Portland Trail Blazers Trade Rumors: Are Blazers Really Shopping C.J. McCollum As NBA Trade Deadline Approaches?
Portland Trail Blazers trade rumors have fans very worried as the NBA trade deadline approaches. C.J. McCollum keeps coming up as a name that the Portland front office is shopping around the league to add size in the low post. Several blogs have floated trade proposals, spurred on by recent struggles the Blazers have had. A quick look at the updated NBA standings, though, and it shows how the Blazers have pulled to within one game of a spot in the 2017 NBA Playoffs.
The Blazers have won three straight games, picking up victories against the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, and Memphis Grizzlies. After losing to the Philadelphia 76ers back on January 20, it almost appears like the team has turned a corner on the season. The locker room wasn’t too pleased with the lack of offense against the 76ers, and the fans were pretty upset as well. The backlash in the media also didn’t help, but the team hasn’t lost since then. A huge test comes on Sunday (Jan. 29), when the Blazers host the Golden State Warriors at Moda Center.
As for the latest Portland Trail Blazers trade rumors, the chatter stems from recent efforts by the front office to add a significant player to the roster. Players like center Hassan Whiteside of the Miami Heat and center DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings have been highly coveted by fans of the Blazers. The front office even reportedly made an offer to Miami for Whiteside. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Meyers Leonard, Moe Harkless, and Mason Plumlee were offered to Miami in a deal.
Many NBA analysts have weighed in on the effort of Portland to add a good big man to the roster for the rest of the regular season. The consensus is that the Blazers would have to give up a real asset to even get one of the teams shopping one to come to the negotiations. The name that keeps getting mentioned is C.J. McCollum, who has emerged as one of the best guards in the league. He would be an immediate improvement to any NBA team looking to add another scoring guard. This has led to many blog posts regarding Portland Trail Blazers trade rumors.
So what would McCollum bring to the table? In 48 games this season, he is averaging 23.4 points, 3.6 assists, and 3.5 rebounds a night. Those are impressive numbers, but McCollum still ended up getting snubbed by the Western Conference All-Star team. The lack of team success may have led to that, as point guard Damian Lillard also failed to make the team. McCollum is under contract through the 2020-21 NBA season, with escalating salaries that reach about $29.4 million by the end of his deal.
Not only does C.J. McCollum bring much value to any trade discussion, but he has a lot of team control left on his deal. This is why he is getting mentioned in a lot of the latest Portland Trail Blazers trade rumors, despite no indication by the front office that he is even available. If he did officially become available, it’s easy to assume that DeMarcus Cousins, Hassan Whiteside, and any other big man on a struggling franchise could suddenly be attainable. The main question is whether the Blazers could find enough scoring without McCollum on the roster.
Those fans worried on social media might want to take a deep breath, because it doesn’t appear that the front office in Portland wants to lose C.J. McCollum. The team gave him an expensive long-term contract because they saw what he could do on the court. A more realistic trade offer could include the valuable first-round pick the Blazers have in the 2017 NBA Draft. For now, it’s safe to set aside any Portland Trail Blazers trade rumors that include McCollum, as the front office realizes he is too valuable to just give away in a deadline deal.
[Featured Image by Harry How/Getty Images]
