Just putting this out there. Our best player is in the absolute prime of his life and our FO is still dicking around with his supporting cast. Now is the time to swing for the fences, you have a perfect complement out there in Butler. Yeah, it may be a one year rental, but the alternative is throwing away a year of a real MVP candidate.
Dame can be this good for 5 or 6 more years. We have to be smart. The FO has actually put good complementary pieces around him that are young and have continuity together. A trade for Butler IF the Wolves are even interested could hurt the team for the rest of Dame’s prime if he bolts. Trust the process. We’re on the cusp of greatness.
I’m hoping Dame can have a career similar to Dirk’s. Won MVP at age 28, willed his team a title at nearly 33, played for same team his whole career. If Dame has taught us anything so far, this is not as good as it gets.
I wonder how the team would be, record wise, if CJ was playing better and Aminu and Curry weren't meh. The team is lucky to have Damian and Zach this year.
Bright spots for me have Been, Damian, and the bench (overall), blind spots have been Aminu and Jusuf’s defense, along with CJ apparently forgot where the ball is supposed to go.
It may not seem fair, but the weight of this season is on Nurk and CJ. Has Nurk really hit his ceiling already? Is CJ willing/able to get back to where he was a couple seasons ago? We know Dame will carry his share of the weight. We know Collins is making progress. Everybody else has either hit their ceiling or is too far away to make a difference this year. Nurk and CJ are the x-factors.
As long as stubborn Neil is trying to force the Dame/CJ combo to work, Dame’s prime will be wasted... you have a top 15 player like Jimmy on the market, and Neil is refusing to put CJ on the table, instead he is committing 30% of the cap to an undersized ISO ball chucker that doesn’t play defense... having Jimmy next to Dame, with the new bench would instantly make Blazers a contender, legit top 4 team in the west... Dame is ready now... he can carry this team with a sidekick like Jimmy... CJ is not a legit number 2
I wonder if part of the reason a trade like that hasn't happened is the ownership issue. Vulcan probably wouldn't sign off on re-signing Butler to a massive deal even though CJ is massively paid too.
out of fairness, how do you know Neil hasn't made CJ available? I would bet any team would be willing to take CJ for a player thats demanded a trade and can walk away. The only way id consider CJ in a Butker pkg is if we could resign him, otherwise Id be looking for a better trade.
At this rate, Dame is going to leave anyways when his contract is up. Hell, I want him to leave with the way the FO is putting pieces around him. I love Dame and I want him to experience winning a championship, and he sure as hell ain't doing it here with the moves being made by Neil.
You would think the ownership issue would make a deal like that more likely... Butler expiring contract would give a potential new owner more flexibility
I don't think a deal for the Blazers getting butler was ever all that serious, however I think with ownership stuff somewhat up in the air right now, a chance of a big trade is pretty much 0.
"Dame is on my team, so I love him. In fact, I love him so much I want him to leave my team. Then I can hate him."
