Marc Gasol to the Portland Trail Blazers: Thoughts From Rip City Project and Beale Street Bears Writers

What would you like to see in return for Gasol?

Chris: It all starts with Portland’s 2019 first-round pick. That’s what the Grizzlies will want in any deal and likely wouldn’t consider anything else. The Blazers have some young players both inside and out who can be good pick-ups for Memphis. We’ll start by looking at some post players who could be paired in the frontcourt with Jaren Jackson Jr.

This is under the assumption that Jusuf Nurkic isn’t on the table, which seems to be the case. Zach Collins and Caleb Swanigan may be the bigger names on the roster, but Jake Layman and Meyers Leonard may be the better fits. With JaMychal Green likely on the move before the deadline, Memphis could look to acquire one or both of these guys.

With Jackson being so skilled inside and out on the offensive end, they may prefer a big who can stretch the floor to open up the lane for him. With Layman unlikely to be involved since he has been playing well, Leonard is a very realistic option. His ability to stretch the floor could make him a valuable piece in Memphis. Getting two talented players such as Collins and Swanigan would be nice, but it’s very unlikely they could get both.

You don’t want to overcrowd the frontcourt either with big men possibly coming over in a Conley deal. Ivan Rabb has been playing well lately, so they would like to see him continue to get minutes after the deadline. Portland doesn’t have a lot of young guards but they do have a few.

Anfernee Simons and Gary Trent Jr. are the top two guard prospects. Simons is just 19 years old, so he is Memphis’ ideal target. He is a talented young guard who has the potential to be a very good player.

To make salaries work, we should expect Evan Turner to be involved. His $18.6 million for next season isn’t good, but Memphis should be more than willing to bring that back assuming they get a good package.

With Parsons likely still on the roster next season it may make the Grizzlies unwilling to bring in some big contracts, because they definitely will not want to pay the luxury tax on a lottery bound team, but bringing back any package featuring at least a couple of these players and a first-round pick should make the Grizzlies happy.

Who would you like to see the Blazers give up for Gasol?

Shade: I think there are two routes they could go in a potential trade. They could make a deal built around Nurkic and a first-rounder, or the deal could be built around a couple of young players and a first. The Blazers ideal outcome includes acquiring Gasol and  Garrett Temple and keeping Nurkic, while the Grizzlies’ wish list looks like it includes a first rounder and young assets. Here are the two packages that I came up with that we could potentially see the Blazers deal for Gasol:

First, since there is the possibility that the Grizzlies do want Nurkic, one starting point offer would be to trade Evan Turner, Nurkic, Caleb Swanigan, and a first-round pick for Gasol and Temple. While the Blazers will likely be resistant to giving up Nurkic, they would save themselves from giving up an extra young asset in this deal. Also if they were to deal Nurkic, I think the Blazers could keep Anfernee Simons and instead deal Swanigan. It also is sounding less and less like the Grizzlies are going to need Nurkic in the deal after talking with Chris.

The second offer would be built more around the young players. It would be Evan Turner, Meyers Leonard, Anfernee Simons, Caleb Swanigan, and a first-rounder for Gasol, Temple, and Shelvin Mack. This is likely the Blazers’ better options since they keep Nurkic. Also, the Grizzlies seem like they would rather take on young players than pair Nurkic and Jaren Jackson Jr.

Something similar to one of these first two trades is what I expect to see. What I would like to see is any package not including Zach Collins. I think Gasol would be the perfect mentor for Zach Collins and I would love to see how he developed under Gasol.