As the trade deadline approaches, the Trail Blazers and Pelicans reportedly struck a big deal involving multiple players, including McCollum, one of the two-gun combinations. In the deal, the Blazers traded McCollum, Nance Jr. and Snell to the Pelicans, with guard Hart, guard Satoransky, Walker, Silva, one 2022 first-round pick and two future second-round picks. Both in terms of the size of the deal and the expected effects after the deal, the deal was one of the biggest deals of the season.
Among the players traded by the Blazers, McCollum has played in 36 games for the team this season, averaging 20.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, shooting 43.6% from the field and 38.4% from three-point range, including a record low in recent seasons. Nance Jr. has played in 37 games for the team this season, averaging 6.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, shooting 51.5 percent from the field and averaging a new low in points per game since his rookie season. Snell has played in 38 games for the team this season, averaging just a career-low 2.6 points per game.
Of the pelicans traded, Hart has played in 41 games for the team this season, averaging 13.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, shooting 50.5 percent from the field. Satoransky has played in 32 games for the team this season, averaging just 2.8 points and 2.4 assists per game, shooting just 29.9 percent from the field and 16.1 percent from three-point range. Walker has played in 50 games for the team this season and averaged 12.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game, but shot only 37.5 percent and 31.1 percent from both fields.
The deal happened because both teams are desperate to change before the trade deadline. On the one hand, the Trail Blazers have been mired in various trading rumors during the offseason. So far this season, they have had an extremely bad season due to Lillard's sluggish performance and the team's injuries. In the current trend, the Blazers have been biased towards a rebuilding path, and in the last deal, they just traded Powell, one of the team's main players, to the Clippers. After trading mcCollum, they also officially began rebuilding.
The Pelicans, on the other hand, only made a 1-12 record in the opening stages of the season, and they were at one point at the bottom of the West. But after Ingram's return, the Pelicans' form quickly rebounded, and they have now achieved a record of 22 wins and 32 losses, ranking tenth in the West and still in a state of winning streak. With the team's growing hopes of making the playoffs, pelicans management desperately need a backcourt player who has already played to help the team make it to the playoffs, and McCollum is undoubtedly a good target.
Judging by the overall deal and the possible future implications, the Pelicans are undoubtedly the winner in this deal. First of all, McCollum will provide a very big help to the Pelicans to reach the playoffs, McCollum has been very stable since becoming the team's main player, has been averaging 20+ points per game for 7 consecutive seasons, and he is not a very sticky player, good at playing without the ball, he will become ingram's best helper. Second, the Nance Jr. involved in the deal is also a good complement to the Pelicans' rotation lineup. All in all, the Pelicans are getting closer to their goal of making the playoffs after the deal.
The Blazers have been questioned by many fans in this deal, and following the last trade that almost gave away Powell in vain, the operation of the Blazers management in this deal has also made many fans wonder. Generally speaking, the deal for a team that decides to rebuild is either to find the core of the future team or to collect a large number of draft picks. For a star of McCollum's level, a trade with him as the main body can undoubtedly get a lot of chips that will help the Blazers rebuild. But in this deal, neither of these goals was achieved by the Blazers.
On the one hand, players traded by the Pelicans, whether it is Hart, Satoransky or Walker, it is difficult to become the players who lead the Blazers forward in the future, and may even affect the performance of simmons, the core they have now determined. On the other hand, although the Blazers received three draft picks in the deal, including the 2022 first-round pick, this first-round pick has a protective condition, if the pick is 5-14, the draft pick belongs to the Blazers, otherwise the draft pick will become a future second-round pick sent to the Blazers. That said, the draft pick doesn't give the Blazers a top five pick.
In short, the Blazers' operation made them pay mcCollum, one of the core of the team, but they did not get too good returns, whether from this season or from the future, the Blazers' deal is likely to be a basket of water. After a series of confusing trades by the team's management, it was undoubtedly Lillard who was most disappointed. As early as this season's offseason, Lillard has been exposed to rumors that if the Blazers can't form a championship-winning lineup, he will apply to leave the team. Although he himself debunked the rumors, the team's current poor record and operation are likely to have chilled his heart.
At the beginning of his career, Lillard had already experienced the starting Five Tigers except for his departure, and now the Blazers have once again sent away the team's main lineup, and the team's stable starting lineup in recent seasons is only Nurkic and Lillard. Judging from the current trend, Lillard's departure is likely to be only a matter of time, after all, in the Blazers who have no hope, leaving is the best choice for Lillard to be a superstar of this level, and he has done enough for the team and is good enough.
All in all, the deal announced that the Trail Blazers were on the road to rebuilding, and the Pelicans had great hope of making the playoffs after the deal. For the Blazers, if they want to rebuild in the future, a similar deal that hurts the team needs to be avoided again.