A Jerami Grant trade was a strong possibility for the Portland Trail Blazers at last week’s trade deadline. The veteran forward is playing good ball this season, but he’s overpaid and, at almost 32 years old, he’s on a different timeline than the team’s core. It came as somewhat of a surprise that Portland opted to stand pat and hold onto Grant.
While some may disagree with Grant remaining a Blazer, keeping him is already looking like the correct decision.
Jerami Grant’s presence will be valuable for the Blazers down the stretch this season
Portland is firmly in the playoff hunt as we approach the latter part of the NBA season. They’re a young team, but they’re ready to win. That said, postseason basketball is a whole different beast than regular-season hoops. Weaknesses get exposed and resilience gets tested. It’s a tough environment, and it’s one that Deni Avdija, Shaedon Sharpe, Donovan Clingan and the other young Blazers have zero experience in.
That’s why Jerami Grant is important for this team. He’s been in this league a long time and he’s seen a lot. He’s played in six playoff series in his career, including a Conference Finals in 2020 with the Nuggets. When things matter most, he’ll need to rise to the occasion and be a leader for Portland. He’s showing he's capable of doing just that.
Against the Grizzlies on February 7th, the versatile forward poured in 29 points on 10/17 shooting. He drilled two threes with under three minutes remaining that helped Portland pull out a clutch-time victory, immediately rewarding the front office for keeping him around and proving he can be leaned on in big moments.
Grant’s scoring ability makes him integral to this Blazers squad. After a disappointing 2024-25 campaign, he’s bounced back to average 19.1 points on 44.0% from the field and 38.2% from three. He’s been a sparkplug as a starter and off the bench, filling up the scoring column consistently, and it must be noted that he’s done so without taking away from Avdija, Sharpe and company. Portland’s young fellas are all getting better this season, even with Grant playing a featured role.
That said, it’s almost inevitable that at least one of Avdija, Sharpe, Clingan, Camara and Henderson is going to struggle in their first playoff series. It’s just the reality of development in the NBA. When that happens, Grant will be there to pick up the slack. He’s a player the Blazers can trust completely.
So, sure, Portland could have sold Grant at the deadline in exchange for some draft capital or another prospect. But whatever they could’ve received in return probably wouldn’t have been able to replace the value Grant brings to this team right now. He’s the perfect vet for this young core.