Despite this being an incredibly active trade deadline and one of the most surprising in NBA history, the Portland Trail Blazers disappointingly failed to make a single trade. The Blazers have one of the messiest rosters in the NBA, and that will remain the case for the remainder of the 2024-25 season now that the deadline has officially passed.
We would have liked to see GM Joe Cronin at least take some step towards unlocking their rebuild and figuring out how all the pieces of their young core best fit together. With how well Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe have been playing this season, and given that this is only the second year of their rebuild, it would have been nice to see the Blazers move one or both of Anfernee Simons and Jerami Grant.
Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian previously stated that trading either Grant or Simons before training camp was "definitely the goal." However, he also noted that the Blazers have time, adding, "They can wait until the trade deadline and see if someone else will offer more."
Portland failed to achieve that goal in the offseason. They had a chance to right the ship at the deadline, only to come up short again. Not only did someone not offer more, but their players have decreased in value since the summer.
"The Blazers face the reality that their veteran players and contracts aren't receiving the type of return initially hoped for," wrote Fentress when he recently mentioned that the Blazers were expected to be inactive at the deadline.
Joe Cronin’s overvaluation of Blazers players prevents smart trade opportunities
The reason the Blazers aren't receiving the return they hoped for is simply because Cronin is overvaluing their players. He asked for two first-round picks for Grant in the summer and had an asking price for Robert Williams III that was higher than expected at the deadline, according to Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report.
The Blazers' entire rebuild seems backward. They should be involved in deals as facilitators where they can take on unwanted salary for draft capital, similar to what the Washington Wizards and Utah Jazz have done this deadline.
Instead, the Blazers can't do that because Grant, Deandre Ayton, and Simons combine for roughly $90 million this year. It was expected that Portland couldn't trade players like Ayton due to his substantial contract, and it's not surprising that Matisse Thybulle wasn't traded, given he's yet to return from injury this season.
But the Blazers keep shifting their focus because they're reacting to league developments instead of proactively positioning themselves to capitalize on these opportunities, and the deadline was a prime example of that.
Let's put it this way: if Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti were running the Blazers, would Grant still be on their roster? I doubt it.