. People who say "we could have gotten back more...etc;" have NO FUCKING WAY of knowing this. Period.
If the gm is doing a shit job then sure. The goal is to win a title. Should we have kept John Nash around longer to see his shitshow through? How about Rich Cho? Did we give Neil Olshey enough time to waste Dame's time with us?
Sure, if we keep the pick and he drafts the next Dame, keep Cronin for a couple more years. I'm not saying we need to fire the guy immediately. Unless we lose the Pelicans pick. Either way, should be on a short leash.
Nobody coming in will be as good as CJ offensively but admittedly the Dame/CJ pairing had run it's course half a decade ago so trading CJ was the right move and I don't think a return of Hart, NAW and a late lotto pick was a terrible return. Unfortunately NAW was traded for an expiring contract of an already aging player who had just blown out his knee and the pick still isn't a sure thing to convey... oh and we included Larry who despite what everyone is saying is a valuable player on a good contract. Powell was really good too and I think he is a better fit next to Dame than CJ or Ant could ever be but was never given the chance to play in a back court with Dame consistently enough to see what they could do. The return that we got back for him and RoCo is seriously embarrassing. That being said, if we do get lucky in the draft Jabari or Paolo might be better when considering fit than either of those guys, starting as early as next season. Both of those guys are really big and really mobile with great hands and feet. Both can shoot the ball and finish at the rim. They also both have the tools necessary to be good to great defenders at PF obviously it's easier to see Jabari great on that end than Paolo due to the difference in the tenacity that we've already seen. While I'm sure you're right that on the Pelicans, CJ's numbers will be better than either of those two's next season you have to think about what complements this team's personnel.
Well that pick would be nice, for sure. But so far, to me, we treaded CJ McCollum to New Orleans for Josh Hart, Didi Louzada, and Anfernee Simons. That's how I look at it. Anything else is gravy.
Why can’t we keep our pick AND keep Dame? In our range, if we’re smart and lucky, we can get a player better than Grant who helps now and in near future. Would Dame have not liked playing with Scottie Barnes or Evan Mobley? Furthermore, trading for Grant is not a “win now” move. A win now move must actually make you win now.
Assets are used to try to better the team. Didi is a nothing burger. Josh Hart is fine, but he is not as good as CJ. We already had Simons. Sure, he can play more and yadda yadda. But without that lotto pick, we badly, badly lose the trade.
That's fine. And you can keep wearing rose colored glasses. That's your right as a fan. I'm not opposed to seeing what Cronin does this offseason. This is such an important offseason. If he biffs it, he has gotta go.
Yeah I think all of us will be livid if we use our pick to get Grant but if we do use our pick to get a guy that is like Barnes or Mobley, I don't think using the Pelicans pick to get Grant would be a huge mistake. He definitely wouldn't be the first option like he was on the Pistons and with Dame, Ant and Nurk along with a rookie starter, Grant's offensive role would probably be just a little bit more than the one he flourished in with the Nuggets... which helped them win a lot and would definitely help us win now. Grant is a legit two way player who can score in a number of ways especially when he's not being asked to facilitate most of his own scoring opportunities.
So Neil gets almost a decade to fuck everything up and if Joe can't fix it in one he's gone? IDK man...
