The NBA trade deadline passed today at 3:00 pm EST today and what a whirlwind it was. Some trades started yesterday, with Tyrese Haliburton and Domantas Sabonis being traded. Today featured the inevitable James Harden for Ben Simmons trade, ending possibly the most drama-filled situation of the year. We’re here to talk about the Blazers, though, as they are our team and made a handful of moves to make their team better. Don’t believe me? Let’s go over why these were the right moves for the Portland Trail Blazers to make, starting with all of their completed trades.
First Trade
Los Angeles Clippers Recieve: Norman Powell, Robert Covington
Portland Trail Blazers Recieve: Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, Keon Johnson, and a future second-round pick
Why it’s good: Eric Bledsoe will provide a guard off the bench that they’ll need for the rest of the year after trading Powell and other subsequent trades. He has a player option for next year, but it’s too early to gather his intentions there. Justise Winslow has bounced around a bit but has provided a high level of defense with every team. He’ll be on the team for at least two more years. Keon Johnson was drafted in this year’s draft in the first round. He’s still a fairly raw talent, but his defensive ability and athleticism should soon attract a spot in the rotation.
It was intriguing that the Blazers chose to move on after signing Norman Powell to a five-year extension this offseason. Most GMs thought that the Blazers would at least keep Powell and Dame, but moving on from Powell signals to me that the front office is fully accepting their fate of this season. Robert Covington was named in most trade rumors throughout the year, Robert Covington was named in the last year of his contract. It’s not a terrible loss as he was acquired to be a defensive stopper yet has struggled on that end of the court.
Second Trade
New Orleans Pelicans Recieve: CJ McCollum, Larry Nance Jr, Tony Snell
Portland Trail Blazers Recieve: Josh Hart, Tomas Satoransky, Nickeil Walker-Alexander, Didi Louzada, 2022 protected first-round pick, two second-round picks
Why it’s good: I love Josh Hart, especially for the Blazers. Although Basketball Reference lists Hart as a power forward, he’s a shooting guard by trade. He’s also one of the best rebounding guards, which the Blazers desperately need. He’s a great three-point shooter and has improved inside the paint, shooting a career-high 60% from two-point range. Tomas Satoransky and Nickeil Walker-Alexander were Blazers for about an hour, which you will see why in the next trade. Didi Louzada is strictly a scorer. More specifically, a spot-up three-point shooter. However, Louzada is out for the season with a torn meniscus.
As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, losing CJ was inevitable. His defense has been subpar, something of which the Blazers need. They already have one volume shooting guard in Dame, so losing CJ is the best move they could make. I have to admit; I hate seeing Larry Nance Jr on the move, as he was the bench spark plug for the team. Tony Snell was a non-factor for the Blazers, although he’s shooting 100% from the free-throw line since the 2019-2020 season (I’m serious, he’s 46-46).
Third Trade
Utah Jazz Receive: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Juancho Hernangomez
San Antonio Spurs Receive: Tomas Satoransky, future second-round pick
Portland Trail Blazers Receive: Joe Ingles, Elijah Hughes, a future second-round pick.
Why it’s good: Simply put, it’s a salary dump. Joe Ingles was declared out for the rest of the year after tearing his ACL on January 30th. He’s already said that he looks forward to free agency, as he’s an unrestricted free agent this offseason. Elijah Hughes is an oversized guard and possesses a decent three-point shot. Outside of that, Hughes won’t provide an immediate impact.
After all of those transactions, the Blazers will have roughly $14 million in cap space next year. Anfernee Simons is a restricted free agent next year, so I can see a majority of that money being gobbled up by the Blazers matching whatever other teams will offer Simons. Here’s a quick breakdown of what the Blazers traded away and received:
| Players/Picks Out | Players/Picks In |
| Norman Powell | Eric Bledsoe |
| Robert Covington | Justise Winslow |
| CJ McCollum | Keon Johnson |
| Larry Nance | Josh Hart |
| Tony Snell | Didi Louzada |
| Nickeil Alexander-Walker | Joe Ingles |
| Tomas Satoransky | Elijah Hughes |
| Three Second Round Picks (2025 DET, 2026 NOP, 2027 NOP) | |
| One Protected First Round Pick (2022, top 4 protected |
Here’s how the roster looks now:
| Pre Trade Deadline | Post Trade Deadline | ||
| Player | Position | Player | Position |
| Robert Covington | F/C | Jusuf Nurkic | C |
| Jusuf Nurkic | C | Damian Lillard | G |
| Anfernee Simons | G | Anfernee Simons | G |
| Ben McLemore | G | Ben McLemore | G |
| Tony Snell | G/F | Dennis Smith Jr | G |
| Cody Zeller | C | CJ Elleby | F |
| Dennis Smith Jr | G | Greg Brown III | F |
| CJ Elleby | F | Nassir Little | F |
| Keljin Blevins | G | Keljin Blevins | G |
| Trendon Watford | F | Trendon Watford | F |
| Larry Nance Jr | F | New Players | |
| Nassir Little | F | Eric Bledsoe | G |
| Greg Brown III | F | Joe Ingles | F |
| Damian Lillard | G | Josh Hart | G/F |
| CJ McCollum | G | Justise Winslow | G/F |
| Norman Powell | G/F | Keon Johnson | G |
| Elijah Hughes | F | ||
| Didi Louzada | F |
How Does Next Year Look?
Next year, the Blazers only have six players on guaranteed contracts (Lillard, Winslow, Johnson, Little, Brown III, and Louzada). Five players will be restricted free agents (Simons, Elleby, Hughes, Blevins, and Watford), with Eric Bledsoe and Josh Hart both on non-guaranteed contracts. They’ll lose Nurkic, Ingles, McLemore, and Dennis Smith Jr to free agency as they will be unrestricted free agents. While I’m confident the Blazers won’t pick up Bledsoe’s contract next year, I would strongly suggest they would pick up Hart’s. Dennis Smith Jr and Ben McLemore have shown they are still NBA-caliber players this year, but once they hit the crowded market of guards that will be on free agency next year, they may find their way back to Portland.
Now that the wacky trade deadline is over, we can see where Portland is headed. They can still sneak into the play-in game this year, but a lot of uncertainty will be around the 2022-2023 season as to what the plan will be to be competitive for the near future. I agree with all of their moves, as they made their future better by getting rid of the lengthy contracts for younger players that play better defense.
