OT Donavan Mitchell trade watch

This team as constructed needs one more all star talent.
They need one player to either pop and become an absolute beast or they need to find one in trade?
IMO they are one really good player from contention. Been that way for a while but it’s where they are.
By the way. They could very easily be good enough to get the 4-5 seed.

 

The team isn't done with making changes. Cronin said as much. Next year will bring more potential additions and subtractions. And , depending on how Ant, Nas, and Sharpe progress, some of them may be included in a package to improve. The team is more liquid now. Not damned by the Hairdo.

 

There's only so many changes they can make.

 

I honestly think we're an athletic stretch big away from contention if two big ifs were to happen. If Ant can play as well with Dame as he did on his own and if Shaedon is an immediate impact player good enough to beat out Nas and Hart for the starting SF spot. Those aren't impossible things. I guess the other is if we can stay healthy.

So if Dame, Ant, Shaedon, Jerami and Nurk are an effective starting unit, if everyone else is healthy and if the team is in the top 6 in the West at the trade deadline and we can get a healthy Mo Bamba for Hart and maybe some kind of draft capital, then I think we'll be contenders without that much change.

 

This year. And even that is questionable after January.

 

We need another star.

Either that star needs to come from within, or we need to be able to trade for them. Otherwise we're just rearranging the chairs on the Titanic.

I am cautiously optimistic about Sharpe. I don't have high hopes that Ant will be able to reach his potential as long as he's paired with Dame.

 

Hence the after January when he can be traded. I am sure the people around the league know how good he can be, we have all seen it - there will be a market for him if he can not thrive next to Dame and the Blazers want to continue balancing the roster.

Personally, I think there is a very good chance he will be able to thrive next to Dame more than CJ did - he is a better primary ball handler and better catch and shoot specialist - which means he can be more effective next to Dame without the ball in his hands and a better backup PG when Dame is not in the game. What he is not as good as CJ is - is make something out of nothing in iso situations (where CJ is a real wizard). But if it does not work - there will be enough market for him - much more than what we had for CJ - his age and lower salary will make him a bigger attraction for other teams.

 

Look,…. I know you like to biforgate the before and afters. But at the end of the day….To propogate this is simply not a question. I believe we have one of the best backcourts in the league and the numbers back this up. We are completely confident we will compete at the highest level.
So just… look.

 

Kevin Love only has one more year remaining on his contract. Be prepared to see the “Kevin Love to Portland” thread back in action!

 

No. Obviously they needed to during him with more but that has nothing to do with anything I said.

 

No to trading Sharpe and Ant for Mitchell. I'm not opposed to trading Ant but I want to get bigger if I trade Ant. As it is, Ant and Sharpe will be dangerous next chapter Blazers as young as they are.
We'll see at the deadline who wins minutes. I've said all along I'd sell high on both Ant and Nas for an impactful bigger two way wing and backup 7ftr...we should know what Nas and Ant are like by the deadline.

 

How does it not have anything to do with what you said? You said you didn’t want to set a precedent that they aren’t loyal to other stars. Or spit in his face. So we hold on to him forever and ever and hope that some of our 13 role players develops into the next star? Simons is the only one I can see doing it to help Lillard. Sharpe is a ways away, if ever. Nobody else is making a huge jump. So what collection of these guys and picks turns this into a contender, passing by everyone in front of them?

 

Yes, exactly, the Blazers have extreme "Flexibility"

Cronin is going to use that to make this team a contender.

 

Portland will never accomplish shit without a loyal star. If you think setting the precedent that loyalty doesn't matter is a benefit to Portland, I dont know what to say. Trading the type of superstar and player that is almost impossible for Portland to get and keep just because it's hard to get to contention has always seemed contradictory to me.

 

I didn't rail against Olshey.

Before the 2011 season started odds makers gave Dallas 18/1 odds (roughly a 5% chance) of winning it all.

 

As he said, if Simons, Nas, and Sharpe pop, they become pieces that can be traded for a star/superstar.

 

If you would carefully look at my prediction in the prediction thread, you would say that there is no team in front of them.

 

I don't think there's a single person that wants Dame to only have role players, right? That's the point. We have our star, it's the organizations job to get another one (or more). That's a failure of the front office, not being loyal.

 

Sure. And how do they get another one? They have no assets except future 1sts. That won’t do it.