Blockbuster Trade Proposal Has Blazers Sending Star Guard to Eastern Conference

Is Portland done making moves this summer?

Feb 4, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (50) controls the ball under pressure from Portland Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson (00) and center Deandre Ayton (2) and forward Toumani Camara (33) and guard Anfernee Simons (1) in the first quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports / Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Is the Portland Trail Blazers' 2024 offseason work finished?

Portland general manager Joe Cronin offloaded three of the club's four draft picks (in what is generally an ill-regarded class, to be sure), and used the No. 7 selection on two-time UConn champion center Donovan Clingan. The top traded pick, the rights to eventual No. 14 selection Carlton Carlington, a combo guard out of Pittsburgh, was shipped out as part of a larger deal to ditch 2023 Sixth Man of the Year point guard Malcolm Brogdon. Is Cronin finished making moves?

Grant Hughes of Bleacher Report proposes an intriguing, major deal that can help an Eastern Conference contender add some win-now Trail Blazers depth. Hughes pitches a trade wherein Cronin ships out combo guard Anfernee Simons in exchange for 2023 lottery pick Anthony Black, point guard Cole Anthony, and a 2025 Denver Nuggets first round pick. The draft selection is top-5 protected through the 2027 season.

Hughes applauds Simons' abilities as a 3-point marksman (last year, he connected on 38.5 percent of his 8.8 triple tries a night) and as a ball handler and shot creator, noting that Orlando's top signing of the summer, ex-Nuggets shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is more of a catch-and-shoot player than a playmaker.

Black had an uneven rookie season start, but the 6-foot-7 former No. 6 draft pick has major defensive upside, a backcourt skill that Portland's own former lottery pick guards, Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe, currently lack. Anthony is a poorer passer than Simons, but at 24 still has some upside and could slot into more of a sixth man role. Hughes notes that Black, not Anthony, is the main (albeit raw) prize in this deal. The Nuggets project to be fairly solid by record as long as three-time MVP center Nikola Jokic stays healthy, but adding first round picks is exactly what the Trail Blazers need to do in their transactions for the foreseeable future.

Last year, appearing in 81 games (but starting zero), Anthony averaged 11.6 points on .435/.338/.826 shooting splits, 3.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.5 blocks a night. Black, 20, is more of a work-in-progress, but with significantly higher upside. In 69 contests (33 starts), he posted averages of 4.6 points on a .466/.394/.613 slash line, 2.0 boards, 1.3 dimes, and 0.5 swipes a night.

It's an interesting hypothetical deal, and one that would make sense for both sides.

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