Trail Blazers trade rumors: New details emerge; new implications with them
On Tuesday evening, Adrian Wojnarwoski of Yahoo! Sports reported that the Portland Trail Blazers have made Thomas Robinson, Will Barton, and a future first round draft pick available in the team’s pursuit of a wing player (namely Wilson Chandler) at the NBA trade deadline. This was expected, but now that it has been confirmed by a reliable source, let’s look at some of the implications of trading away these pieces.
1) First and foremost, the Trail Blazers would receive depth at the wing. We won’t dwell on this too long because there is no concrete confirmation regarding who it would end up being—if anyone, of course. Likely Chandler, but possibly Arron Afflalo, who the Trail Blazers are in the running for according to another report from Wojnarowski on the same day. With either player, the Trail Blazers would receive some scoring help in the second unit.
2) By trading Robinson, the Trail Blazers could create more room in the frontcourt for Meyers Leonard and Joel Freeland to coexist when Freeland is healthy. In Freeland’s absence, Leonard has shown just how valuable he can be on the offensive end, yet, not so much so as to justify benching Freeland. Since Leonard has morphed into more of a power forward this season, clearing Robinson would eliminate some redundancy in the depth chart and allow more minutes to go to utilized players without wasting anyone’s talents on DNPs.
3) By trading Barton as well, the Trail Blazers could open up a roster spot for a free agent. They have rumored interest in signing Tayshaun Prince if he is bought out by the Boston Celtics, but I would not be surprised to see them throw their hat into Ray Allen’s ring when the time comes for him to decide his NBA future. In this case, the Trail Blazers have potential to turn two seldom used third-year players into two seasoned veterans just in time for a playoff run.
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4) By trading a first round draft pick, the Trail Blazers could be losing out on a major prospect, but I do not think that would be as deplorable as it sounds. The Trail Blazers’ front office has been extremely vocal about their intent to keep the core of this team together—a core that is fairly free of holes. Moving forward, they almost don’t have room to responsibly develop a late-first rounder, which is what is more than likely on the table here. While I personally dislike dealing away picks, there has to be some give to accompany the take in any potential trade. Given Portland’s circumstances, it might be worth it.
Trading away well-liked players is always tough, but part of the business. If Thursday boils down to some difficult goodbyes and an anxious welcoming, I trust that President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey conducted business in Portland’s best interest. If it does not, I trust the same. Nobody is going anywhere unless the reward is worth the cost. For the time being, everyone on roster is a part of this team and they should be supported wherever they reside by week’s end.