Trade Ideas Thread

My #1 trade target:

Frank Ntilikina

He's a 2/3 playing out of position in New York. He'd be a nice project to develop alongside Simons.

 

#1b:

Joe Harris

 

Can't shoot, but he's a good defender. With Dennis Smith Jr as the starter, I bet he could be had for the first round pick.

 

From the Athletic.

Batum and 12 for some of our expirings (and maybe 25) is my fantasy.

 

Why? He's become largely useless on the floor. I have no use for Batum unless he's part of a larger deal to bring in a star. Climbing 13 spots in this draft is not worth that contract.

 

A playmaking wing that can defend and shot 39% from outside (58% TS) is useless? His VORP would’ve ranked him third on the team this season.

 

It is if we can land Brandon Clarke.

 

Who would you target at 12 that would make having a crappy player on the books for two more years thus ruining any flexibility the next two summers worth it?

 

1. Cluster at 12 would be three or four players, but I’d hope Doumbouya would fall. If not I’d be more than happy with guys like Clarke, Little, and Johnson.

2. Batum isn’t crappy, just overpaid. His TS% would’ve ranked him right below Lillard, and his VORP third behind only Dame and Nurk. His playmaking is exactly what this team needs to counter all the traps teams throw at Dame.

 

How many games would it take for us all to remember how annoying Batum's game is, 3,4,5?

 

Maybe I am being too much of a curmudgeon.....but I can't see either giving value or taking on another bad contract just to move up in this draft.

 

Idk. I always liked him.

 

I always really liked him that one game every couple of weeks he decided he wanted to play.

 

His shooting percentages were up because he refuses to be aggressive and drastically reduced his attempts per game. It would be okay if that meant he was passing a lot more but his assists had a big drop too as well as his AST%. He barely gets to the free throw line. Why did his usage rate drop so much this year? His PER is bad (not that I put a lot of stock in that). Outside of maybe Dennis Rodman (from strictly a basketball perspective), no player that can't even average 10 points per game is worth $25-$27 million per year.

 

So you’re holding being efficient against him? And we wouldn’t ask him to take ten shots a game anyway, so what difference does it make? His primary function would be to defend, space the floor, and take the playmaking pressure off Dame. He left four years ago and we still haven’t replaced him. I’d like him back.

 

His playmaking has vanished, that is a concern to me. He had also looked old last year and because of that his defense isn't as good as it was when he was here.

 

The one thing that's hard about this and the position the Blazers are in, there really isn't a "perfect" player out there. Every single player we have any potential to get will be someone that has flaws and maybe some major ones. Even a guy like Batum whom I am not a fan of, has some good qualities too. It's about figuring out what flaws you're willing to live with.

I understand you're reasoning for Batum, but I think his contract is way too rich for what he produces, you may disagree that's fine.

 

Playmaking isn’t something that just vanishes, youre only saying that because the assist numbers took a dip last season.

 

Batum's production is beyond awful from a return on investment standpoint. When he was on the Blazers he was the most frustrating player to watch. He passed up open jumpers, never drove to the lane and generally looked passive for LONG stretches. His passing was OK, but he was no Draymond Green.

 

Great. Before every game Batum and Hark can play rock/paper/scissors to see which, if either, will pretend to be interested.

If Batum had Aminu's motor, or Aminu had Batum's skills, you would have an all-star!