The Portland Trail Blazers have an exciting offseason coming up, as GM Joe Cronin can take this unfinished roster in several directions. They'll have to decide what to do with veterans, including Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton, Matisse Thybulle, and Robert Williams III. But the most challenging decision lies in seven-year guard Anfernee Simons.
The hardest part about trading Simons is that he actually fills a lot of Portland's needs as a team that lacks shooting and playmaking. But at the same time, it's just too difficult to justify giving him a massive contract. This is a pivotal summer for the Blazers, but they are even better positioned in 2026 to land a star, with several players set to come off the books. Moving Simons could be in their best interest to help preserve that flexibility.
One route the Blazers should consider taking this offseason is dealing Simons to a team in need of more backcourt scoring, such as the Orlando Magic, Miami Heat, or San Antonio Spurs. They could try to swap Simons for a first-round pick and select his replacement in the draft. They could also use that acquired pick to address other areas of need (wing depth, non-traditional big, etc.). This would allow the Blazers to finally prioritize the Scoot Henderson-Shaedon Sharpe backcourt that fans have been eager to see.
2025 Lottery NBA Mock Draft 2.0
Pick | Team | Player | School | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New Orleans Pelicans | Cooper Flagg | Duke | F |
2 | Washington Wizards | Dylan Harper | Rutgers | G |
3 | Utah Jazz | Ace Bailey | Rutgers | F |
4 | Toronto Raptors | V.J. Edgecombe | Baylor | G |
5 | Charlotte Hornets | Tre Johnson | Texas | G |
6 | Philadelphia 76ers | Kasparas | Illinois | G |
7 | Brooklyn Nets | Derik Queen | Maryland | C |
8 | San Antonio Spurs | Kon Knueppel | Duke | G |
9 | Portland Trail Blazers | Jase Richardson | Michigan St. | G |
10 | Chicago Bulls | Khaman Maluach | Duke | C |
11 | Miami Heat | Egor Demin | BYU | G |
12 | Houston Rockets (via PHX) | Liam McNeeley | UConn | G/F |
13 | Atlanta Hawks (via SAC) | Jeremiah Fears | Oklahoma | G |
14 | Dallas Mavericks | Collin Murray-Boyles | South Carolina | F |
Jase Richardson’s rise is hard for Blazers to ignore
Betting on a prospect with NBA ties is rarely a bad idea. The 6-foot-3 Richardson has a very similar frame and skillset as Simons. The one knock on him as a prospect is that he's not a traditional pass-first guard but would be undersized as a shooting guard, similar to Simons.
However, he shot 41.2 percent from three as a freshman at Michigan State and is a crafty enough player to provide secondary playmaking when needed. He'd be an ideal combo guard to spell both Henderson and Sharpe.
Richardson averaged 12.1 points as a freshman but did a great job boosting his draft stock throughout March. He was the X-Factor in Michigan State's close win over Mississippi in the Sweet 16, recording 20 points while shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 4-of-6 from three. That's the role he could have with Portland as a sparkplug that can come off the bench.
The Blazers would miss that flamethrower aspect of Simons' game if they did trade him, but Richardson is the best bet in the draft to provide something similar.