With the 2026 NBA trade deadline squarely in the rearview, dozens of players found new homes, and many a second-round pick was exchanged. Cleveland scored a victory for basketball fans, acquiring James Harden in exchange for Darius Garland, and Boston scored a victory for billionaire fans, as the ownership group successfully chiseled their way out of the luxury tax.
But there’s one victor that they’re glossing over; the winner of the 2026 trade deadline was none other than your Portland Trail Blazers.
Yes, the trade for Vít Krejčí was a savvy one and his three-point shooting will undoubtedly help the team this season and beyond. However, the Blazers won this deadline by not making any rash moves and liquidating the Bucks draft picks, instead weathering the rising tide of Giannis trade rumors.
Blazers were right to hold firm on valuable Bucks picks
In 2023, Blazers fans bemoaned the lack of immediate returns on the Damian Lillard trade, believing that a proper rebuild couldn’t begin in the aftermath. However, the draft picks that the Blazers acquired in that trade are quickly coming due and decisions made in the current day are starting to manipulate the value in real time. One such free radical in this delicate system is the collective whims of Antetokounmpo.
After the eighth (!!!) straight season of swirling trade rumors, Giannis once again opted to remain a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. The implication is staggering for the Blazers; Giannis was allegedly closer to leaving than he’s ever been, and the longer he stays in Milwaukee, the more valuable those draft selections become.
Antetokounmpo is 31 years old. When those picks begin to convey, he will be 33 and on the wrong side of his prime. Currently, the Bucks are 20-29 and, if anything, have gotten worse after the trade deadline, trading microwave scorer Cole Anthony for middling backup center Nick Richards and unproven Ousmane Dieng. Giannis has repeatedly stated his desire to win, and the pathway to such is murkier than ever in Milwaukee.
The ideal scenario for Portland is Giannis asking out in the 2027 offseason; at that time, these picks (2029) and swaps (2028 and 2030) will be at their juiciest, ripe for the picking. A Giannis trade at that point guarantees a full-scale teardown, every conceivable asset in Milwaukee will be sold for parts, and the Blazers—presumably in playoff contention at that point—will benefit greatly from an expanded warchest.
By pulling away from the bargaining table when Giannis did, the Blazers dramatically increased the value of those picks and swaps, priming the pump for an offseason trade in true Joe Cronin fashion. If no deal materializes, the picks accrue even more worth.
There are some truly transcendent talents that far down the line. At this moment, Mohamed Dabone of Burkina Faso stands 6’10” at 14 years old with a 7’4” wingspan, plays pro ball for FC Barcelona and is already being compared to Victor Wembanyama. He is draft eligible in 2030; do with that what you will.