NBA Trades: Portland Trail Blazers Smart to Blow Up Team

The Portland Trail Blazers were going nowhere this season, so the front office made the right decision to blow up the team and start from scratch.

In the NBA, you are either getting better or you are getting worse.

Sitting at 20-23, with four teams between them and the playoffs, the Trail Blazers made the decision to get better—by first getting worse.

The squad parted with veteran Marcus Camby to acquire young players Johnny Flynn and Hasheem Thabeet, as well as a second-round pick.

More notably, Portland was able to acquire the first-round pick of the New Jersey Nets as well as Mehmet Okur and Shawne Williams in exchange for Gerald Wallace.

Wallace had some good seasons with the Charlotte Bobcats, but his play has declined this year. Even though the pick is top-three protected, the trade should be considered a steal for the Blazers.

However, simply making a few trades was not enough. 

Portland needs to start a new era as it attempts to start a youth movement.

For these reasons, President Larry Miller decided to cut former No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden and fire coach Nate McMillan.

This signifies a change for the future of the Trail Blazers.

Fans might not enjoy the remainder of the season, but the team can secure two lottery picks in this year's draft and immediately build a new team that can be competitive.

If winning a championship is the eventual goal, this is the best move the franchise could have made.