The Portland Trail Blazers landed the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. But it doesn’t seem likely they will sprint to the podium to use it.
Portland may create a layer of mystery about the process and continue their pre-draft workouts, hosting top prospects such as Scoot Henderson, Brandon Miller, Cameron Whitmore, Amen Thompson, and Ausar Thompson. Maybe they will fall in love with one of these players in the process.
We had Charlotte select Miller at No. 2 overall in our latest mock draft. which left Portland to draft Henderson. But according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, rival executives aren’t so convinced and believe this pick is “potential trade bait” for the Blazers to improve their roster.
The reason is quite simple: Damian Lillard. Here is what Lillard told Sean Highkin last month (via Rose Garden Report)
“I’m just not interested in that. That’s not a secret,” Lillard said. “I want a chance to go for it. And if the route is to (draft youth), then that’s not my route.”
Portland can certainly add either Henderson or Miller to a young core that also includes Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe, and Nassir Little.
But the reality is that, at that point, Lillard may reach a breaking point with the organization. Lillard turns 33 years old next season and his timeline does not look the same as the players mentioned above.
Jason Quick asked Lillard directly if these thoughts have changed in the past month. The seven-time All-Star didn’t respond (via The Athletic):
“Lillard didn’t return a message on Tuesday after Portland was awarded the third pick. I was curious how the news hit him, and whether his end-of-the-season directive about drafting a young player still held true. Knowing Lillard, he never says anything without believing it, and without putting some thought into it, so my sense is he still rejects the idea of using the pick.”
What could a package that includes the No. 3 overall pick, Simons (who is a quality young player ideal for salary-matching purposes), and potentially Little or Jusuf Nurkic return?
The No. 3 overall pick and Simons may be enough to reach the salary thresholds to return an All-Star caliber player to play alongside Lillard.
Some players who could hear their names in Portland rumors include big men like Pascal Siakam, Karl-Anthony Towns, Deandre Ayton and wings like Mikal Bridges, Bradley Beal, Zach LaVine, and OG Anunoby.
Bridges may be the perfect target for Portland because he can be the ace defender Lillard has always needed while also offering secondary creation upside and floor spacing as an offensive initiator.
Are there any players they could land that would entice them to include Sharpe, who has the most value in the trade market? That seems unlikely unless someone like Joel Embiid or Jaylen Brown demands a trade.
Either way, Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin seems thrilled about the opportunity to improve his roster (via Blazer’s Edge):
“We’re borderline anxious to push all of our chips in. We cannot wait for that moment to happen, it just hasn’t come up yet. It’s my job to be the voice of reason, to be very diligent to not make a big mistake, to not get the wrong guy, to not overpay, to not give up on somebody that could eventually become a really good player. I’ve got to be really smart about this because it’s trying to thread a really thin needle here. We don’t have room for error, we need to get this right. We wanna maximize Damian’s time.”
We’ll see if Cronin is as aggressive as he says, but if so, the Trail Blazers could theoretically trot out a starting lineup next year highlighted by Lillard, Bridges (or someone of that caliber), Sharpe, and Grant.
It’s a notable improvement, of course, and a team likely to make the playoffs with the right role players surrounding on the roster. But even then, however, is that enough to contend for a championship?
Or would it be better to just build around either Henderson (or another top available prospect) as well as Sharpe, Simons, Little, and other young players in Portland?
