Blazers Better Down Low with Jones and Lo
Damian Jones (right) at long last fills the giant void at backup center
Last offseason, when Jestor took over as the Portland Trailblazers GM, one of his most important priorities was finding a center worthy of the spot - given how many ragtag faded big men were occupying the five spot on the Marcus Smart/Nicola Mirotic/Joe Ingles team. He accomplished that by acquiring Laurynas Birutis in shipping away Smart.
Since then, it's been a litany of failed experiments trying to find a quality backup to Birutis. You already know the names. But finally, in a trade announced today, Portland has at least found a solution for this season. Domantas Sabonis and Svi were sent to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Damian Jones and Maodo Lo.
Jones, 27, is the clear prize from Portland's perspective. He immediately ends the sham of Jack Salt and ensures Adam Woodbury will remain a cheap emergency third big. And at his age, there's a distinct possibility he could find himself staying, depending on how the season progresses. A quality rebounder with strong defensive skills, he'll immediately bolster a second unit that was notoriously short on anything remotely resembling rim protection last year and provide insurance in case the unthinkable happens and Birutis is banged up.
Handles, 3 point shooting, and scoring? Maodo Lo brings all three to the table
When 28 year old Maodo Lo was in the draft, then-Lakers GM Jestor was fascinated by him and gave serious thought to drafting the undersized two guard. But ultimately he passed, still keeping tabs on the German throughout his career. A few times, he came close to acquiring him via trade before finally pulling the trigger on him in this move.
"Can't rebound and can't defend, but the guy can score and hit 3 pointers," said one scout. "It fits in with what Portland has been doing all offseason long - identifying needs and going out to get guys who fill them. Sure these aren't perfect players, but then the Blazers couldn't afford them.
You look at Svi and Lo and you see two guys who are pretty similar - Svi's a better rebounder and a much better ballthief, but Lo is a little bit better scorer, more consistent 3 point shooter over his career, and a better floor general. So talentwise, the trade is a wash from that perspective and basketball-wise, you really think of this a deal of Sabonis for Jones - which absolutely is a move Portland makes every day with their current situation."
It's also possible that Lo might line up at the backup PG spot next to Cameron Oliver, and there's a scenario that might see the German take on a 6th man combo guard role if he meshes well with the rest of the lineup.
Financially, the move removes Svi's $5.7 million multiyear deal and replaces it with an expiring, whereas Sabonis and Jones are both expiring. That's an extra $5.7 million in cap space for the Blazers next summer before the re-signings of Ja Morant and Hamidou Diallo kick in.
"We've planned ahead for this the moment we picked up Ja," said a team official on condition of anonymity. "One of our secondary goals this year was to move Svi's contract without paying draft capital for it so we could have cash with next summer's expected maximum salary increases. And this is a side benefit of that."
New Projected Rotation
PG Ja Morant
SG Hamidou Diallo
SF Jaylen Hoard
PF Jordan Mickey
CE Laurynas Birutis
Backup PG: Maodo Lo or Cameron Oliver
Backup SG: Maodo Lo or Cameron Oliver
Backup SF: Jalen Jones*
Backup PF: Finn Delany
Backup CE: Damian Jones
* - The trade also locks in Jones as the backup SF. With neither Lo nor Oliver being worthy defenders, the need for a defender at the SF slot to ensure Jones doesn't have to do everything became critical. Sorry, Admiral Schofield.
Another effect of the deal - Finn Delany, whose potential and shooting prowess in Summer League have made him a front office favorite, now has full clearance to take the backup 4 minutes, sandwiched between the two Jones defenders.
Don't be surprised to see Portland make another move at some point during the season to bring in a bona fide backup PG. As we've already seen so far in Jestor's full year of GM'ing, the Blazers will often go with a jury-rigged interim solution until they find the right one.
The biggest question: Can this roster as constituted compete for a playoff spot as soon as this season?
So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
Good trade, man. I really like the composition of the team now.
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
Man it's good to have you back in the league, I always look forward to your articles. As for your team, it's gonna be a slow rebuild but you finally have a good young core to build around.
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
Getting Jones is indeed a very nice upgrade down low. That looked pretty thin with just Mickey and Birutis.
Lo is not exactly the kind of player I like but he showed before that he can score in bunches if used correctly and maybe he can find back to this form.
Lo is not exactly the kind of player I like but he showed before that he can score in bunches if used correctly and maybe he can find back to this form.
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
love the Jones pickup but leaves your bench thin if u have an injury
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
Great trade for you. I have been wanting Jones for a while, just I didn't have a pick or salary I wanted to send out.
He's the perfect piece on the contending team. Basically a double double guy with great defense. Not many out there in the csl
He's the perfect piece on the contending team. Basically a double double guy with great defense. Not many out there in the csl
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Re: So long, Svi and Sabonis. Hello, Jones and Lo.
One of the most underrated moves of the offseason. Gave up some role players to add some great rim protection in Jones.
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