When almost every NBA contract is finalized, there are people who support and question it. The NBA does have a lot of garbage contracts, but it is not bad to make a contract renewal decision as soon as possible. Take Portland Trail Blazers as an example. They need to give 28-year-old forward player Jerami Grant a contract renewal contract as soon as possible.
In this offseason, the Portland Trail Blazers used the $20 million trade special case obtained by trading C.J.Micholum to New Orleans Pelicans , a 2025 first-round draft pick (from the Bucks, protected with the top four picks), a 2025 second-round draft pick (it was originally from the Pistons, and they were given back), and a 2026 second-round pick (the one with the higher picks of the two second-round picks of Trail Blazers and the Pelicans) to the Detroit Pistons, in exchange for forward Grant . The deal was reportedly made at the strong demands of Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard, who has established a close ties with the man while following the team in the 2021 Olympics.
But since Grant is carrying an expiring contract and will become a non-restricted free agent after the end of this season, the Trail Blazers have to make plans sooner now. Judging from Grant's current playing style, his price is not cheap. The editor thinks his average annual salary is close to $30 million, especially if he can be selected for the All-Star in a few months, his average annual salary will definitely exceed $30 million.
Due to NBA rules restrictions, the Trail Blazers will not be able to offer Grant until January next year. Grant may not be in a hurry to accept it, but chooses to wait until the All-Star list in February is confirmed to see if he can be selected before negotiating the price with the Trail Blazers. In this way, his market price can rise a little further.
Many people are worried that Grant will not be able to copy the statistics from the Detroit Pistons' period to the Trail Blazers with superstars like Lillard , which does make some sense. Before playing for the Pistons, Grant only played for Denver Nuggets for one season, and before that, he also played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, but Thunder was defeated by the Trail Blazers in the first round of playoffs in 2019, and the lineup was all disbanded.
During the Nuggets , Grant's rotation position in the team was not high. At that time, he was just a substitute for Paul Millsap , and his playing time was less than Nikola Jokic , Will Barton and Jamal Murray . His tactical status in the team was not important, so even though the Nuggets and Pistons provided almost the same amount in the offseason that year, he still chose to leave Nuggets and head to Pistons , which has greater room for play. Since joining the Trail Blazers, only Lillard is not present. Grant's role is the team's first choice, and the responsibility exceeds the Pistons. Even if Lillard is present, his role will not drop much.
Of course, no one has doubted his defensive ability. The former Syracuse University star is 2.03 meters tall and has an arm span of nearly 2.21 meters. Although he cannot defend a big center like Jokic, Joel Embiid or DeAndre Ayton for a long time, his height, strength and agility are still enough to defend any position on the court. Questions about Grant always revolve around his ability to play with the ball and his rebounding percentage below the league average relative to size and position (only about 4 rebounds per game).
Although Grant's offensive ability is indeed not comprehensive enough, it is definitely not bad. In 21 games this season, Grant's usage rate is as high as 23.9%, which is basically consistent with his time with the Pistons. At the same time, Grant can score points at the basket, mid-range and outside the three-point line. The two-point shooting and three-point shooting accounted for 60% and 40% of the two-point shootings this season, with the three-point shooting percentage being particularly high, reaching 48%. At the same time, Grant also performed well in the middle distance, shooting close to 40% in the area above 10 feet from the basket and shooting 65% in the area within 3 feet from the basket.
Trail Blazers have three players who are above 1.98 meters tall who can hold the ball, namely Justice Winslow , Trenton Watford and Grant, but unfortunately, the top two players have obvious shortcomings in offense, which makes them vulnerable to targeted defense. But Grant has no real shortcomings. Many people call him the most talented power forward of the Trail Blazers after Lamarcus Aldridge .
The editor also agrees with this view. After all, Alfarooke Aminu, Moy Harlins, Carmelo Anthony, Robert Covington , Anthony Toliver and Zach Collins, power forwards who once played for the Trail Blazers, all have outstanding skills, but these skills are in one or two aspects and are not really closely related to Lillard. By contrast, Grant offers almost all power forward skills, many of which are also at the league's elite level, and he can play a role in almost any lineup. While Grant spent more than 80% of his career playing power forward, the future All-Star player is very effective in the small ball roster, and his speed and agility can also allow him to play small forward when needed at a critical moment.
Given the importance of Grant to the Trail Blazers, they will definitely be willing to renew the power forward. The only question now is what price the two sides have reached to reach a cooperative relationship. The editor speculates that Grant's psychological price should be a four-year contract with an average annual salary of about US$27 million to US$29 million. The Trail Blazers have already had 10 players carrying guaranteed contracts in the 2023-24 season, with a total salary of more than $115 million, which does not include the last year player options in Grant, Winslow and Josh Hart contracts, and they are likely to choose to jump out of the contract.
and the Trail Blazers will also face fierce competition in the free agent market. Most of the teams competing for Grant are teams that are not built, including San Antonio Spurs , Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic , Indiana Pacers , Charlotte Hornets and Oklahoma City Thunder. In addition, Utah Jazz , Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Lakers will also be interested in Grant, but it is not clear whether these three teams have enough ability to meet Grant's asking price.
The editor believes that the Trail Blazers will choose to trade Hart before the trading deadline on February 9, so as to avoid losing him in the free agent market. Winslow is likely to receive a new contract with an annual salary of less than $10 million from the Trail Blazers, and coupled with Grant's expected new contract, the Trail Blazers will add about $37 million in additional expenses under the premise of a guaranteed contract salary expenditure of $115 million, not to mention that the Hart trade will also bring other players to the Trail Blazers in return. Therefore, although the Trail Blazers may evade the penalty of luxury tax this season, the editor is basically sure that they will return to the ranks of luxury tax payments in the 2023-24 season.
But the Trail Blazers are still a strange team after completing these operations. Among the 10 players with a guarantee contract next season, only Damian Lillard and Gary Payton Jr. will be 30 years old at the beginning of the 2023-24 season, and center Yusuf Nurkic 29 years old. Next, it will be the turn of Anfini Simmons , who turned 24 in June this year and Nasir Little , who turned 23 in February. The remaining players are first and second grade players who are carrying rookie-level contracts. Such a lineup is indeed too immature for the championship, and no wonder some people suspect that the Trail Blazers have begun the process of reconstruction.
However, the editor thinks it may not be as serious as everyone thinks. After all, Lillard will continue to stay in the Trail Blazers this year in the future, which means that the Trail Blazers still need to build a competitive lineup around him.But if Lillard changes his mind and submits a deal application to the Trail Blazers, then Grant’s position on the roster is debatable, but even so, if he still maintains his current level, he is a very valuable player even if he signs a contract renewal with an annual salary of nearly $30 million, and it is not difficult to trade him.
If the Trail Blazers cannot renew Grant's contract in the middle of the season, then he will become a free agent. Although there are not many competitive teams with cap space next season, it is by no means a good decision to enter the free agent market. The Trail Blazers waited for seven years before they could partner with a player with good offensive ability and not low height; the Trail Blazers waited for seven years before they found a forward who could play a role in both offense and defense; the Trail Blazers waited for seven years before they found someone who could be selected as the All-Star and was still over 1.93 meters tall. If the Trail Blazers are ready to pay luxury taxes next season, they need to give Grant a four-year contract renewal worth no more than $120 million as soon as possible. Do you think the price is reasonable? #Telebrity Creation Challenge#
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