With franchise legend Damian Lillard’s return to the floor no longer a far-off scenario, the Portland Trail Blazers now have a bevy of guards who ideally would play big roles next season.
The Blazers roster the talented but up-and-down duo of Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe, both still just 22. They’ve also got the talented but much older veteran duo of Lillard and Jrue Holiday, both set to enter their Age-36 seasons. Throw All-Star Deni Avdija into the mix — who is at his best as a point-forward
— and that’s a lot of mouths to feed in terms of on-ball usage and minutes.
Could that mean a trade involving one of Portland’s guards is looming this summer?
That’s the big topic of conversation on the latest episode of We Like the Blazers — now recorded IN PERSON with a three-camera setup! Brandon and I welcome producer Terrence Stilin-Rooney out from behind the camera for the show, as we dive into which backcourt player is most tradable, the ideal return for a big-splash trade this summer (hello, Jaylen Brown?), the possibility of running it back and more (Conversation starts at the 6:47 mark).
Conor: I think it seems likely that one of Shaedon Sharpe or Scoot Henderson will be traded this offseason, just by judging the factors at play. And I think that for two main reasons: … It’s crowded. Shaedon Sharp, Scoot Henderson — people [have been] upset about them not getting enough minutes or usage. That was before Damian Lillard was even available.
Terrence: I feel like people have been upset about them not getting minutes since they were drafted.
Brandon: Do you think Dame is gonna wanna play some minutes? (sarcasm)
Conor: … It seems like he expects to start, would be my [opinion] there.
Brandon: I think of any person in the world, he’s probably earned that for now.
Conor: … [The second main reason] is the Tom Dundon effect. The new-owner splash. The Blazers when they got Dame, they said ‘Winning time is here.’ I think they meant that, that they’re trying to accelerate the timeline. Then Dundon comes in, new owner, he said ‘Hey, rebuilding was necessary, [but] it’s time to put our chips in and start moving forward and try to be contenders.’ Dame is, like we said, about to be 36. You gotta move fast. To make a big-splash trade, you have to give up good young talent. And like we just said, they have a surplus of talent in the backcourt.
In response to the idea of Portland trading some or all of its young guard talent, Terrence offered this counterpoint about the potential risks of putting a heavy burden on two 36-year-old guards:
Terrence: [The guard situation] only gets more complicated in theory until reality sets in and we have a similar situation to this past year where injuries are part of the game — especially when you’re talking about guys who are on the wrong side of 35 and we want them to be good for the playoffs. … With those vets, are they going to have minutes restrictions? Are they going to have days where they just say, ‘Hey, we’re playing X, Y, or Z. Take this one off, Dame. We don’t need you out there.’?
In the second part of the episode, Terrence, also our resident fan correspondent, provides his list of things fans should keep in mind when attending live sporting events. A small taste of that list: participate in the chants, stop leaving games early and stop diluting the phrase “Ball Don’t Lie” in situations where it’s not applicable!
That conversation — which starts at the 30:57 mark — also discusses the playoff atmosphere at the Moda Center this year and how booing refs can be a healthy, cathartic experience (that was my big contribution to the list).
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