It’s been a while since there’s been anything to cheer at One Center Court. So I’ll greet the trade of Mason Plumlee with a round of applause.
Nothing against Plumlee. He’s a pro. But what Sunday marked was the waving a white flag from the Trail Blazers headquarters. That’s worth cheering because the sooner the organization acknowledges that the current path was a dead end, the better.
Owner Paul Allen loves to play draft. After Jimmy Hendrix and collecting big yachts, the draft may be his favorite thing. And if the deal between Denver and Portland clears on Monday as reported then Portland not only ends a futile playoff-chase charade but gets Memphis’ first-round pick next June.
It’s going to be sold on Monday by general manager Neil Olshey and coach Terry Stotts as the first phase of a “one step back, two steps forward” plan. Whether they’ll say it or not, the Blazers dreaded having to deal with Plumlee’s agent Mark Bartlestein in restricted free agency this summer. They skipped out on that. Also, they are now projected to have the 11th, 21st and 27th overall picks in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Can three teenagers save this franchise?
That’s the question to ask today. Because I’m told by a Blazers source that Stotts was consulted prior to the execution of the trade, signing off himself. Allen presumably wanted to be sure Stotts was on board given that he’ll be the chairman of the the “one step back” portion of the plan.
Again, presentation is key here. “Three first-round draft picks,” sounds sexy. You win championships with “three first-round picks.” But in a given draft there are only about 10-12 good players. Maybe this one has 12 or 14. But make no mistake, no matter what Olshey attempts to sell in the wake of the deal, the organization abandoned the course with this trade and started looking hopefully into its future.
I have to think Allen’s decision to consult his coach prior to the trade of Plumlee means Stotts won’t be fired. Also, it feels like Olshey is going to stick around and make the picks. This means, somehow, that neither the coach nor the general manager is being blamed for a lackluster season. Maybe Allen just likes drafting so much that he’s forgotten how the organization ended up here in the first place.
Olshey crowed after the departure of LaMarcus Aldridge that it was better to start over with a sound approach than to attempt to play from the middle. But that’s just where Portland finds itself, stuck in NBA purgatory. Now the organization starts over again. The Blazers are searching for relevancy, and they’ve decided that playing the lottery is better than getting blasted out of the first round of the playoffs by the Warriors.
I can’t say I disagree there.
My biggest question for the organization isn’t about what they did on Sunday — selling today for tomorrow — but about whether Olshey and Co. will ever figure this out. I couldn’t have been alone in wondering, “Three first round picks… hmmmm… can’t wait to see how they screw this up.”
To the Blazers, I say, “good luck.” Because when you play the lottery, that’s what you’re banking on. To Blazers fans, I say, “I feel your pain.” I know. You’re wondering what the point of rearranging the championship parade route is if it’s only going to be postponed every summer.
But this was a necessary correction. The season was over. The franchise was going nowhere. Continuing down the path, toward a date with more futility with Bartlestein as the tour guide, just didn’t make sense.
I just hope Olshey’s plan — Plan I? Plan J? K? — I can’t remember. Lost track last summer. Whatever that plan is, I hope it pans out. The draft is fun. But it’s not all you bank on when you’re building a winner. You need so much more.
— @JohnCanzanoBFT
Portland Trail Blazers trade Mason Plumlee to Denver Nuggets for Jusuf Nurkic
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
