With a superstar like LaMarcus Aldridge and solid role players surrounding that player, it is a wonder why the Portland Trail Blazers are only 18-16 at the midway point of the NBA season. On the other hand, the Phoenix Suns at 14-20 are clearly overachieving with their roster, however not enough to make the playoffs anytime soon. The Suns are clearly in rebuilding mode and the Blazers can definitely win now, therefore it makes perfect sense that both teams sit down and discuss a trade.
The Trail Blazers with this current roster are headed for another early offseason. Surprisingly, point guard play has not been very good this season, to say the least. However that can change as Phoenix has one that could have a significant impact on this team. Yes, the Blazers may have routed the Spurs in their last game heading into the break, but I do not see them continuing to win consistently with that lineup. Jamal Crawford is better suited at being instant scoring off the bench and not facilitating the offense. Raymond Felton was supposed to be that point guard for the Blazers, but for whatever reason, he has failed to produce until coming off the bench in that win over the Spurs and that game has not changed anyone’s mind about him running the team.
It is obvious to see at this point that the Blazers should really consider getting rid of Raymond Felton and acquire Steve Nash from the Suns. Of course to make the salaries match, the Blazers may have to ponder parting ways with Marcus Camby and maybe see if the Suns are willing to offer Marcin Gortat. With Greg Oden once again being done for the season, Portland should find a way to include him in this deal, as he is still under his rookie contract. This trade will actually be beneficial to both teams, as the Suns will be taking on three expiring contracts to go along with the high draft pick they are sure to get in this year’s draft. The Blazers would rid themselves of a guard who is struggling to fit in, a high draft pick that just causes the fans misery, and an aging center who contributes little to nothing on offense.
Losing Camby may hurt the Blazers defensively, but not by as much as many would think. The Blazers may lose their leading rebounder at 9.5 per game and shot blocker at 1.48 per game, but at 38 years of age, Camby only plays about 24 minutes a game and is a liability on offense. Marcin Gortat, however, is young and has a very solid offensive game that should only get better playing next to LaMarcus Aldridge. He is also a very good rebounder, averaging over 10 for the season and will give the Blazers about the same amount of blocks per game as Camby does now.
Of course the main reason for making this trade is to get Steve Nash and this will definitely make a huge difference on how the rest of the season plays out, including the playoffs. Steve Nash is the quintessential NBA point guard in that he makes his teammates that much better. On a team that is lacking serious offensive firepower, Nash still found a way to get the most offensive production from that Phoenix lineup and he still leads the league in assists at nearly 11 per game. Coming to Portland, Nash will have a plethora of offensive weapons at his disposal.
The player that will benefit the most from this trade will also be the Blazers’ best one, LaMarcus Aldridge. When Amare Stoudemire played with Nash, he was a consistent 25 point scorer. Aldridge will easily become one too playing alongside Nash, as his offensive game is much more polished than Amare’s. Steve Nash is also one of the best pick and roll players in NBA history, which is a huge benefit for Aldridge. With this trade, the Blazers will also have one of the deepest teams in the league, allowing Jamal Crawford to come off the bench along with either Nicolas Batum or Wesley Matthews. This trade also allows Portland to keep Elliot Williams and have him learn behind one of the best. Williams will still have a chance to contribute this season, as Nash does not need to play 40 minutes on this team for success. This is definitely not a knock on Nash’s age, as he is one of the most conditioned athletes in all of sports and easily has another two to three seasons of playing at a high level.
With this trade, the Blazers defense will not drop off by that much; however their already solid offense will only get better and definitely become more efficient with the play of the point guard and added interior scoring. Steve Nash was able to win 62 games on a Phoenix team that did not have many defensive players and a coach that does not know what the word defense even means, so imagine what he could do with these players and a coach like Nate McMillan. Both teams need to get on the phone with each other as soon as possible, Phoenix, so that they can begin that rebuilding phase of clearing up cap space and a lottery pick and the Blazers, so they can give their fans a chance to see their team get out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2000 and at least have a shot at winning an NBA championship.
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