“We should be at the bottom and Dame Lillard will be traded this season by the Blazers” – NBA analyst predicts Portland to pursue for Victor Wembanyama, explains the approach to land him into the team
Victor Wembanyama isn't even in the NBA yet, and he's already taken the league by storm. The 18-year old French prospect recently put on a spectacular performance against the G League Ignite in Las Vegas.
Standing at 7-foot-4, Wembanyama has a diverse and unique skillset. His quickness, ability to handle the ball and ability to shoot from distance is rare for a player of his size.
It's all but guaranteed that Victor Wembanyama will be selected first overall in the 2023 NBA Draft. The question, of course, is which team will win the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes. The way ESPN's David Jacoby sees things, the Portland Trail Blazers could shock everybody.
On a recent episode of Jalen & Jacoby the longtime analyst spoke about the situation in Portland. In his eyes, the Trail Blazers should trade longtime star Damian Lillard. It will drastically improve their chances at getting Victor Wembanyama in the upcoming draft.
"The new front office is going to say, you know what? I like Victor Wembanyama and I like Scoot. We shouldn't be trying to get in the play-in. We should be at the bottom. Dame Lillard will be traded this season by the Blazers to another team because they're on the clock for the draft spot."
Last season, the team traded away CJ McCollum to acquire the seventh overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. They used that pick to select Kentucky Wildcats guard Shaedon Sharpe. Although Sharpe has shown flashes of brilliance, he's still a work in progress. He might never be a player worth building around.
The Portland Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard, & Victor Wembanyama
Despite trade rumors that surfaced this summer, the Trail Blazers have remained adamant that Lillard isn't on the trading block. Lillard has continued to express his desire to stay in Portland and bring a championship to the state of Oregon.
The Blazers have two options this season. The first is winning the 'Tank Bowl' and securing the number one pick through the draft lottery. The second is to use Lillard as trade bait to secure a top 3 protected pick.
While both options present unique challenges and pitfalls, analysts continue to point out that players over seven feet tall are prone to injury. This offseason, number two overall pick Chet Holmgren suffered a season-ending injury during a pro-am scrimmage.
Whether the Blazers are willing to risk moving on from an elite scorer like Lillard for a shot at drafting Wembanyama remains to be seen. Teams like the Utah Jazz and the San Antonio Spurs have done everything in their power to secure that pick. The Blazers will have to rely on a lot of luck to win the Wembanyama sweepstakes.
The Blazers open their season against the Sacramento Kings on October 19.