Portland Trail Blazers: Imagining a trade for Kawhi Leonard

Trade proposal No. 1

Why the Blazers make this trade

The Trail Blazers make this trade because it lands them another superstar to add next to Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum.

When Leonard is healthy, he is arguably a top-five player in the NBA and one of the best defensive player in the NBA. For his career, he is averaging 16.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Leonard is a two-time All-Star, two-time Defensive Player of the year, four-time All-Defensive team, two-time All-NBA First Team selection and the 2014 NBA Finals MVP.

The Blazers’ backcourt defense has been their main weakness for years and adding Leonard would help right away. He can defend multiple positions and can give Lillard and McCollum breaks. The Blazers are missing a guy who can guard the top guys in the NBA like James Harden, LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Leonard can step up to the challenge and play those guys head-to-head.

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On top of being a great defender, Leonard has developed into a deadly shooter and offensive weapon at the wing position. He is shooting 38 percent from the 3-point line for his career.

He can handle the ball and create offense for himself and teammates. Defenses have to send help on Leonard when he goes one-on-one, which would give Lillard, McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic more open looks. The same goes for all three of those guys, as Leonard would see a lot more open looks in Portland because he wouldn’t have to be the only guy on offense anymore.

Leonard would be the perfect answer for the Blazers’ 3-an- D problem at the wing. He can be the third or fourth option on offense so he can be fresh on defense.

The Blazers also get undrafted rookie Brandon Paul. Since Portland is trading three guys, they needed to acquire two players.

Paul is a 6’4″ shooting guard. He is a 28-year-old rookie who has been playing the G League. The Spurs inked him to a two-year deal last summer. He doesn’t see much playing time, but he is a decent player that could provide depth on the wing for Portland.

Why the Spurs make this trade

The Spurs and Kawhi Leonard are both pretty quiet, so for something like this to come out in the news means it could be a bigger deal than anyone believes.

If things get bad between the two, they may look to separate. Leonard has one year left on his contract, then he has a player option for the next season. If Leonard plans on rejecting that option and testing free agency, the Spurs may just want to move him before that happens.

Instead of losing him for nothing, they can accept this package from the Blazers.

Al-Farouq Aminu is having his best season as a Blazer. He is averaging 9.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. Aminu is also shooting 39.8 percent from downtown this season. He is arguably the Blazers’ best defender and 3-point shooting wing. The Spurs can use Aminu to replace Leonard on their team. He can play and defend multiple positions. He is on a favorable contract for this one more year and would save the Spurs some money.

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Moe Harkless is a 24-year-old wing. He can defend multiple positions like Aminu and Leonard, and he is a more extended, athletic wing. Harkless has fallen out of the rotation in Portland. He can be an impactful 3-and-D wing, but he needs to figure out his jump shot. The Spurs have the best shooting coach in the NBA with Chip England and may be able to help Harkless find his shot.

Harkless is a good talent. He just needs to find the right fit for his skill-set. He has two more years left on his deal, so the Spurs would have some time to work with him.

Ed Davis is one of the best rebounders in the NBA. He is a guy who wants to compete in every game and would fit right in as an expiring contract. He would provide some energy and strength for the Spurs frontcourt, They could play Davis next to Pau Gasol or LaMarcus Aldridge and let him do the dirty work down low.

The Spurs also gain three first round draft picks, which represent the main haul for a superstar of Kawhi Leonard’s status. They are one of the best organizations in the NBA at finding talent and would be able to use the draft picks on guys or package those picks to move up and get a guy they want.

If three draft picks is too much for Portland to offer, or if San Antonio understandably wants more on-court talent rather than just a pile of future picks, perhaps Jusuf Nurkic could be included instead of Ed Davis.

Nurkis is a restricted free agent this summer, but could represent an attractive option for the Spurs with Aldridge and Gasol getting older. However, these are only decent offers, and may not stack up to what a more desperate suitor might offer. As such, we move on to the next trade proposal.