The 2022 Trade Idea Thread, now with more urgency!

I know this isn't exactly going to help with the tank but I think we could and should make these two trades in a little over a week, assuming CJ is back on the floor by then.

I think Norm is the perfect fit in the back court with Brogdon and Larry fits really well next to Sabonis. The Pacers would also have enough time to flip Nurk for something that makes more sense for their roster.


Both the Pacers and Sixers would probably include an end of bench player to make the roster numbers work but we would end up with a starting lineup of Dame, LeVert, Nas, Simmons and Turner with GB3 also under contract going into next season. I still don't know what we would want to do with Ant because it's either pay him in the off season or move him now. So that puts us at 123M for our cap number with six players under contract. If we kept Ant then we would have him, our first rounder, our second rounder, the mini MLE and minimum contracts to round out our roster. I just really like that starting lineup.

 

If I’m trading Lillard away, there’s no way I’m taking Fox over Haliburton in a return. If we’re talking Haliburton/Simmons/Maxey as the main pieces + many draft picks, that’s at least a future I can be excited about if we were considering pulling the plug.

But if Dame is committed, there is no point of discussing. I think we can still land Simmons this summer in addition to getting a lottery pick so it’s essentially Simmons Haliburton and Maxey or Simmons Dame and our high lotto pick. I’d still lean towards keeping him. If you trade him, you’re just reminding future NBA stars “that’s what loyalty gets ya bruh”.

 

Just a thought? Seems CJ & Porzingis have been out at the same time? Maybe there is a deal? Clean one for both franchises.

 

I love Dame and I want to keep him and win a title with him. That being said when I watch Ant and Nas I start to understand the blow it up way of thinking but I think we could blow it up with a quick turnaround. I think we could (even with his current injury) trade Dame for Ingram, Hayes and two firsts. Dame just pairs so well with Zion and Valanciunas along with Hart and Alexander-Walker. I just think that team would give us a haul for him. Then you could take those two firsts CJ and either RoCo or Nance whoever the Sixers prefer for Simmons and filler. I think you then trade whoever is leftover from Nance and Roco, Norm and Nurk for a combo of draft picks, young talent and/or expiring contracts. I think that Nas could play the two... I know we're used to a PG sized SG but Nas has plenty of quickness and speed to play that position. So we would have Ant, Nas, Ingram, Simmons and Hayes to start from day one. That's a scary lineup and then you have whatever you get for the other three guys off the bench or in the draft.

The two trades I specified, work under the CBA.

 

I would love to figure out a way to get Brandon Clarke.

 

What about something like RoCo to Chicago, Bagley and Brown Jr to Portland and DJJ and Elleby to Sac? Not sure why Sac would do it, besides getting looks at other players. Maybe throw in some sort of pick?

 

Chicago is a great fit for Roco. Should try and get Patrick Williams.

 

I wouldn’t say there’s any urgency to make a trade unless it makes us more shitty (if possible). We can wait til the deadline to unload some contracts

 

Baby Sabonis dropped 42 on the Jazz tonight....that's not chopped liver!

 

Holy shit. That’s an awful team lol. Try again. One proven player who’s never been to playoffs, one flawed All Star, and a bunch of scrubs. People like Nas and Ant too much. We’re losing to everybody with them as the focal points. On a championship team, neither of them would get minutes.

 

They’re 21 and 22 years old. If they were carrying us to the playoffs that would be pretty remarkable.

 

Not a fan personally. This just turn us into the Boston Celtics. Two star wings and a bunch of guys. And I would take Tatum and Brown over Ingram and Simmons.

Right now, I’d still rather be a Blazers fan than a Celtics fan. After those trades, not so much. I personally would honor my star player’s loyalty by being loyal in return and not trade him to somewhere like NOP where he wouldn’t want to go to. You could trade Lillard for the Simmons/Maxey/picks package right now, why would you prefer Ingram and Hayes? We’re also going to suck this year, you’re telling me you like Hayes over any of the top 3 bigs in this year’s draft? Do we know for sure he’s even going to be better than Duren in the long run?

That team also would SERIOUSLY lack a leader. You better hope Jaden Ivey is on the squad next year if you want any shot of making the playoffs with that roster. I would love to see Nas become a two, but at his point his ball handling is simply not good enough to be a guard.

 

First of all, I'm in the keep Dame camp, I was just saying that watching the team lose so much and seeing the potential that Ant and Nas have was making me understand why so many want to hit the reset button. As far as the team I said we could build it would be that team our lottery pick and like three other first round picks that we'd get out of trading our other players and probably a role playing young guy or two. So starting next season the team would have depth.

