1. Re-signing Jerami Grant
Whether it was in the hopes that Damian Lillard would stay or simply because it was too difficult to let him walk for nothing, general manager Joe Cronin inked Jerami Grant to a massive five-year, $160 million deal last summer.
It was an overpay by all accounts. Once Lillard was gone, it looked even worse. How does a 29-year-old fit a rebuilding timeline and what are you supposed to do with a contract that large? Grant has never been an all-star and is making too much money for any other team to send fair value back to Portland in a trade.
On the surface, it seemed like a simple poor decision.
All-star or not, though, the former Syracuse standout has been the Trail Blazers' best player this season. He's not the scorer Anfernee Simons is, the rebounder Deandre Ayton is or the defender Matisse Thybulle is, but he's been a constant in the starting lineup.
He's tied for the team lead in minutes played, leads the team in total scoring, is averaging 22.2 points a night and is shooting a career-high 40.6 percent from three on 6 attempts per game.
More importantly, Grant is a proven scorer and a veteran in his eighth NBA season. The Pistons don't have one of those. Send Jerami to Detroit and it's hard to imagine this losing streak becoming an all-time embarrassing one.