5 Worst-case scenarios Trail Blazers must avoid at all costs in 2024-25

3. RW3 can't stay healthy; Blazers trade him for scraps

The Trail Blazers eventually need to trade one of Ayton or Williams III, as having four quality centers is not an ideal roster balance. However, teams may be reluctant to gamble on Williams' health, and understandably so. He's averaged 35.8 games per season so far throughout his six-year career.

He's also already experiencing setbacks that, although relatively minor, are still concerning. It remains to be seen if RW3 will suit up for the Blazers' season opener against the Warriors on Wednesday, as he suffered a grade 1 hamstring strain on October 4 and was expected to miss two weeks. Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report mentioned on X that head coach Chauncey Billups "doesn't think Robert Williams will be available [Wednesday], but that isn't definitive. They're hopeful he'll be back very soon."

Portland needs to be patient with his recovery. Still, it's also a fine line because they want to showcase his talent and availability to teams in a potential trade prior to February's deadline. The Blazers should remain open to deals, as it will likely be easier for them to move Williams than Ayton, given their respective contracts. But the one thing they should avoid is trading Williams while his trade value remains low. They don't need to force the issue if they can't find any value.

Cronin has navigated this rebuild extremely patiently regarding trades, and hopefully, that remains the case with RW3.