A good few days for the Blazers
A breath of fresh air, but there is nothing wrong with wanting more
Damian Lillard has always given this franchise hope for better days. And for a change, the person running the team gave fans more reason to hope on Wednesday when they added a starting-caliber role player without giving up their most desirable role players or draft picks.
Getting Jerami Grant was a coup and drafting Shaedon Sharpe at No. 7 demonstrated the franchise’s attempt to thread the needle of putting out a better team while adding the draft’s Mystery Man. Sometimes, the mystery man becomes Giannis. Many times, they don’t. At least he plays the right position, wing, that no team can ever have too many of. It was a good two days. Good, but it’s not enough. At least Joe Cronin and the front office know this too.
Ultimately, the price for Toronto’s OG Anunoby was too high for Portland. Anunoby would have given the Blazers a true small forward to fill out the vision of having length and athleticism around Dame. And while the rotation of Grant/Josh Hart/Nassir Little is a great place to start, it’s hard to blame Blazers fans who are bummed on missing out on a chance to get Anunoby.
However, adding Anunoby to the squad would have cost some of their additional wing depth. Combined with the 7th pick and probably another future pick, it became too much for Portland, clearly enamored with Sharpe’s potential. The Raptors didn’t want to give up Anunoby unless they could brag about getting over on the team they did a deal with. It’s their style. And so Sharpe is the pick and now the intrigue around the Blazers is about their backup plans.
So the negotiations for Anunoby are over. And now the Blazers will have to start looking at other options to add to their team. Would it have been warranted to sacrifice a fan favorite and a front office favorite for a real chance at contention? I think it would have been. But these are good problems to have. Better than Portland’s old ones, that’s absolutely certain.
Ultimately, the CJ trade netted Jerami Grant and Josh Hart. A good place to be all things considered. But there’s nothing wrong with wanting more, especially with free agency still ahead. Luckily for Blazers fans, the front office is willing to admit it. And luckily for the front office, they have a healthy Dame waiting in the wings. But it wouldn’t hurt to get a couple of more wings to help him really fly.