The Portland Trail Blazers are looking to dump Jerami Grant's massive contract (subscription required) in a potential blockbuster Giannis Antetokounmpo trade this summer, NBA insider Jake Fischer reported on The Stein Line.
Grant is owed $34.2 million next season with a $36.4 million player option in 2027-28. Portland would still have to add salary to make the deal work financially, considering Giannis is on the books for $58.5 million next season.
Nonetheless, it's encouraging to see these rumors mentioning Portland's desire to offload Grant. That was always in question as Grant emerged as a favorite of general manager Joe Cronin's.
Blazers could finally solve their Jerami Grant problem
Now, it seems that Cronin has realized that moving Grant is a necessary hurdle to give Portland either A) a legitimate star upgrade by using Grant as part of the salary filler or B) financial flexibility to upgrade and retain their existing young core.
Ideally, Portland would be able to land another Deni Avdija-type deal in which they accomplish both, but that's what makes that deal so special, as it's incredibly rare to come by.
New Orleans Pelicans wing Trey Murphy III would check both boxes relatively well, as he's owed a reasonable $27 million next season. Regardless of what that specific star looks like, it seems as though Portland is set on including Grant as the stepping stone.
Fischer even added that the Blazers were interested in sending Grant and draft picks to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Anthony Davis at the deadline. Dallas preferred the Washington Wizards package because they didn't want to deal with Grant's contract, which would limit their financial flexibility for the next two seasons. That's the roadblock Portland has dealt with throughout this rebuild, which is why Grant remains on the roster despite his questionable fit with their timeline.
Portland should prioritize Jrue Holiday over Jerami Grant
Given the way the Blazers' contracts are set up, the only two options they can reasonably package as the foundation for a star are Grant or Jrue Holiday.
It actually helps that they extended Shaedon Sharpe and Toumani Camara before the start of last season, as they can now potentially include their salaries as part of the package, with both hovering around $20 million next season. Still, the meat of the package will have to consist of either Grant or Holiday, as their $34 million will make it much more feasible to land a superstar salary like Giannis, Davis, or someone else entirely.
Between the two, it's good that Portland seems to be prioritizing Holiday over Grant.
Fischer mentions that the Blazers will likely want to explore ways to expand Scoot Henderson's role after an overall promising postseason. That will be more difficult to come by with Damian Lillard's return. However, it's Holiday's versatility that gives him a strong case to stick around next season.
At his exit interview, Holiday made it clear that he wants to stay and continue building in Portland, as he doesn't like change. Grant made his desire to stay clear as well, but adds that it's ultimately not up to him. Portland's forward has constantly been involved in trade rumors, but it finally seems like this is the summer those rumors become a reality.
The Blazers' young core has proven they are finally ready to take that next step. That also aligns well with Lillard's return and Tom Dundon's arrival. The offseason hasn't even officially started, yet Portland is already popping up in trade rumors for stars like Giannis and Davis. That's a pleasant change for a team that has been relatively quiet over its past few rebuilding years.
If they finally make that splash fans have been eagerly waiting for, trading Grant is the obvious decision.
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