Ahead of the new NBA season, one thing is painfully clear for the Portland Trail Blazers: Winning is not a priority.
Fear not, though, Rip City, because the Trail Blazers will be far from boring.
Among the storylines casting a shadow over Portland is what this team will do by the 2025 February trade deadline. It’s an impossible theme to ignore.
Over the summer, Joe Cronin established himself as one of the team’s offseason winners by giving the Blazers a direction. But the journey is a process. And trusting that process means accepting that there’s more wheeling and dealing to be done.
Ahead of the new campaign, Cronin has a war chest he’s built up, and it’s one he’s likely ready to deploy.
The question now is: How valuable is each of Portland’s top trade assets entering 2024-25—also known as Year 2 of the official rebuild?
*Hit the Oregon Sports News comments to share your top Trail Blazers trade assets and your predictions for the upcoming season.
Notable Omission
Shaedon Sharpe
You won’t find Shaedon Sharpe anywhere on this list.
Well … you won’t find me calling him an actual trade asset, at least.
Sharpe’s omission from the ranking isn’t because he’s not valuable; it’s because he’s maybe too valuable. That’s why we have to mention his name, but it’s tough—if not impossible—to imagine a scenario where he’s dealt before his rookie deal extends.
Honorable Mention
1st-Round Picks
Portland has a fair amount of first-round picks at its disposal. Most of them are their own; some of them are future swaps via past trades. Either way, that’s a big deal when navigating a rebuild. But Cronin might be better off keeping these locked away for at least another year.
The Trail Blazers, with their picks, are not in the same situation as the OKC Thunder—meaning they’re not ready to flip picks for a win-now star since they’re instead “competing” for the rights to draft Cooper Flagg in June.
More comparably, the Blazers are on the Brooklyn Nets’ level. They’re a team that recently traded a star, and they’re finally leaning into a rebuild that should’ve happened sooner.
Unless you’re the Los Angeles Lakers or one of the slim number of big-market teams where stars flock, the draft is where the magic happens. So the draft and asset collection (not asset flipping) should be a focus until something changes.
No. 5
Deni Avdija
The Trail Blazers’ newest defense-first, super lanky wing should not be traded this year. Trading the team’s latest pickup so quickly might border on GM malpractice after offering hope that a sneaky defense is building in Rip City for the first time in … forever?
Avdija, however, is on a team-friendly contract, which is partly why Cronin earned a strong grade for the draft-night trade. And it’s why rivals will chomp at the bit to bait Portland’s GM into flipping the swingman if it might help him land Coop.
In the end, Cronin should probably let Avdija’s team-friendly contract become even team-friendly as its annual salary descends throughout its terms. Also—not to ignore the basketball side of this—allowing the wing to continue to develop his growing offensive and rebounding games seems like a no-brainer.
Barring a Godfather offer Portland can’t refuse before February, Cronin should see out more than a year of the Avdija experiment.
Even if general managers try to start an auction to force Portland’s hand—which they might do—the Trail Blazers should take calls … but hold firm since the offers should surely improve down the road.
No. 4
Deandre Ayton
Summer reporting revealed the Trail Blazers are expected to trade Deandre Ayton at “some point.”
That is a wildly vague report.
Part of the report included that there’s not much of a market for the 26-year-old, six-year veteran. That part, unfortunately for all parties involved, feels real.
By the end of last season, Ayton did start to find his footing in Portland. He showed a positive attitude on the surface, combatting reporting from early in the year, and there was evidence that he and Scoot Henderson could elevate each other’s games when the year was said and done.
All in all, Ayton is a serious talent. The fact that his biggest strength happens to be a dated NBA skill (mid-range shooting) is a bummer—but there’s always hope it can become an asset. Coaching still matters, and if Chauncey Billups can expose a defense with Ayton’s mid-range shot, how cool would that be?
I, however … digress.
But apparently, NBA teams aren’t so distracted, and their laser focus isn’t showing them the same value I’m seeing.
Time will tell if the Blazers’ desire to trade Ayton at “some point” comes true. But for now, all sides should try to show each other some love. Even if it’s for the kids (as they say) in Rip City.
No. 3
Robert Williams, III
Robert Williams is a menace on defense. People can’t forget that.
The Texas A&M product likely would’ve never been dealt to Portland without his injury history. But therein lies the mystery of Rob, as the injuries have defined his time in the league despite looking like a 6’9” giant during his time on the court.
Boston saw an opportunity to flip the oft-injured big man last summer for a sure thing in Jrue Holiday, and Portland now has a decision to make a year later with RWIII again recovering.
His value, in truth, may be lower than Ayton’s right now because of that history. But teams across the league know they may be able to buy low on a high-risk, high-reward in RWIII. That, almost ironically, makes him a more sought-after trade target. And it’s more likely he’s dealt than Ayton or Avdija at this point.
No. 2
Jerami Grant
There’s been enough smoke around Jerami Grant’s name for the last year that you have to imagine the fire is still there. And although his name has taken a bit of a hit since Portland signed him to big money before absorbing a Lillard trade request, he’s still the type of piece a contender—like the kind Portland thought it was when it traded for Grant initially—needs.
Of course, the question with Grant is that contract. And at the moment, it doesn’t look great.
But as you may have heard, the NBA’s salary cap is going up with the new TV deal. And Grant’s current deal will take up a smaller percentage of his team’s cap as soon as it does.
Grant has his flaws, one of which is that he doesn’t rebound anywhere near an elite level for someone playing primarily power forward. But he can take the scoring pressure off Options A and B for plays at a time and keep opposing offenses honest with his length.
Grant could stay in Portland as the Trail Blazers’ key vet all season, and it’d be justified, given how his production and positive vibes can keep a bad team from shriving.
But on the flip side, Cronin knows Grant isn’t just one of the team’s best trade assets; he’s one of the league’s top trade chips this season. Offers will start coming in. It’ll just depend on how seriously opposing GMs are willing to play.
No. 1
Anfernee Simons
Anfernee Simons is getting the CJ McCollum treatment, meaning he will be in trade rumors until the end of time—or at least until he’s traded…or wins a title in Portland.
Even if you’re a Simons stan, the No. 1 placement on this list was inevitable. Simons is that good, and he’s that attractive as a young scorer to other teams craving offensive production with upside still at 25 years old.
Had the Blazers landed Victor Wembanyama or Brandon Miller in the 2023 draft, Simons’ place on Portland’s trade block might be less of a talking point. Teams would still be interested, but he’d be on a roster better built to support his strengths, weaknesses, and alpha status in the backcourt.
But those aren’t the players Portland landed. It paired Simons with Scoot Henderson—a point guard Cronin and Co. clearly have high hopes for and maybe higher confidence. But it also creates a … situation. And it’s a situation the Blazers have been in before.
Scoot and Ant are different than Dame and CJ. Nothing about this group is the same as that group. But the discomfort that comes with building small star backcourts leads to trade talks almost every time.
This version of the Great Trail Blazers experiment is no exception. And Simons’ supreme talent makes him one of the poster boys among trade targets across the league.
