Last season, the Portland Trailblazers have 44-38 record to finish fifth in the Western Conference. They surprisingly beat the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Although they were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in five games, expectations are high for the Blazers this season.
At 9-10 win-loss record in the 2016-2017 NBA regular season, the Blazers are at ninth place in the West and 0.5 game behind Los Angeles Lakers. They lost three of their last four games. Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum are still having a great season.
Damian Lillard is averaging 28.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5.3 assists on 46.3 percent shooting from the field and 36.6 percent from the three-point line. He is now at sixth in scoring in the NBA. C.J. McCollum is also having an outstanding season as he averages 22.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals in 34.6 minutes.
But as good as Lillard and McCollum are this season, it is clear that their team are struggling. According to YIBADA, the Blazers could pursue Milwaukee Bucks' big man Greg Monroe. In exchange, the Blazers could send Evan Turner to the Bucks.
The Blazers are good in the guard position. What they need is a low post guy that could dominate the paint, control the rebounds and protect the rim. The Blazers have big men in Mason Plumlee, Meyers Leonard and Festus Ezeli. But Ezeli is injured and both Plumlee and Leonard are having subpar season.
This season, Monroe is averaging 8.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists. He has a career average of 14.3 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists, as per ESPN. He numbers did go down because he was playing lesser minutes with the Bucks.
If he will play for the Blazers, his minutes will eventually go up because the team needs some scoring from the inside. Monroe can go back to being the scorer that he was before this season. He is also a good rebounder and defender who could intimidate opposing players in the paint. Playing along Lillard and McCollum, he can be open a lot of times under the rim for a lay-up or a dunk.
Will the Blazers get Greg Monroe? Stay tuned for more NBA trade rumors and updates.
