Bleacher Report recently had a video mentioning NBA blockbuster trades that should happen. The Portland Trail Blazers are involved in one of the trade proposals. BR has the Blazers dealing with the Los Angeles Lakers in the proposal, sending Jerami Grant to play alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the Lakers' frontcourt.
In exchange, the Blazers receive a first-round pick, which would have to be either 2029 or 2031, as those are the two available for the Lakers to trade. The Lakers also send Rui Hachimura and Gabe Vincent to make the salaries work.
Here's the breakdown of the proposal:
Blazers send Jerami Grant to Lakers in mock proposal
Technically, this trade is possible. ESPN's Bobby Marks reported that LeBron James recently signed a two-year, $101.35 million contract; this is roughly three million less than James was eligible to receive, which keeps the Lakers under the second apron. As a result, it gives them more trade flexibility in the future. Second apron teams can't aggregate salaries, among other limitations. So, in this context, James' pay cut allows the Lakers to package Hachimura and Vincent for Grant.
The Blazers are already at 15 players after picking up Dalano Banton's player option. They would have to make an additional move or get another team involved in a three-way deal. In other words, it's feasible but also a hassle for the Blazers to make a deal with the Lakers.
Los Angeles has few attractive assets outside of their future draft capital, which is particularly intriguing with a 39-year-old James. Still, Hachimura as the headline player for Portland to get back isn't too appealing, especially when general manager Joe Cronin has been known to value receiving established players back from his former deals (Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, and recently, Malcolm Brogdon).
In terms of getting a player back for Grant, the Blazers can do much better than Hachimura from another team. So, if Los Angeles wants Grant, they will likely have to get both first-round picks involved in the deal.
Bottom line on Lakers/Jerami stuff: if LA is willing to give up both firsts, they'll find a way to make the money work. If they aren't willing to give up both, not worth it for Portland to deal with all the extra salary/roster/cap management stuff.
— Sean Highkin (@highkin) July 7, 2024
The Blazers don't necessarily need to trade Grant, although they would be wise to consider offers. This proposal seems like a deal they would only accept if they were desperate to move off of Grant. They are finally under the luxury tax after trading Malcolm Brogdon, and Grant seems content with his veteran role in rebuilding the Blazers, which means they don't need to force a deal. Portland can do better than this trade proposal.
Trail Blazers trade grade: C