Dame requests a trade.

[DusterBuster]

For what very very very little it’s worth, droppingdimes20 is saying Ayton could still end up in Portland.

[m0ng0]

For what very very very little it’s worth, droppingdimes20 is saying Ayton could still end up in Portland.

I wonder what that would take to get done? I don't like the guy as a person, but as a player he is slightly better than Nurk and younger, but more expensive. Separate trade or some kind of 3 or 4 way deal? If we could get him and some decent picks and a few possible projects? Sure why not?

[Butter]

https://www.blazersedge.com/2023/9/19/23881379/toronto-raptors-reportedly-interested-portland-trail-blazers-damian-lillard-trade

Toronto?

[m0ng0]

https://www.blazersedge.com/2023/9/19/23881379/toronto-raptors-reportedly-interested-portland-trail-blazers-damian-lillard-trade

Toronto?

I liked this idea better already

[zzaj]

https://www.blazersedge.com/2023/9/19/23881379/toronto-raptors-reportedly-interested-portland-trail-blazers-damian-lillard-trade

Toronto?

They would be my preference barring a bajillion picks from OKC. Scottie Barnes in the return would make anything else in return palatable.

I would cause some major salary issues for TOR, however. For that reason, I don't see it really happening.

A) I'd love a young nucleus of Scoot/Sharpe/Barnes
B) I'd love to see Lillard go to Toronto instead of Miami
C) I'd love to see Miami (and Riley) go apoplectic when the foursome of Lillard/OG/Siakam/Poeltl kick Tyler Hero's %$&*

[DeBlazerRiddem]

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before.

[DusterBuster]

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before.

I’m gonna get banned from multiple forums here with the amount of trolling I’m gonna do if Dame does get traded to a team other than Miami.

[JRoy]

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before.

I’m gonna get banned from multiple forums here with the amount of trolling I’m gonna do if Dame does get traded to a team other than Miami.

How many bans do have so far?

[Norm2953]

Trade with Toronto would have to be for OG for Toronto would want to compete with Pascal,
Barnes and Dame as their big 3.

How would Portland look with OG, Grant and Nurkic up front assuming they keep and extend him?

[Wizenheimer]

Spoiler:

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before

.

I’m gonna get banned from multiple forums here with the amount of trolling I’m gonna do if Dame does get traded to a team other than Miami.

it's good to have commendable goals

[Wizenheimer]

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before.

* your 1st point: yeah, karma would be a btch for Miami fans...so deserving

* your 2nd point: I'm developing the opinion that Scottie Barnes is overrated. He's got skills, but he's a SF that can't shoot. Time and time again we've seen perimeter players who can't shoot never really reach anywhere close to elite...even if they have a good foundation of other skills. The NBA has become pretty unforgiving for non-shooters. He's shot 29% on three's and has a 417 shot sample size. And he shot 27% in college. And last season out of the 123 qualified players, he finished 95th in 2ptFG%

if he's the centerpiece of a Dame trade, I think Portland is taking a huge risk

* your 3rd point: yes, Portland's vulnerability was that their primary scorer and primary facilitator was the same player. But I'd argue that isn't the issue that held Portland back. It was that Dame didn't have any elite talents by his side to keep teams from selling out to stop Dame. Teams wouldn't have been able to double Dame if Portland had drafted Giannis instead of CJ. Same would be true if Portland had traded for PG13 or Butler

Lebron is bigger and stronger than Dame making him harder to trap. But his championships have come when he played with DWade/Bosh; Kyrie/Love; and AD with a very solid supporting cast. Dame hasn't played with anybody close to that level...which is likely why he wants out

[DC_Melo]

I don't think I would be able to contain myself if Lillard was traded somewhere else besides Miami and then the Heat fail to make the playoffs or even get bumped in the first round. I generally try not to take glee at others misfortune but with all their dicking around regarding leverage and not bidding against themselves it would kind of serve them right to have nothing to show for it.

FWIW I would prefer to get forwards who can shoot next to Scoot, I am not convinced Barnes is a real good fit with how our back-court is shaping up. But I would take any talented player we can get who is at least 6'8 and no older than 22, beggers cant be choosers. But in general I think our offense needs to be built around Scoot collapsing the defense and other players finding opportunities off the ball for scoring, that is the type of players we should be looking to put around him as we build this next generation of players. Barnes would be pretty perfect if Simons was still looking like our long-time lead guard or we had a younger Lillard still around but I don't think we want Scoot developing or being used as the same kind of "score first" point guard option we have had for the past decade.

