Blazers acquire acquire Kristaps Porzingis
The New York Knicks would be absolutely insane to trade this unicorn. At just 21 years old, Porzingis could very well be the face of basketball in the Big Apple for the next 10-15 years. Here’s a dude that has averaged 16.1 points and 7.3 rebounds in his first two NBA seasons. The issue here is that New York’s brass, president Phil Jackson included, have already seemingly created a rift with the Latvian native.
And considering New York is among the least-talented teams in the NBA, there’s a scenario in play that it might simply look to blow this whole thing up. Trading malcontent Carmelo Anthony would be a start, but he’s unlikely to bring a franchise-altering return in a trade. That’s where Porzingis and his upside come into play. Simply put, the Knicks could get a king’s ransom for this youngster.
On the other hand, it’s rather obvious that Portland needs more to go with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Despite earning a trip to the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, the Blazers have been eliminated by Golden State both times. And it really has not been competitive. Portland is 1-8 in those two series with an average margin of loss standing at 13.3 points. Ouch.
The issue here is that Portland handed out some horrible contracts to role players who have not stepped up. Allen Crabbe, Evan Turner, Maurice Harkless. Meyers Leonard and Al-Farouq Aminu counted a combined $61-plus million against the cap in 2016-17. That’s just not sustainable, and the Blazers know this.
Unfortunately for Portland, it won’t be able to add another elite-level player without getting rid of either Lillard or McCollum. That’s where Porzingis comes into play. Hypothetically, the Blazers could move McCollum and a couple of their bad contracts to New York for this talented young big man. It’s a trade Phil Jackson and Co. would have to think long and hard about making. It would also enable Portland to hold on to its three first-round picks while acquiring cap flexibility to add another starter-caliber player in free agency.
The idea of teaming Lillard and Porzingis up with one another might be too sexy for the brass in the Pacific Northwest to pass up on. Add in another talented young big in Jusuf Nurkic and there would surely be a lot to work with here.