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NBA Trade Rumors: Portland To Send Nicolas Batum to Charlotte

By Michael Dunlap

March 4, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Nicolas Batum (88) reacts after scoring a three point basket to tie the game against the Los Angeles Clippers during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
March 4, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Nicolas Batum (88) reacts after scoring a three point basket to tie the game against the Los Angeles Clippers during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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According to Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo Sports NBA trade rumors guru, the Portland Trail Blazers are finishing up a trade that will net them Gerald Henderson and Noah Vonleh from the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Nicolas Batum.

The trade comes as the first wave of shocks likely to come to the Portland area, as Blazers star LaMarcus Aldridge is set to hit free agency on July 1st and has expressed his desire to test the landscape.

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This trade does address one major issue for the Blazers — depth at the shooting guard position. After losing Wesley Matthews to an Achilles injury last season, they leaned on Arron Afflalo to hold down the spot. Now that Afflalo has opted-out and Matthews is an unknown (also a free agent), the Blazers bring in Henderson, who has shown an ability to put the ball in the bucket, although quite inefficiently.

Henderson, the 27-year-old born in New Jersey, averaged 12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 28.9 minutes per game for the Hornets last season, which is almost exactly on his career averages (12.0/3.4/2.1). Vonleh is a throw-in for the deal as it stands, though the former No. 9 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft is still just 19 years old and his 6-foot-10, 240-pound frame will help the interior defense of the Blazers.

Losing Batum will prove to be a huge blow to the perimeter defense of the Blazers, as his ability to disrupt passing lanes was something that fellow perimeter defenders like Damian Lillard and Matthews struggled to accomplish. Batum is coming off of the worst season he’s had since his rookie year, as he averaged just 9.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He shot a horrific 40 percent from the field, though he did knock down a career-best 85.7 percent from the charity stripe.

It will be interesting to see how Batum fits next to Kemba Walker and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist in Charlotte offensively next season — especially if he can’t get back to being a serviceable 3-point shooter (he shot a career-low 32.4 percent last season). Defensively, one of the better defenses in the league just got better.

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