I actually was fairly cool on Lillard at the beginning because of how hard it is for that type of player to win. Curry showed it can be done and impossible not to fall in love with the type of person Lillard is, but yeah you don't want your primary scoring option to also be your primary passing option. Defenses can sell out to stop that one player and disrupt both your scoring and your passing game as we have seen happen to Lillard in the playoffs before.

* your 1st point: yeah, karma would be a btch for Miami fans...so deserving

* your 2nd point: I'm developing the opinion that Scottie Barnes is overrated. He's got skills, but he's a SF that can't shoot. Time and time again we've seen perimeter players who can't shoot never really reach anywhere close to elite...even if they have a good foundation of other skills. The NBA has become pretty unforgiving for non-shooters. He's shot 29% on three's and has a 417 shot sample size. And he shot 27% in college. And last season out of the 123 qualified players, he finished 95th in 2ptFG%

if he's the centerpiece of a Dame trade, I think Portland is taking a huge risk

* your 3rd point: yes, Portland's vulnerability was that their primary scorer and primary facilitator was the same player. But I'd argue that isn't the issue that held Portland back. It was that Dame didn't have any elite talents by his side to keep teams from selling out to stop Dame. Teams wouldn't have been able to double Dame if Portland had drafted Giannis instead of CJ. Same would be true if Portland had traded for PG13 or Butler

Lebron is bigger and stronger than Dame making him harder to trap. But his championships have come when he played with DWade/Bosh; Kyrie/Love; and AD with a very solid supporting cast. Dame hasn't played with anybody close to that level...which is likely why he wants out

I’m with you here. In addition to his shooting woes, his Def Rating hovering around 113-114 his first two seasons is a bit alarming for a guy that’s supposed to be a strong defender. He was in college but that hasn’t translated in the pros, at least not yet.

I also don’t love that his sophomore stats either stagnated or slightly regressed across the board. Then again, Toronto’s 3 best players all play forward, so some of the issues could be fit related.

Regardless, he’s still a better quality asset than anything Miami has to offer, so I wouldn’t mind a package built around him. But I also wouldn’t take just him (plus salary fillers) straight up for Dame which I suspect at least some Blazer fans would.

[Txingurrixe]

What about trade Lillard for Erik Spoelstra ?

:D:D

[zzaj]

Barnes is likely never going to be an elite shooter. His 3pt percentage will probably always hover around that .300 range. And he's slightly below average for his position at the FT line. (75%) Kid just turned 22 though, and if you trust what other people say about him he's the hardest working guy in the gym. I know he worked hard to refine his upper shot mechanics in his rookie season. We have yet to see the benefit of that, but those things take a lot of time...

That being said, it's not an impossibility that he improves to league average for 3pt% (35%). He hasn't catapulted on the defensive upside that many figured he would...but again, he's only just turned 22 and if you ask Toronto fans there is definitely a "fit" issue.

Even more being said, he's a good passer, reasonable rebounder and has showed a willingness to play both sides of the ball. 15/6.5/5 on a good team at 20-21 years old is worth something.

Is he a gamble? Sure. But given what seems available around the league in a Lillard trade, I'd much prefer him as a Blazer over the Aytons and Herros of the world. The Blazers are perfectly set up to take on some gambles.

[Norm2953]

Toronto last season had a big 3 of Barnes, OG and Siakum that that could not shoot.

They seem to be enamored with Barnes and would prefer to send out OG in a Lillard trade which
leaves Portland with two non shooters in Scoot/OG with Grant and either Ant/SS.

It would leave Portland better defensively and assuming they extend OG, OG/Grant might be the
best pair of forwards that Portland has had since 2014

[BlazersBroncos]

Zero interest in OG w/ an incoming 30M contract likely.

Barnes on the other hand I love. Even if he doesnt become a reliable shooter a PF that can defend up and down a slot, is a great offensive connector and does the little things w/o demanding big usage is exactly what we need to compliment a usage heavy guard dup in Scoot / Sharpe.

Ideally you find a C who can spread the floor in the draft within the next 2 years to offset the lack of shooting. In 2024 its looking like Sarr would really fit that role (Alot of Myles Turner to him IMO).

[Walton1one]

I think POR could find a deal with TOR, that would not include either OG or Barnes, and this is where the Ayton to POR rumors could fit in possibly as well?

