NBA Trade Idea: Blazers’ Anfernee Simons to Nets?

ThePortland Trail Blazersare seen as a big player in the trade market this summer as Damian Lillard looks to be dealt to the Miami Heat.

However, the backcourt is still crowded as Anfernee Simons projects to play alongside 2022 No. 7 overall pick Shaedon Sharpe and 2023 No. 3 overall pick Scoot Henderson.

Simons, 24, is entering the second season of his four-year, $100 million contract and could be a strong fit for many rosters.

Bleacher Reportbelieves he could be a good fit for theBrooklyn Netsfor an expiring contract in Spencer Dinwiddie and a 2027 first-round pick.

Dinwiddie is also a lead guard, but his contract expires after this season. Maybe the Blazers would be more amenable to rostering Herro if the logjam only lasted a year.

Even Dinwiddie might fetch a protected first-rounder at the 2024 deadline. If the Blazers are truly starting fresh, positional gluts shouldn’t matter. They need to be in asset-accumulation mode.

Dinwiddie, 30, becomes a free agent in 2024 and acts as more of a “mentor” to Henderson and Sharpe than Simons can. But Dinwiddie can be more than just a veteran to lean on.

In 79 games this past season with theDallas Mavericksand Nets, Dinwiddie averaged 17.3 points, his best mark since the 2019-20 campaign. He was traded midseason as part of the Kyrie Irving deal and was able to shoulder the load and keep the Nets afloat for a playoff run.

It seems that Dinwiddie is a positive influence in most places he goes, and that pattern could possibly continue if he joined the Blazers.