This year's NBA trade deadline is like a seesaw for the Portland Trail Blazers. After dropping six games of a seven-game road trip by 21 or more points, the Blazers' season is the half of the seesaw crashing to the ground. Speculation surrounding Portland's most alluring assets - Malcolm Brogdon and Matisse Thybulle among them - is the half of the seesaw vaulting up.
Another trade target for potential championship contenders is forward Jerami Grant. Grant has been the Trail Blazers' best player this season, and the only reason he's not more in demand is his five-year, $160 million contract.
As we laid out earlier, though, that deal isn't as much of an albatross as it seemed when Grant first signed it. He's one of the more underrated trade assets potentially available to the league for the right price - a price that's lower than a similar player, Toronto's Pascal Siakam, who will demand a max contract after the season.
Trail Blazers trade Jerami Grant to the Dallas Mavericks
In one hypothetical trade scenario recently proposed by Bleacher Report, the Dallas Mavericks decide Grant is the player they covet most, and they move to acquire the Blazers' two-way forward.
What does Portland get in return, and is it worth letting the 29-year-old go now? Here's the deal and what grade the Blazers deserve if they make it.
Jerami Grant goes from Portland to Dallas for an ideal Blazers prospect
Landing Grant would be a major boost for a Mavericks team currently sixth in the Western Conference standings and safe from the play-in tournament. Pairing a two-way forward capable of guarding multiple positions and knocking down open shots with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving is a perfect scenario.
Grant has already shown he's willing to play as a third banana while still being skilled enough to carry an offense when required.
He would provide a boost to a lineup that's 18th in the league in defensive rating but already has a long wing defender in Derrick Jones Jr. and a defense-first center in Dereck Lively II. Grant Williams is also a solid defender, as is Dante Exum at the point of attack. Grant's versatility on that end would be welcome on a team whose stars are poor defenders at best.
With his 21.1 points-per-game average this season, he would slot in as the Mavericks' third-leading scorer. That would give Dallas four players averaging at least 17.5 ppg with Tim Hardaway Jr. included. Grant would also be the team's second-best 3-point shooter by percentage behind Irving.
Trading for someone with this skill set that meshes perfectly with an already-established rotation is a no-brainer for Dallas if they can pull it off.
Grading the Blazers Jerami Grant trade return
Because of the mass of forwards likely to be re-signed during free agency this summer, which limits the number of available options at one of the league's most important positions, Grant's value may be at his highest right now despite his contract. Cashing in at this year's deadline isn't the worst idea.
Holmes and Kleber are backup bigs who would play desperately needed, immediate minutes for the Blazers and could have some trade value of their own.
The two first-round picks will likely convey but fall later in the first round, although grabbing a pair for Grant isn't the worst haul. They would give Portland potentially 13 first-round picks between 2024 and 2030.
Prosper - the Mavericks' first-round pick in the 2023 draft - is the headliner in this deal. He tested off the charts athletically at the combine, showed an improved offensive game during his last season at Marquette, and would give the Blazers the potential versatile lockdown defender they don't have as part of their current core.
The 21-year-old is a strong 6-8, 230 pounds with a 7-1 wingspan. He's explosive vertically, can move side-to-side to stick with guards on switches, is big enough to defend forwards and centers and plays with a non-stop high motor. In other words, he has all the traits Portland is looking for in a wing/forward to play alongside Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons.
Blazers trade grade: B+