Portland Trail Blazers looking at new options as the Draft draws near: NBA Draft Update
The Portland Trail Blazers went under hibernation after concluding the pre-draft workouts and haven’t been very intent on disclosing much about their draft approach since. The Trail Blazers have the 21st and 51st pick in the Thursday’s draft. These numbers are quite late in the order with no significant effect and the rumours have been circulating that the Blazers are looking, either to trade a few players or move up in the draft by conducting a deal.
The Trail Blazers have many reasons to go for a trade; one of the most significant among them is that this will be the last chance for the teams to acquire players in accordance with the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, or CBA. For the past two weeks, there were vibes that the Trail Blazers are receiving offers for their 35 year old point guard Andre Miller.
General Manager of the Blazers Chad Buchanan has now confirmed the news. Talking about Miller’s situation, he said;
“We’re going to see as we listen around the league. There’s a lot of interest in Andre for various reasons. At the same time, we value him and realize what he’s done for us the last two years.”
Miller, who will make 7.8 million dollars this year, is involved for a cap incentive and pact exchange. In addition to this, Andre’s contract for the next year is not for sure because of which he is generating lot of interest. If interested, the Trail Blazers can make the trade until 29 June as the current CBA will expire on June 30.
Miller has been one of the key members in the Trail Blazers line-up and has over the years provided them the steadiness and the on court leadership. During the last regular-season, he scored at an average of 12.7 points per game complemented with 7 dimes and 3.7 rebounds.
However, because of his age and high price the Trail Blazers are looking to bring in a young point guard. Rumour has it that University of Connecticut's Kemba Walker is sliding in the draft and could end up with Portland.
However, Buchanan denied that they are aiming at Walker. Buchanan said that he is aiming high in the draft and will most probably acquire the guard who will be considered as the third best in this draft.
The point guard and the centre position have been a constant source of worry for the Trail Blazers. While, they never had any superstar or a talented young player at the guard position, the Trail Blazers continue to suffer at the centre position due to the persistent injury issues of Greg Oden. So, if Portland do go for the centre position, the move can virtually spell an end to Oden’s short career.
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