One Blockbuster Trade the Trail Blazers and Lakers Should Make Right Now

Noah Camras | Aug 5, 2024

Jan 21, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) controls the ball against Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) and forward Jerami Grant (9) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA offseason has officially reached its dog days. The NBA Draft has come and gone and a majority of the top free agents have found new homes. At this point, the only major roster shakeups would come via trades.

The Portland Trail Blazers are one of the few teams who should make a trade before the 2024 season tips off. The Blazers have one of the best available players in forward Jerami Grant, and he doesn't exactly fit the winning timeline for the Blazers.

So, in the next month, Portland should find a landing spot for Grant — and there's no better one than the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Lakers have had a relatively quiet offseason. Outside of drafting Dalton Knecht and Bronny James, the Lakers haven't made any real changes to their roster.

The Lakers were ousted by the Denver Nuggets in the first round of this past season's playoffs, and as LeBron James and Anthony Davis continue to get older, the time is now for L.A. to make a move to turn their roster into a true championship contender.

Enter the Blazers.

Grant is a perfect player to join James and Davis in Los Angeles. Grant is a 6-foot-7 stretch four who shot 40.2 percent from deep last season, and is a career 36.4 percent shooter from 3-point land.

Grant has averaged at least 20 points per game in three of the last four seasons, and is in his second year of a five-year, $160 million deal. However, he's not the only player the Lakers should target.

The Blazers have an overflowing backcourt thanks to recent success in the draft. Anfernee Simons, 25, is in the third year of a four-year, $100 million deal. While he's continued to improve as a scorer at the NBA level, he's struggled to stay healthy. Last year, he appeared in just 46 games for Portland.

It would make sense for Portland to clear their books of two of their highest-paid players as they continue their rebuild in the post Damian Lillard era. The Lakers are the perfect landing spot for a big trade. Here's what it would look like:

Lakers receive: F Jerami Grant, G Anfernee Simons

Blazers receive: G D'Angelo Russell, F Rui Hachimura, G Gabe Vincent, F Jarred Vanderbilt, G Maxwell Lewis, 2029 first-round pick, two second-round picks

The Lakers get two huge roster upgrades in Grant and Simons, and can utilize a finishing lineup of Simons, James, Grant, Davis, and Austin Reaves. They also get off the contracts of Vincent and Vanderbilt, while opening more playing time for first-round pick Knecht off the bench.

As for the Blazers, they acquire an intriguing young player in Lewis, as well as multiple picks. They also acquire very tradable assets in Russell, Hachimura, and Vanderbilt, which could all net returns at some point throughout the duration of their contract.