Portland Trail Blazers: 5 Players They Should Pursue This Offseason
The Portland Trail Blazers are playing excellent basketball this season. Surviving the biggest obstacle of an injury-ridden roster, the Blazers are still afloat in the Western Conference as the seventh seed. This season they are looking to make some noise in the West. However, if things don't work out for the best, what can the Blazers do in the offseason to make their team stronger?
5. J.J. Barea (Dallas Mavericks)
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J.J. Barea is a strong point guard who can shoot the ball and attack the basket. The Mavericks are definitely going to do their best to re-sign him, but one can dream, right?
Barea would be a great fill-in for Andre Miller. A great passer with a sweet stroke from 15 feet and out, J.J. could be taken under Miller's wing and become an even better PG. Averaging 9.3 points and 3.6 assists in his 20 minutes off the bench for the Mavs, Barea could be the answer to some questions for the Blazers. And seeing as though Miller's time is running out, with his 35th birthday being on Saturday, it's about time he started teaching some of his wisdom to the youth.
4. Samuel Dalembert (Sacramento Kings)
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Samuel Dalembert, or, as I like to call him, the Haitian Sensation, is an incredible defensive presence as well as an established rebounder. How he ended up in Sacramento is a huge question mark in the front office of the Philadelphia 76ers organization, but he's gone and would be a fit for the Portland Trail Blazers.
With Marcus Camby's contract expiring in 2012, the Blazers will need an inside defender desperately. Dalembert is averaging 6.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game as a King. But he's completely unpredictable, and performs well when he plays more minutes. As a matter of fact, on Monday Dalembert had 27 points, 16 rebounds and two blocks in a 10-point victory over the Golden State Warriors, where he played 39 minutes.
He's an excellent defender and would be a great filler for Marcus Camby, especially since the health of Greg Oden is a huge blur.
3. Marcus Thornton (Sacramento Kings)
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One of the biggest mishaps during the trade deadline this season was the moving of Marcus Thornton from the New Orleans Hornets to the Sacramento Kings for Carl Landry. For the Kings, Thornton is nearly tripling the point per game average that he had as a Hornet, putting up 20 points, three rebounds, three assists and 1.7 steals per game. And he's doing all of this in twice the playing time.
Marcus Thornton is a deadly scorer. Last night, against the Golden State Warriors, Thornton scored 42 points in 41 minutes, shooting 13-of-20 from the field, 4-of-7 from downtown and 12-of-14 from the line. And to top it all off, he had four steals. He's a pure scorer, and for him to be doing this in his second year in the NBA is ridiculous. For him to have made it all the way to the 13th pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft is beyond what my mind can comprehend.
The only issue in getting Thornton onto the Blazers is playing time and bench depth. What makes Portland such a threat in the West is its deep bench. As of now, the Blazers are starting Wes Matthews and Nicolas Batum at the shooting guard and small forward positions, and have Brandon Roy, Gerald Wallace, Rudy Fernandez and Patty Mills all coming off the bench.
Essentially, you have two All-Stars and two shooters waiting for their name to be called for some action on the court. For the Blazers to get Thornton onto their roster, they would definitely need to move Rudy Fernandez to another team. He deserves more playing time than they are giving him anyway.
With Thornton's ability to provide instant offense off the bench, Portland must seize this opportunity and snag him in free agency. He's definitely a budding superstar in the NBA, showing shades of Monta Ellis' game as well as the flammable shooting stoke of J.R. Smith. Especially with Brandon Roy's wishy-washy play after his surgery, Portland will need that second offensive option. If the Trail Blazers can find a way to get him onto their roster, they would become a championship-bound team.
2. Goran Dragic (Houston Rockets)
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Andre Miller's 35th birthday is literally days away. With his contract expiring in 2012, Miller will undoubtedly be retiring in the near, imminent future. Seeing as though Patty Mills has not fully developed into a starting point guard yet, the Blazers would be crazy not to attempt to grab Goran Dragic in the offseason.
Now, let's be honest. Who expected Dragic to be moved from the Suns at the trade deadline in the first place?
I sure didn't.
Dragic was the perfect heir to Steve Nash's throne. You could see it when he played. That skip pass on a pick-and-roll that you see Dragic do all the time? He got that from Nash. This play is a prime example of Steve Nash rubbing off on the budding star. But the Suns wanted to be faster, so they moved him to Houston for Aaron Brooks. Luckily for the Blazers, that means he's prime for the picking,.
Goran Dragic needs to get out of Houston immediately. It is unheard of for a player of his caliber to be coming off the bench behind the likes of Kyle Lowry, playing a mere 14 minutes a game, and only putting in seven points and three assists per contest. Dragic is going to be a star in the NBA sometime soon. He just needs the exposure that only comes through playing time.
If he can play behind Andre Miller, and pick up some of his traits like he did Nash's, Dragic could be extremely beneficial to the Blazer organization. He's a restricted free agent, but why would Dragic want to go back to a place where he won't get any playing time?
1. Tyson Chandler (Dallas Mavericks)
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Tyson Chandler would be a perfect pickup for the Portland Trail Blazers. Marcus Camby is getting old, and sooner than later, he's going to retire. That leaves a huge question mark at the center position for the Blazers. With the uncertainty of Greg Oden's health, Portland needs a backup plan. Tyson Chandler is the answer to their questions.
Playing 27.8 minutes per game with the Dallas Mavericks, Chandler is averaging nearly a double-double, putting up 10.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. What makes him a perfect replacement for Marcus Camby is his incredible athleticism and length. The only thing he lacks is that veteran wisdom and the mid-range jumper. And with Camby's contract expiring in 2012, who would be better suited to inherit his tricks of the trade than Chandler?
The majority of Tyson Chandler's offense comes from dunks and alley-oops. He's a point guard's best friend, as he sets great screens and rolls to the basket to finish with authority. If the Blazers can pick him up along with Goran Dragic, they could establish some type of Nash-Stoudemire chemistry. And that would be dangerous.
Tyson Chandler is also an incredible shot changer. Though he may only be averaging 1.1 blocks per game on the season, his presence is well felt by slashing guards, and they always adjust to his length. It is that defensive presence that Marcus Camby gives to Portland, and Chandler would pick up the slack immediately. With Tyson Chandler in the middle, and possibly Greg Oden backing him up, the Blazers' inside defense would become impregnable.
