The Portland Trail Blazers were labeled as a wild-card team to watch this offseason, and certainly met those expectations with their unforeseen trade to acquire polarizing star Ja Morant from the Memphis Grizzlies. Portland didn't necessarily need to add another point guard into the mix, but viewed it as too good of a buy-low opportunity to pass up.
Many wondered whether that would make trade candidate Jrue Holiday the next domino to fall and clear up a sudden logjam, but at this stage, the Blazers intend to keep the aging star guard in Portland.
However, that doesn't mean that will necessarily be the case heading into the 2026-27 season, as the Blazers could still have offseason moves on the horizon. Not only do they need to add two more roster spots to fill their 15-man roster, but GM Joe Cronin should also be open to at least entertaining incoming offers for Holiday, even if Portland isn't actively shopping him around the league.
They desperately need to address their lack of forward options, an existing weakness that has only worsened with Jerami Grant and Kris Murray now in Memphis (side note: Kris Murray is such a Memphis Grizzly).
One trade recently mentioned by FanSpo on X was a deal that lands Zion Williamson in the Rose City. Here are the full details of that mock proposal:
Zion Williamson fits Tom Dundon's distressed asset approach
The elephant in the room is the health of Zion Williamson, who has exceeded 30 games played in just three of his six seasons throughout his career. That's quite the all-or-nothing pairing with the injury-prone Morant, who has totaled 79 games over the past three years.
That said, Williamson does fit a similar player archetype as Morant in terms of being a distressed asset whose trade value isn't reflective of his talent. New Blazers owner Tom Dundon just built an NHL championship roster with the Carolina Hurricanes, and he's already applying that same roster-building approach in Portland with the Morant trade.
While Williamson is another player who potentially fits the bill, this isn't quite the same level of value on Portland's end to justify the gamble.
Why the Blazers should say no to this Zion Williamson mock trade
They were fine taking on Morant despite valid injury, defensive, and floor spacing concerns because they added a two-time All-Star without sacrificing any picks. Not to mention, Grant was viewed as a negative asset around the league himself; Portland did a good job of flipping him into another negative asset in Morant, but one with far higher upside for a team in more of a star power.
That doesn't apply to this mock proposal. Holiday has been receiving trade interest from teams around the league after a resurgence in his first year with the Blazers. So not only does Portland have to attach draft capital, but they also move on from a positive asset in this case. They have to factor in the opportunity cost of being able to flip Holiday into more future assets should they decide to move him elsewhere.
Portland adds more talent to their roster with this trade, bringing a former No. 1 overall pick into the mix as he enters his prime. But there are serious questions regarding what that prime actually looks like after what has been a relatively underwhelming and injury-riddled career so far for Williamson.
It's much more difficult for Portland to overlook those injury concerns and questionable roster fit with this trade, as they actually give up assets of value. This one's a no from me.
Grade: C-
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