Move #4 – Sign Norman Powell to a five-year $90 million deal
The Blazers, at the trade deadline in 2021, moved young wing Gary Trent Jr and Rodney Hood to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for exciting guard Norman Powell.
Both Trent Jr and Hood were about to be paid, but the asset swap slightly favored the Blazers as they didn’t have the unpredictable restricted status where Trent could get $18 – 22 million offers, which were predicted last season.
In the end, Powell and Trent got very similar money, but Powell ended up with a straight 5 years.
With the potential for a CJ McCollum trade, the retention of Powell was a key move in the summer. Even if McCollum isn’t to be moved right now, they had to retain Powell so if McCollum was ever traded, they could slot Powell into the more natural two-guard spot.
Also, regardless of moving CJ, they wouldn’t be able to replace Powell if he left. Because they are over the cap, they would have no resources to bring someone else in if they didn’t re-sign him.
Overall, the five-year $90 million deal was a nice move for the team.