POR in: [from TOR] T.Young (filler), O.Porter (filler), G.Dick, P.Achiuwa (could be Koloko instead) & 26'/28' 1st round picks
[from PHX] Ayton, I.Wainright, J.Goodwin (could be any combination of small salary to get to $4mil approx)
POR out: Lillard [to TOR], Nurkic [to PHX]

TOR in: Lillard
TOR out: T.Young, O.Porter, G.Dick, P.Achiuwa (or Koloko) 26'/28' 1st round picks [to POR] & G.Trent Jr [to PHX]

PHX in: G.Trent Jr & Nurkic
PHX out: Ayton, I.Wainright, J.Goodwin (any combination of low-salary players in the $4 mil range)

Why for POR: Good young player (Ayton) at position of need, good young prospects (Dick\Achiuwa) and two first-round picks (26' & 28'), offloading Nurkic is also a positive

Why For TOR: You don't give up OG or Barnes, adding Lillard to a core that has a legit chance to contend.
PG: Lillard\Schroder
SG: OG\Temple
SF: Barnes\McDaniels
PF: Siakam\Boucher
C: Poetl\Koloko (or Achiuwa)

Why for PHX: Currently have 4 large contracts and a bunch of minimum contracts, this would split Ayton (who is\isn't unhappy in PHX?) into 2 contracts and, replace Ayton's impact with Nurkic and adds some depth (Trent Jr) to their bench.

[Walton1one]

If there was any mutual interest, Houston could have signed Harden outright this past off-season instead of paying FVV. They wouldn't have had to give up any capital, let alone Amen and others.

I don't see this happening.

I am not so sure about that, at the time Harden was looking to go to the Clippers, but that ship has now sailed and he definitely wants out of Philly, sooner, rather than later. Also, now he would be going to a team with Van Fleet & Brooks, instead of being there without them.

This is DOA, but if the Blazers could figure out a way to pry Thompson out of Houston's hands that would be a no-brainer. HOU isn't that dumb, though.

They have been out of the playoffs for 3 straight years, stockpiling a bunch of young talent is great and all, but sooner or later expectations are to see results (playoffs), thus why adding vets this offseason help achieve that goal, adding Harden would likely accelerate (insure?) that they make the playoffs. I am not a fan of Harden at all, but nonetheless, he still holds value to some teams out there and is still performing at a high level.

Would HOU trade Amen, likely not, but that is who POR should be asking for, and if not him then who would they trade to acquire Harden? They have the assets to do so without touching their core players.

Eason? Whitmore? Sengun? Multiple 1st round draft picks (they have 9 first-round picks thru 2030).

[zzaj]

If there was any mutual interest, Houston could have signed Harden outright this past off-season instead of paying FVV. They wouldn't have had to give up any capital, let alone Amen and others.

I don't see this happening.

I am not so sure about that, at the time Harden was looking to go to the Clippers, but that ship has now sailed and he definitely wants out of Philly, sooner, rather than later. Also, now he would be going to a team with Van Fleet & Brooks, instead of being there without them.

This is DOA, but if the Blazers could figure out a way to pry Thompson out of Houston's hands that would be a no-brainer. HOU isn't that dumb, though.

They have been out of the playoffs for 3 straight years, stockpiling a bunch of young talent is great and all, but sooner or later expectations are to see results (playoffs), thus why adding vets this offseason help achieve that goal, adding Harden would likely accelerate (insure?) that they make the playoffs. I am not a fan of Harden at all, but nonetheless, he still holds value to some teams out there and is still performing at a high level.

Would HOU trade Amen, likely not, but that is who POR should be asking for, and if not him then who would they trade to acquire Harden? They have the assets to do so without touching their core players.

Eason? Whitmore? Sengun? Multiple 1st round draft picks (they have 9 first-round picks thru 2030).

Well, personally, I believe the bolded are is a non-starter. I don't believe that HOU would trade for Harden.

[zzaj]

Zero interest in OG w/ an incoming 30M contract likely.

Barnes on the other hand I love. Even if he doesnt become a reliable shooter a PF that can defend up and down a slot, is a great offensive connector and does the little things w/o demanding big usage is exactly what we need to compliment a usage heavy guard dup in Scoot / Sharpe.

Ideally you find a C who can spread the floor in the draft within the next 2 years to offset the lack of shooting. In 2024 its looking like Sarr would really fit that role (Alot of Myles Turner to him IMO).

Agreed pretty much all around. And speaking of contracts coming in, I feel like getting a 15/6/5 player with upside on a rookie contract is pretty ideal. The last thing Portland wants to do at this stage is saddle themselves with large contracts. In a year or two that might be a move, but not when you are at brick 1 of a rebuild. The team doesn't even really know what it's starting PG actually looks like in meaningful games yet...assuming Lillard is traded before the season.

And no, the Blazers aren't going to start Simons at PG.