Portland Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant is considered day-to-day with left Achilles tendonitis, yet he's already missed nine consecutive games and has been ruled out for their Jan. 5 contest against the Utah Jazz.
Injuries dragging on longer than expected have been a frustrating theme for the Blazers this season, and it appears Grant is the latest victim. His injury is unfortunate timing, not just because Portland was already shorthanded without Jrue Holiday, Scoot Henderson, and others, but also because we're now one month away from the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
Jerami Grant's injury is bad timing for Blazers' trade deadline plans
Last season, Grant was arguably the biggest negative asset in the league, failing to play up to his questionable five-year, $160 million contract. He averaged just 14.4 points per game on inefficent 37.3% shooting from the field, which was problematic considering the one-dimensionality of his game as someone who provides little in the rebounding and playmaking departments.
It was immediately apparent that Grant didn't fit Portland's rebuilding timeline once he inked that deal in 2023, with Damian Lillard requesting a trade just one day later. But with his age, declining play, and contract, it's been hard for the Blazers to find a trade partner. They had a golden opportunity to finally offload him in the 2024 offseason, but general manager Joe Cronin had a laughably high asking price of multiple first-round picks.
It remains to be seen whether Portland will actually trade Grant by Feb. 5. Grant has become a favorite of Cronin, as evidenced by Cronin's firm stance on the high asking price. But if Portland did want to trade their overpaid forward, the likelihood of them finding a trade partner increased compared to last year, thanks to his bounce-back season.
Grant has been one of the Blazers' best players this season, averaging 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists on 44/39/87 shooting splits. He's even received interest from the Milwaukee Bucks, who are desperately looking to upgrade their roster around superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo by the deadline.
The timing of this relatively minor injury is what could make this a significant blow for Portland. If Grant isn't able to come back soon, recency bias could play a substantial role in teams' trade deadline plans and affect his value. He needs to prove that he's healthy and impactful before teams are willing to take on that contract, as a team like Milwaukee would be pursuing the 31-year-old Grant to make an immediate contribution.
Many Blazers fans have been eager to see their team part ways with the talented but overpaid Grant, whose contract presents a potential roadblock as Portland looks to retain and upgrade its young core (especially with Deni Avdija outplaying his team-friendly contract). Unfortunately, this latest injury presents another hurdle to making that a reality.
Now, multiple things have to align. 1) Cronin is willing to part ways with Grant and is asking for a reasonable return this time around. 2) Teams are willing and able to overlook his burdensome contract. 3) Most importantly, Grant is actually healthy enough to be traded.
Given the day-to-day nature of the injury, one would assume he'd be fine by February. But we've assumed things about several other Blazers injuries that haven't gone according to plan this season. Time will tell if this one is different.