FanPost

Taj Gibson signed elsewhere.... Who can Portland still add to bolster front-court depth?


As of right now, the Portland Trailblazers seem a little too thin in the front-court for the upcoming 2022-2023 NBA Season. Portland resigned starting center Jusuf Nurkic, and gave a real contract to young Oregon-native and hustle machine Drew Eubanks as backup center. At the power forward, Portland has combo-forwards Jerami Grant, with young bucks Trendon Watford and Greg Brown III for depth. And, that is it.

This unit is both not terribly big from a size perspective, and, aside from the starters, not terribly experienced. So this is still the most pressing area to fill. Hoping for Portland to target and land at least one more PF/C-type veteran player has been on my wishlist from the jump of this offseason. And, after reading the news yesterday that a quality veteran post player like Taj Gibson signed for league minimum AND not with a playoff contender... it really cut like a knife.

What is Portland doing to shore up this clear lacking on their depth chart? Personally I know I am one of the most optimistic fans around my circles and that I believe in year over year improvement from within (especially when it comes to young players the Blazers have drafted) to believe that a younger player who might not have been a big impact the first year or two or three on this team will be clear rotation players, that eventually they turn the corner and become that "Upside" that came with their signing.

Take Anfernee Simons. When he was a rookie people around BlazersEdge were arguing that in 2-3 years Ant could replace CJ McCollum in the lineup and thus be able to trade CJ for something great. Most of that happened... just the deal wasn't too too great. Who knows, maybe this year we see Nassir Little emerge as the exact wing prospect this franchise has been hoping for... Like a Nic Batum Plus... and that would be an incredible shift in this roster. The Trailblazers seem to be loaded at Guard, stockpiled at Wing, and lean on Post.

More than just one veteran player, I would like Portland to use both their final roster spot AND their 2nd Two-Way Contract to bolster the post depth.

Veteran options are not always the most exciting, but often neccessary. And, as the title of this opinion stated, 6'9" Taj Gibson had previously been on the top of my list until he signed for the minimum with Washington Wizards. Cronin and Co. definitely playing too much wait and see as now this target pool is very thin: Markieff Morris (Mia), DeMarcus Cousins, LaMarcus Aldridge (BRK), Montrell Harrell, Tristan Thompson, Eric Paschall (Den). This list seriously isn't that exciting. Link will take you the most updated HoopsHype list of free agents still available. On this list, LaMarcus Aldridge actually makes the most sense is many ways.

An Aldridge Reunion?

How would you feel about a return to Portland for Aldridge?

How would you personally feel about LaMarcus Aldridge joining this team with a vet min 1-2 year contract? Sure, his upside is 15-20minutes per game, and he left Portland in a way where the Blazers lost talent and were not compensated... but, could there be magic? Or, at least could Aldridge provide enough depth to keep Portland winning in the regular season and in the playoffs?

As for the two-way contract; I think Portland should hurry to sign last years NBA G-League's rebound leader, French 6'11" Petr Cornelie as he is someone you is talented, available, and could step in immediately. I found Cornelie by looking at G-League stats, but watching some highlights of this guy you see that he is a stretch big who has a great 3-point shot and dominates the boards by hustle and length.

Big upside for Petr Cornelie

6'11" Cornelie is a 27 year old Frenchman who can ball