The Portland Trail Blazers are not standing pat this offseason. After a strong end to the regular season, the Blazers are looking to upgrade their roster and continue to move towards playoff contention. This Trail Blazers trade could be one step in that direction.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Trail Blazers have traded Anfernee Simons and two second-round picks for Jrue Holiday.
Trading Simons and his expiring contract for a player like Jrue Holiday makes sense. Holiday is a championship veteran who raises the floor of any team he is on. Holiday can help the Blazers continue to grow their defensive identity.
Still, losing Simons is a tough pill to swallow. Simons was arguably the best player on the team last season and the team’s leading scorer.
The Blazers have a crowded backcourt of young talent, so trading one of their guards was always in the cards, but trading one for another shooting guard doesn’t make a ton of sense.
You could argue that bringing in a star veteran like Holiday will be great for teaching Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson. That being said, Holiday is owed a ton of money over the next two seasons, and the Blazers get older and less athletic with this trade.
Our Trail Blazers trade grade for the Jrue Holiday trade is a B-. Bringing in a proven veteran and a winner is a good move for the Blazers. The question is, did they pick the right one? Holiday has been trending downward while Simons has been trending up.
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Opening some space in the backcourt for Sharpe and Henderson to flourish offensively will help, but if Simons continues improving and becomes a star, the Blazers will be kicking themselves for letting him go.
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