According to Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune, the Portland Trailblazers have set their sights on UConn guard Kemba Walker and are looking to move into the top seven to land him.
According to a league source, Portland would like to get into the top seven to be in position to take Connecticut point guard Kemba Walker. That might mean packaging veteran point guard Andre Miller and the No. 21 pick for another team’s player along with a top-seven pick.
The Kings are looking for both veteran leadership and point guard depth, so Miller might make sense on certain levels. But, the 35-year-old guard out of the University of Utah (who makes his off-season home in the Sacramento area) is a true point guard with limited shooting range and a need for the ball, which makes him not a natural fit next to guard Tyreke Evans, in the same way that he hasn’t been a great fit next to Brandon Roy. With non-guaranteed salary of $7.8 million for the 2011-12 season, Miller would be a short term fix for the Kings, which makes you wonder if he is worth moving back 14 spots for, in an already weak draft.
Portland has a few other players who I’m sure the Kings wouldn’t mind getting their hands on. At the top of that list would be Nicolas Batum, the defensive-minded, 22-year-old Frenchman, who would instantly upgrade the Kings’ small forward position. Whether the 7th pick in the 2011 NBA draft is worth Batum is debatable, but I have a feeling the Kings make swap.
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