The Portland Trail Blazers have a forward problem, and the Dallas Mavericks look like the cleanest place to start looking for a fix.
Portland needs more help on the wing and in the frontcourt, but the free-agent pool is thinning out fast. That pushes GM Joe Cronin toward the trade market, where Dallas stands out as a natural partner.
The Mavericks have a crowded group of forwards, including Naji Marshall and P.J. Washington, and after bringing in Santi Aldama from the Memphis Grizzlies, those two could be viewed as more movable pieces.
The fit is there on both sides. Portland is crowded in the backcourt after its trade for Ja Morant, and while the Blazers plan to keep Jrue Holiday, something in that group eventually has to give. Dallas, meanwhile, is rebuilding around Cooper Flagg and could take a swing on one of Portland’s young guards, Scoot Henderson or Shaedon Sharpe.
There’s also a familiar face in the mix. Former Blazers assistant GM Mike Schmitz is now running the Mavericks, which gives the two front offices an existing relationship and a layer of trust.
Marshall makes sense as a target because of the contract. He’s on an expiring $9.4 million deal, which would be manageable for Portland and useful for Dallas if it wants to turn him into younger assets before he reaches free agency.
Washington is the bigger swing. He’s under contract through 2029-30, and his deal is still a reasonable $24.6 million at that point.
Cronin has a track record of going after players with multiple years left on their contracts, so Washington fits that pattern.
Portland could try to come away with both forwards, and that would help solve a roster that is still tilted too heavily toward point guards and centers. But even a single-piece deal could work, and a one-for-one swap involving Shaedon Sharpe and Washington is financially viable.
P.J. Washington for Shaedon Sharpe - who says no?
Sharpe was extended to a four-year, $90 million deal before last season, so the Blazers clearly committed to him on paper. But the last few years have not always looked like a clean runway. In 2024-25, Chauncey Billups benched Sharpe in the middle of the season, pointing to his defense, and that move helped spark Portland’s late push to a top-ten defense after the new year.
This season brought the best statistical production of Sharpe’s career, but a calf injury slowed him down late. By the time the playoff series against the Spurs arrived, he was mostly out of Tiago Splitter’s rotation, playing 13.4 minutes per game over that five-game stretch. At his exit interview, Sharpe said he was fully physically healthy and did not explain Splitter’s decision.
Maybe Micah Nori would see it differently, but Portland has now gone through two straight head coaches without making Sharpe a priority. That has been part of the story of his time with the Blazers, and it has also shown up in the way Cronin has built the roster.
If Portland is committed to keeping Morant, Lillard, and Holiday together, the picture for Henderson and Sharpe gets murkier. Of the two, Sharpe could actually be the more likely odd man out, since Henderson’s developing 3-and-D game makes him a cleaner fit off the ball.
A Sharpe-for-Washington deal would make more sense for the roster, even if it carries risk. Washington is the better player right now, but he profiles as an elite role player with a high floor and a limited ceiling. Sharpe is the opposite kind of bet: bigger upside, more volatility, and still only 23 years old.
The exact structure does not have to be the same. The larger point is that Portland and Dallas line up well as trade partners, both because of their roster crunches and because their timelines make sense together. Cronin should be calling his friend in Dallas.
In Other News...
Oregon Just Landed A Needed Boost After Its Rough Offseason
Oregons baseball offseason has been defined by departures, with key pieces leaving for SEC programs and a coaching staff shakeup adding to the turnover. Even so, the Ducks have kept working the transfer portal to patch holes and stabilize a roster that needed some late help before the next season takes shape.
The latest addition is catcher Cole Chamberlain, who arrives after stops at Texas and Coastal Carolina and brings a little more experience behind the plate to Eugene. Chamberlains path has been a winding one, and Oregon is hoping his arrival is part of a broader reset after a rough stretch that tested both the lineup and the staffs ability to hold the group together. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Top Recruits Since 2020 Tell A Complicated Story
Since 2020, Oregons recruiting board has produced a little of everything, from instant-impact talent to prospects whose college paths have taken far more winding turns than the Ducks probably envisioned. Dakorien Moore flashed promise even while dealing with a knee injury, Josh Conerly Jr. became part of an undefeated regular season before hearing his name called in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and Kingsley Suamataias journey carried him from Eugene to BYU and eventually into the NFL.
The rest of the list is a reminder that blue-chip rankings only tell part of the story. Elijah Rushing has barely gotten on the field, Jurrion Dickeys time in the program ended abruptly, and Justin Flowe has kept moving from stop to stop as his college career stretches into another season. For Oregon, the bigger question is not whether the Ducks can land elite talent, but which of those recruits will actually leave the kind of footprint Conerly did. [Read more 🡒]
Boston May Finally Be Ready To Unleash Payton Pritchard
Bostons backcourt picture changed fast when the Celtics sent Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia for Paul George and a bundle of draft picks, and the ripple effects could reach a former Oregon star. Payton Pritchard has long been the kind of guard who can handle more than the box score suggests, but the opportunity in front of him now looks different with a major usage vacuum opened up.
NBA reporter Tom Haberstroh says the Celtics believe Pritchard can become their in-house version of Jalen Brunson, a player who flourished once he was no longer playing in the shadow of a dominant teammate. For Boston, that means a much larger role and a real chance for Pritchard to grow into something more than a useful piece, even if the full shape of that leap is still to be determined. [Read more 🡒]