I don't think you're as big of a Simmons fan as I am and that's cool but he isn't like Brown or Tatum. The dude is a 6'10" 240lbs monster who is more athletically gifted than either of the Celtics stars. He can do everything there is to do on the basketball court with the huge exception of shooting and I personally think if he was in a more encouraging environment he would figure out shooting too. Ingram is like a poor man's Tatum on the offensive end and he has the size and talent to be very good defensively too. I like Jaxson Hayes. I like the dudes shot, his athletic ability, his length and pretty much everything he does defensively... I think there's a lot of unused potential there. Like I said earlier I like the potential in our two young guys too. So I think there is a lot to like. I also think Chauncey would do really well with a young team and could mold one of those guys into a leader.

All of that said, this is not what I want to happen. I want to rebuild this team around Dame, with guys that make sense when considering his strengths and weaknesses. I would still like Simmons to be part of that team. I'd want Nas to be part of that team. I would absolutely trade everyone else that isn't one of our expiring min salary guys or one of our two rookies. That includes Ant because even though I really like what he can do and his upside, it makes no sense with Dame to me. So get what you can for him too.

 

You mean like Luka and Ja are? They're 22 and have their teams on winning streaks and are headed to playoffs. How about LaMelo Ball? He is 20 and has his team contending for a playoff spot. You're either good or you're not. Ant and Nas aren't on those guys' levels. We need stars. The age excuse in today's league doesn't hold up.

 

Nas and Ant don't have potential or upside. They'll get you numbers if they're all you have but you won't win many games. On a good team, they are role players at best. Ant is 3 ball shooter when he's hot and Nas is hustle guy. They're not becoming All Stars.

 

Now that's a decent team.

 

I always here about building around Dame. You don't build around one player like Dame you build around a coaches system and yes I what Dame included in that system. Right we don't have players for that system that Billups system. But in the meantime the coach has to come with a system that benefits who he got on the roster something that Billups hasn't done.

 

Bol Bol to Detroit for a bag of chips

 

CJ and Covington to Dallas for Finny Smith and Porzingis.

 

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2022/1/10/22876169/klay-thompson-golden-state-warriors

5. It’s Time for the Blazers to Reset
Depending on how you want to look at it, the Trail Blazers are either tied for the NBA’s eighth-worst record or the eighth-best draft odds. Damian Lillard is limited by an abdominal injury and the team’s defense is an abomination. Chauncey Billups hasn’t yet proved to be a positive change at head coach from Terry Stotts. It’s been a shitty season, but at 15-24, Portland is tied in record with San Antonio for the final play-in tournament spot. The 10-seed shouldn’t be all that appealing, though, when this roster has no chance of making much noise in the playoffs.

Front office executives and agents have been gossiping recently about whether the Blazers could become sellers ahead of the February 10 deadline. CJ McCollum could bring value to a ton of teams with his scoring ability, just as Jusuf Nurkic can as a bruising center and Robert Covington could with his help defense. Those players’ flaws make it tough to form an appropriate support system around Lillard, but they could help a lot of teams in need of their specific skills.

As first noted by Marc Stein in his Substack, Portland’s handling of Lillard’s injury could play into its trade deadline approach. The more time Dame misses, the further the Blazers will fall from playoff contention.

Everything else can change except Dame and the other good stuff: Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little. Simons, 22, will be in the league a long time, and his recent 43-point game showed what he can become as a fiery guard. Little, 21, is an impressive wing defender who brings energy and explosive scoring potential. The Blazers should keep them for now. Portland’s youth is its silver lining.

Shuffling the rest of the deck could better set up the Blazers around Lillard for next season, and in the meantime, make the team worse to help get higher draft odds. It’s a year in which there are currently three potential first picks: forward Jabari Smith Jr. from Auburn and two northwest players in Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren and Paolo Banchero, who was raised in Seattle and plays forward at Duke. All three could complement Lillard with modern skills that he’s never had around him before. The Blazers could either keep the selection or they could use it to trade for a star, rejuvenating their championship hopes.

A retooling period offers far more upside than pushing for maybe an exciting play-in tournament victory or two and then a first-round spanking at the hands of one of the top two seeds in the West. A team with Dame might miss the playoffs, but a team with Dame could land a top pick. No matter how you look at it, a new chapter is beginning.