It’s imperative that the Portland Trail Blazers convince Derrick Jones Jr. to pick up his player option for the 2021-2022 NBA season. To have him opt out would be to lose an asset for nothing.
If he opts into his contract next season, even if the Blazers wanted to move on from him, they’d be able to use him as a trade chip.
Luckily, DJJ would make a little over $9.7 million if he were to accept his option with the Blazers next year, according to Spotrac. This is likely right around what he would net as a free agent, if not a little more. He’s still a flight-risk considering that he might try to sign a longer-term deal this offseason to secure his financial stability for the next few years.
Derrick Jones Jr. can still be a key contributor for the Portland Trail Blazers
An even greater reason for having DJJ re-sign is because he can address a lot of needs for the Blazers. Portland lacked defense, vertical spacing, and bench scoring last year, all facets that Jones Jr. could address, in theory.
Jones Jr. was signed for his potential to be an impact defender on the perimeter and for a chunk of the 2020-2021 season, showed off those defensive chops in Rip City. The problem though, was that his weaknesses on offense outweighed his contributions on defense, therefore making him a net negative and ultimately unplayable.
DJJ is still young though, having turned just 23 last season. He has plenty of room to grow as a player and with his size and athleticism, can certainly become an important piece for the Blazers moving forward if he improves certain parts of his game.
Here are the key areas that Jones Jr. should work on this offseason to become a regular asset off the Portland bench: