The trade season has officially opened up in the NBA. Eyes are on the Portland Trail Blazers as potential buyers as they look to upgrade their roster to end a four-year postseason drought. Deni Avdija is playing at a legitimate All-Star level, which could also make Portland more inclined to make a trade.
While the Blazers should look to make a move by the February trade deadline to address roster weaknesses, particularly in the shooting department, they may not need to make as drastic a move as some may expect. Not only have the Blazers emphasized a long-term approach to their rebuild, but they may already have Avdija's co-star on their roster in Shaedon Sharpe.
Shaedon Sharpe is emerging as Deni Avdija's co-star in Portland
Portland is coming off a 136-131 home win against the Golden State Warriors despite Stephen Curry's 48-point outburst. That was largely thanks to the play of Sharpe, who finished with 35 points, four assists, and three assists of his own.
It's been an up-and-down season for Sharpe, who has struggled with his shot, connecting on a career-low 28.3% of his attempts from beyond the arc. But the Blazers' high-flyer has really turned it on as of late, shooting 41.7% from downtown in the month of December.
In this contest, there were possessions where Sharpe and the greatest shooter to walk planet Earth were trading buckets. Curry was an absurd 12-of-19 (63.2%) from deep, while Sharpe finished 5-of-7 (71.4%).
It's important to note that Sharpe was dealing with a right calf strain earlier in the season, which appears to have been affecting his shot. While the 41.7% doesn't seem sustainable, he's also not as bad a shooter as his 28.3% suggests. The eye test seems to agree with this assessment, too, as Sharpe's three-point shot has much more arc as of late.
If he can become an average three-point shooter -- and signs point towards him becoming one, given that he's just 22 years old -- Sharpe is going to become a legitimate co-star alongside Avdija.
We saw that down the stretch of last season as the Blazers dealt with key injuries, and it's only magnified this season with their current injury situation as well as the departures of Anfernee Simons and Deandre Ayton. Portland made strategic offseason moves to continue investing in its youth and to make them a higher priority, and that vision is finally coming to fruition as its roster slowly gets healthier heading into the new year.
Sharpe is leading the team in usage rate at 31.3% while Avdija is second at 27.8%. These two have emerged as the primary offensive initiators in Portland, and it's a formula that will only get tougher for defenses to stop as they get closer to reaching their prime. Between Sharpe's top-tier athleticism and Avdija's physicality, this dynamic duo is going to be a matchup nightmare for opposing teams, as was the case against Golden State.
Sharpe still has to find ways to put these performances together on a more consistent basis, but these flashes, and more importantly, his improved shooting, are incredibly promising.
If the right deal comes along this trade season, the Blazers aren't in a position to shy away. But Sharpe's play should also make them feel much more comfortable about not pressing the issue of adding more star power. They're already on the right track.