The Portland Trail Blazers have positioned themselves for a successful rebuild this offseason. They acquired promising young talents like Deni Avdija and Donovan Clingan while also managing to get under the luxury tax, a position in which no team coming off a 21-win season should ever be.
GM Joe Cronin did a great job prioritizing the best player available over positional need at this early stage of their rebuilding process. But because of that, it leaves their roster construction a bit messy heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.
Blazers' record isn't bad enough at the trade deadline
This upcoming season is still crucial for their rebuild regarding development, team chemistry, and figuring out specific roles for each player. But it's also essentially a lost season in terms of the Blazers' playoff hopes. They finished last year with a 21-61 record, partially due to multiple key injuries but primarily because of the overall talent of their roster.
Portland should finish yet again with the worst record in the Western Conference, but there's still a scenario in which they aren't one of the three worst teams in the league. They want to do everything they can to have a 14 percent chance of landing the No. 1 overall pick, which looks like Duke forward Cooper Flagg early on.
If teams in the East like the Brooklyn Nets are "out-tanking" the Blazers, they should strongly consider moving established pieces like Matisse Thybulle, Robert Williams III, Jerami Grant, and others at the trade deadline. The timing could work out well as there would likely be some teams with championship aspirations who still feel like they are a piece away, willing to give up draft capital to acquire some of the Blazers' veterans.