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COVID-19 has ravaged the NBA, and it has caught up to the Portland Trail Blazers.
After five players entered health & safety protocols (Keljin Blevins, Robert Covington, Ben McLemore, Dennis Smith Jr., Trendon Watford), the team has announced the signings of three players on 10-day hardship exception deals.
Jarron Cumberland, Cameron McGriff and Brandon Williams have all signed 10-day contracts with the team, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Portland Trail Blazers plan to sign guard Jarron Cumberland to a 10-day hardship deal, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Cumberland has played for NBA G League's Delaware Blue Coats.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 25, 2021
The Portland Trail Blazers plan to sign forward Cameron McGriff of NBA G League’s Greensboro Swarm on a 10-day hardship deal, agent Keith Kreiter of Edge Sports tells @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 25, 2021
Portland is signing guard Brandon Williams to a 10-day hardship deal out of G League's Westchester Knicks, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. With five players in protocols, Trail Blazers adding two guards (Williams, Cumberland) and a forward (Cameron McGriff).
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 25, 2021
Cumberland was a standout in college at Cincinnati and has spent the last two seasons in the G-League. In 13 games with the Delaware Blue Coats this season, Cumberland has averaged 9.4 points per game with 3.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists.
During this week’s G-League Showcase, Cumberland posted a triple-double against the South Bay Lakers.
McGriff played four years at Oklahoma State before joining the G-League in 2020. In 14 games with the Greensboro Swarm this year, McGriff is averaging 10.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
Just a few weeks ago, McGriff posted 26 points against the Mexico City Capitanes.
Williams played one season at Arizona before redshirting in 2019-20 due to a congenital knee condition. This year, in his return after two years on the sidelines, he has played well in 10 games with the Westchester Knicks. He’s averaging 17.7 points per game to go with 4.7 assists.
Earlier this week, Williams scored a new career-high 29 points against Mexico City in Las Vegas.
There’s no telling how much these players will play or if they will even see the court, but it’s always exciting to see some fresh faces in the mix despite the unfortunate circumstances.
With five players in protocols, the Blazers are allowed to sign four players to hardship contracts, meaning there will be more transactions.
Blazer’s Edge will continue to update this developing story.
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