This trade is not a joke, it is going to happen, and you're hearing it here first.  The Portland TrailBlazers are going to trade the 13th overall pick of the 2008 NBA Draft to the Indiana Pacers for veteran point guard Jamaal Tinsley.

Why?

Read on and I will give you seven reasons why this trade is going to occur and if you don't believe me, leave a comment, and I will gladly get back to you with an "I told you so" on the mourning of June 27th, 2008.

Seven Reasons Why Portland is Going to Trade the 13th Pick of the First Round in the 2008 NBA Draft to Indiana for veteran PG Jamaal Tinsley:

1. The Blazers worked out one first round prospect for 2 weeks during their pre-draft prospect workouts.  Who was that player?  The same player ever single mock draft on this planet has had the Pacers slated at selecting for months, D.J. Augustin.  Why would the Blazers do this, to build up Augustin's value to the team they're hoping to get a veteran PG from, the Pacers.  Just look at this article written up in The Oregonian, Augustin gives the Blazers another talking point, about how much the Blazers coaching staff and management "love" Augustin.  In first reading the article I thought geez there is a legit possibility the Blazers might trade with us so they can take Augustin, but what on earth would they ever offer the Pacers that would entice them to do so?  The only thing I can think of is Martell Webster, their 6th overall pick of the 2005 Draft, but honestly I don't see them trading their highly touted 21 year old SF to Indiana to trade up for D.J., nor do I see the Pacers interested in another SF, that leaves me with the conclusion that they're doing everything possible to entice the Pacers into selecting Augustin, ultimately setting Portland up to trading their 1st (13th overall) round pick for Tinsley just moments later.

Blazers GM said this in reference to Augustin, "I think this kid is born to be a point guard," Pritchard said.

2. The Blazers have stated numerous times that they want to trade out of the first round and have no interest in getting a so so young player with the 13th pick with the abundance of young talented players they already have on their team (Roy, Aldridge, Webster, Oden, etc.)

http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/john_canzano/index.ssf?/base/sports/1210906542273010.xml&coll=7

Blazers beat writer said this in reference to the draft, "Portland needs to trade its 2008 draft pick... It's in General Manager Kevin Pritchard's nature to be active. This is a guy who tied the NBA record for trades in a single day (six) during his first few months on the job. And so now he's charged with getting rid of what will probably be a marginal pick in the first round." said the Oregonians Canzano.

3. The Blazers can afford Tinsley and by the time his contract is up the Trail Blazers will be reading the sign all of their young talent to long term deals.  In recently waiving the constantly injured Darius Miles, severing ties with the over paid swingman has given Portland some cap space.  In doing so taking on Tinsley's contract wouldn't be a big deal at all for a team who has had some of the best drafts in the NBA the past 3-4 seasons, not to mention some of the best luck. With their experience they had with Miles, Tinsley health issues are small potatoes, especially since he always returned to the Pacers lineup at seasons end. In the end the Blazer's luck and good drafts have given them to luxury to take a chance on Tinsley, it is the type of risk that wins championships.

http://www.nba.com/blazers/news/Trail_Blazers_request_waivers_-267482-1218.html

4. Adding Tinsley will give Portland a veteran presence who can distribute the basketball to all of their young players.  Last year when Tinsley was healthy for a good portion of the first third of the regular season, he was averaging over 8 assists per game.  There is no way Blake or Jack will be able to amount to that type of pass first production and with Oden healthy, Roy coming off two amazing seasons, and Aldridge and Webster looking for breakout seasons, a court general and distributor is exactly what their team lacks and is precisely what Portland is looking at add. Keeping in mind Tinsley played a much smaller amount of games, but in the 2007 season the Blazer's current starting PG Steve Blake averaged 8.5 points, 5 assists, and 2 rebounds a game in comparison to Jamaal Tinsley's 12 points, 8.5 assists, and 4 rebounds.

5. On the chance that Tinsley gets injured again the Blazers won't be losing out on their entire season.  In having Blake and Jarrett Jack the Blazers have two legitimate top notch backups, some might call them starters but most would disagree.  With that, on the chance Tinsley stays healthy, the Blazers could be one of the best teams in the NBA.

6. Once the Blazers have Tinsley, they can look to draft a PG in the future that they can groom to grow under Tinsley for 2 years, and when Tinsleys contract is up and they're in the process of signing all of their talent long term, their PG they have been grooming should be ready to step in and the team will sever all ties with Tinsley at that point, but until then they would love to have him! Drafting a top 15 PG is just not in their best interest because it would be extremely difficult to keep all those highly drafted prospects when their rookie contracts start coming to an end, so taking one next year or the year after would be a far smarter move for the team.

7. Portland is ready to win NOW, unless you have a situation like Boston's with three perennial All-Stars you can't put all your marbles in on a young PG leading your team, especially a rookie PG. Rondo was going into his second year, so you can't compare his situation to Augustin possibly leading Portland, especially knowing Portland is already built on young talent, they need veterans somewhere, ding ding ding, Jamal Tinsley, because as I said they also need a point guard, since they have Blake and Jack, what they really need is a veteran point guard, and I am pretty sure the 13th pick isn't getting they Chauncey Billups.

Yahoo! Sports, Portland TrailBlazer's Team Needs:

Needs: Point guard, point guard, point guard. Jarrett Jack, Steve Blake, and Sergio Rodriguez are all serviceable, but they are easily the weakest link in what will become the NBA’s youngest and most talented roster once LaFrentz rocks off next summer. Otherwise, the team is stocked, talented, and under 28 at center, both forward spots, and shooting guard.

ESPN.com Chad Ford, Draft Notes: Which teams might deal their pick?

(Who was up at the top of the list? You guessed it, Portland!)

Portland Trail Blazers: From what I can gather, using the No. 13 pick is a last resort for the Blazers. They have plenty of young players and actually will look to package their first-round pick and a few of their young players to get a veteran point guard or small forward. They too could be in the hunt for Ford or Hinrich.

They have a lot of other assets they could include in a trade, including Jarrett Jack, Martell Webster, Travis Outlaw, Channing Frye and Sergio Rodriguez.

The flip side for Portland? If they keep all of their young players for another year, they could have significant cap room next summer. In other words, it will have to be a good deal for the Blazers to pull the trigger.

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Who will the Pacers take with the 13th overall pick, after selecting Augustin with the 11th?

Simple, two words, "Big man", "Post presence", and an "Upside player"! I'm praying for Anthony Randolph, but don't be surprised if they take Kosta Koufos, DeAndre Jordan, or even Brandon Rush, I just pray Roy Hibbert isn't on their minds.

(Possible tweaks to the trade, the Pacers could throw in their 2nd round pick, the 41st overall selection of the 2008 Draft, or even their 2nd round selection of 2007 Stanko Barac who is currently playing in the Euroleague)