Grade the Trade: Trail Blazers make bold move to acquire No. 3 pick
By Clay Barley
The Portland Trail Blazers front office is obviously not satisfied with their poor luck in this year's draft lottery. They finished tied with the third-worst record in the league and ended up with the No. 7 pick. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets finished just short of a Play-In Tournament spot this season but ended up with the third pick in the draft via the Brooklyn Nets.
The teams seem to have mutual interests, as the Blazers are seeking coveted draft prospects to accelerate their rebuild, and the Rockets are trying to add pieces to compete in the playoffs.
How desperate is Portland for a higher pick?
But in an uncertain draft, how big of a difference is there between the No. 3 pick and the No. 7 pick? It could be significant in Portland's eyes. Rumors are circulating that Portland is reportedly high on Donovan Clingan. The only problem is that it seems like every other team picking in the lottery is also high on him, regardless of his positional fit.
A few months ago, it seemed very realistic for Clingan to be available at pick No. 7, but it's become increasingly unlikely based on recent mock drafts. He is now a top-five pick in most mock drafts, and The Ringers' Kevin O'Connor believes that Clingan will be the No. 3 pick in the draft. Whether it be Clingan that the Blazers have their eyes on or someone else, the assets going to Houston in this mock trade are very valuable. Portland needs to have a lot of faith in whoever they pick at No. 3 for this trade to be worth it.
O'Connor and J. Kyle Mann proposed a theoretical trade on a recent episode of their "NBA Draft Show" podcast based on the Blazers' potential interest in trading up in this year's NBA Draft.
Here's what the trade looks like: