2. Norman Powell’s contract was a steal and will give the Portland Trail Blazers a lot more flexibility
Powell re-signed with the Blazers for a contract spanning five years with a payout of $90 million. That’s probably below his market value, considering Duncan Robinson just signed the exact same deal with the Miami Heat. Evan Fournier inked for more money per year with the New York Knicks.
Next season, he’ll be making less than Zach LaVine, Buddy Hield, Eric Gordon, and Gary Harris.
It appears as though Neil Olshey was able to sway Powell on the long-term prospects of the team, despite the bombardment of rumors about Damian Lillard’s future in Portland.
Not only does Powell’s deal help the Blazers immediate financial situation, it also gives them flexibility moving forward.
At $18 million/year, his contract is extremely tradeable; whether it be a part of a package for a max contract, for a combination of smaller salaried role players, or straight up for a different median-paid asset.
Of course ideally, the Blazers would keep Powell on his financially sensible deal long-term as a fairly valued third option. His contract though, does give Portland options for the worst-case scenario if they do deem that they need to move him. Nonetheless, his signing gives them flexibility to make other moves in the near future.