The Portland Trail Blazers could very well be involved in a Giannis Antetokounmpo blockbuster trade this summer, whether by acquiring the Milwaukee Bucks superstar directly or facilitating a multi-team trade that sends him elsewhere.
They have the key to the entire sweepstakes in those valuable Bucks picks from 2028-30 stolen from the Damian Lillard deal. That gives Portland key leverage to either land Giannis or come away with a secondary star (Jaylen Brown, for instance, if Giannis goes to the Boston Celtics).
Blazers need to capitalize on opportunity to offload Jerami Grant
Those high-paid players will require a salary filler on Portland's end to make the deal work financially, giving them a prime opportunity to finally offload Jerami Grant once and for all.
Grant may have had a bounce-back season, but he's still one of the most overpaid players in the league, owed $34.2 million next season with a $36.4 million player option in 2027-28.
Perhaps Portland can use those Bucks picks to incentivize Milwaukee to take on Grant's contract in return. They will want to embrace a rebuild if/when they trade the Greek Freak away, and taking on bad contracts with future draft capital attached is a strategic move for rebuilding teams.
Grant's value has relatively increased thanks to his resurgent season. That presents Portland with a "sell high" opportunity, as they should move him while they still can.
Portland may have to pick between Jerami Grant or Jrue Holiday
If the Blazers do start hunting in their first offseason under new owner Tom Dundon, they'll likely have to package either Grant or Jrue Holiday to match salaries. Despite Holiday's declining athleticism, this season was further confirmation that he remains far and away the more impactful two-way player.
Grant has provided value of his own, embracing a sixth man role and giving Portland's defensive-minded second unit much-needed scoring and floor spacing off the bench. Still, that's far more expandable compared to Holiday.
The Blazers would be acquiring a star with the intention of immediately contending. Holiday is the proven champion to help them reach that goal, as he's elevated the ceiling of every team he's been on, even being the piece to put the Bucks and Celtics over the top. Not to mention his connection to Giannis, which would help convince him to stay in Portland if they go that route.
The same can't be said for Grant, whose one-dimensional skill set doesn't impact winning in the same way, despite his case as the more gifted scorer.
GM Joe Cronin has had too high an asking price in years past for Grant, and it's come back to bite Portland. They seemed stuck with the overpaid veteran at times, as they didn't want to attach future assets just to shed salary as a rebuilding team. But this new trade possibility opens the door for Portland to come away with a star. If they are truly accelerating their rebuild, giving up picks as part of a bigger package that lands a star, Portland has to be open to the idea.
It's not only one of their few financial paths, but also the best path towards winning.
Add us as a preferred source on Google