NBA Trade Rumors: 5 Teams That Could Trade For Jahlil Okafor
By Vijay Vemu
3. Portland Trail Blazers
After having four out of their five starters replaced last year, Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers were a projected lottery team.
Not many people expected them to do much. Instead of kneeling down under the expectations, Portland had a fantastic second half of the season, made the playoffs and advanced to the second round.
They found great role players in C.J. McCollum, Allen Crabbe and Mason Plumlee. They also found a star in Lillard himself. But Portland still has holes to fill if they want to continue to compete in a very tight Western Conference.
One massive problem is interior scoring. Last year Portland had Plumlee and Ed Davis on the team as the centers. Both are great defensively in protecting the rim and rebounding but neither could score the basketball at an efficient rate.
Portland has also added Festus Ezeli on an extremely cheap contract, but Ezeli isn’t there to bring any offense. He is there to protect the rim.
Portland could use a center like Okafor on the team to help solidify a good inside-out game when it comes to running the offense. Portland’s starting two guards in Lillard and McCollum are great three-point shooters and Crabbe can provide scoring off the bench with his shot.
Okafor would also get the majority of the touches in the post because he’s going to be the best post player on that team. The other players just don’t have the offensive skillset that he has.
But if Portland wants to get a big man, they might have to give away a good guard/wing. Someone like McCollum would be a good switch for both teams. But losing McCollum loses another ball handler and Lillard’s right-hand man.
It would be a huge risk for Portland as having McCollum allows Terry Stotts to stagger the minutes between him and Lillard. It would be a big leap of faith for Portland.
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