The Portland Trail Blazers have started the offseason looking to shed some of their veterans. So far, they just traded veteran Malcolm Brogdon to the Washington WMalcolmizards, but they still have a few players who could be moved.
One of them is veteran forward Jerami Grant, who has attracted a lot of interest around the league. The biggest problem with Grant isn’t his play, but rather his hefty contract.
He’s set to make $29.7 million this coming season and is on the shelf for four more seasons, with his salary increasing each year. His final year will pay him $36.4 million at age 33.
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report proposed some trade ideas for some of the worst contracts in the NBA. Grant was included in this idea and, thanks to his idea, Portland got a massive return for the veteran forward.
The deal was made between the Trail Blazers and the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the main teams linked to Grant this summer. Portland would receive point guard D’Angelo Russell, forward Jarred Vanderbilt, forward Maxwell Lewis and a 2029 first-round pick from Los Angeles.
While this package may not seem like a great deal for the Trail Blazers, it would actually be a great deal. Landing an expiring contract like Russell’s could help Portland at the trade deadline or even next offseason when the contract expires.
This would free up some salary cap space for this team or provide them with assets. Vanderbilt just signed a new contract extension with the Lakers last offseason, which would keep them on the books for a few more seasons.
He’s made tremendous progress with Los Angeles, especially on defense. He could be a driving force off the bench for this Trail Blazers team.
Lewis is a promising young forward that the Lakers have a lot of confidence in. The team made a trade in the 2023 NBA Draft to get him so he could be an interesting piece for Portland to pick up.
And finally, the big prize in this deal would be the first-round pick in the 2029 draft. With the Lakers’ stars being older, it’s anyone’s guess where Los Angeles will be in five years. This could prove to be a very valuable draft pick for the Trail Blazers if the Lakers were to collapse.
The rumors of a Grant trade aren’t going to stop anytime soon, especially with the Lakers. The team still has time to move him, with training camp still a few weeks away.
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