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Portland Trail Blazers: Three free-agency replacements for Trevor Ariza

By Stevie Cozens

SAITAMA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 10: Gerald Green #14 of Houston Rockets looks on during the preseason game between Toronto Raptors and Houston Rockets at Saitama Super Arena on October 10, 2019 in Saitama, Japan. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Takashi Aoyama/Getty Images)
SAITAMA, JAPAN - OCTOBER 10: Gerald Green #14 of Houston Rockets looks on during the preseason game between Toronto Raptors and Houston Rockets at Saitama Super Arena on October 10, 2019 in Saitama, Japan. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Takashi Aoyama/Getty Images) /
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Unfortunately, Portland Trail Blazers forward Trevor Ariza is unavailable for the season’s resumption in Orlando. What options are there to replace him?

Portland Trail Blazers small forward Trevor Ariza made the right decision when it came to opting out of the NBA’s resumption in Orlando in August. Ariza is locked in a custody battle with his ex-partner and has been granted a month’s custody of his son. Family should always come first, so Ariza has made the right choice.

There is a shortage of free-agent options on the wing, but there are a few players who could come in and be robust bench options. The Blazers need size and shooting, with a little bit of scoring. Experience would also be useful, but with limited choices, that may not be possible.

Which three players could the Blazers look at signing to replace Ariza?

Ariza replacement number one – Gerald Green

Size, shooting, and experience are all on former Houston Rocket Gerald Green‘s side. He isn’t six-foot-eight like Ariza, but he is six-foot-six with a six-foot-ten wingspan.

Unfortunately for Green, after playing some of the best ball of his career in Houston, a broken foot in 2019 led to him missing all of this season before the Rockets traded him to the Denver Nuggets, who then cut him two days later.

Green is thirty-four-years old and has significant experience in the league, debuting in 2005/06. He has played in 68 playoff games with five different teams.

Green shot 36 percent from three with the Rockets while guarding the second-best wing threat on the opposition team. He isn’t a lockdown defender, but he still has the speed and strength to defend a lot of twos and threes competently. Green’s 36 percent from three was also on some of the highest volume in the league. In the 2017/18 and 2018/19 season, he was in the 96th, and 97th percentile for threes attempted. This number gives that 36 percent a real boost.

Green seems to have recovered from this injury, and he could join a squad for an end of season push.

It’s likely that someone like Green wouldn’t play significant minutes if the Blazers signed him. It would likely be in the vicinity of 12 – 18 a night dependent on other injuries/matchups and foul trouble. Green can still contribute to a playoff team, but the Blazers may have competition to sign him.