Blazer’s Edge Fake Trade Competition: Gordon Takes the Cake

The NBA Trade Deadline is a week away, but the results from the Blazer’s Edge Fake Trade Competition are in. After sorting through an overwhelming amount of interesting proposals, I narrowed it down to one submission.

Before we get to the results of the competition, I want to thank everyone who participated. Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by the thoughtful explanations and trade ideas.

Winner: Three-Team Deal for Aaron Gordon

More often than not, NBA trades involve sacrifices from multiple parties. The winning submission did just that. Michael Walker submitted a fake trade that would land the Blazers Aaron Gordon from the Magic and Alex Len from the Hawks.

Here is the outline of the deal:

Blazers Land: Aaron Gordon (Magic), Alex Len (Hawks)

Magic Land: Evan Turner (Hawks), Nassir Little (Blazers), 2020 protected first-round pick (Blazers)

Hawks Land: Hassan Whiteside (Blazers), Gary Trent Jr. (Blazers), 2022 second-round pick (Blazers)

Do the Blazers sacrifice serious assets in this deal? Yes. The departure of young talent aside, Portland would add a starting-caliber forward in Gordon while simultaneously cutting a decent chunk of salary. Outside of Gordon, Len would provide a short-term option to occupy minutes as Jusuf Nurkic works back into the rotation.

For me, the 2022 second-round pick might be the toughest asset to part with. If the long-anticipated “double draft” does unfold that offseason, that pick has the potential to have significant value. It should be noted that this trade was submitted prior to Trent’s noteworthy play over the last week.

Covington, Covington and more Covington

There were a handful of trends that surfaced throughout the submissions:

• Blazers fans view the Thunder, who are firmly in the playoff picture, as a team needing to tear it down. I disagree based on their current record, the presence of 21-year-old Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a war chest of future assets. Could they sell a few of their expiring contracts? Sure. Pure speculation, but I don’t get the feeling that OKC’s roster is poised to be stripped down to the frame.
• Everyone wants Robert Covington. I’ve heard you and I plan to have something posted directly tied to the Timberwolves prior to the deadline.
• I was shocked to see a complete lack of Kevin Love trades. Nicely done.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to submit a trade proposal. It was tough to narrow it down to just one.