NBA Rumors: 5 free agency destinations for Luol Deng
By John Buhler
This scenario is a bit out of left field, but Deng signing with the Portland Trail Blazers might give him a good shot at playing on a contending team the next few years. What Portland has in their dynamic backcourt duo of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum is truly special.
Portland has a great head coach in Terry Stotts and a terrific general manager in Neil Olshey. The fact that Portland is vying for possibly a fourth or fifth seed in the Western Conference a year after losing LaMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, and Robin Lopez is shocking to say the least.
The Trail Blazers aren’t rebuilding, but have reloaded in 2015-16. Where Deng might be able to help Portland is out on the wing in terms of wing depth. He may not start for the Blazers, but could provide great value to the up-and-coming young corps of the Blazers with his veteran leadership and all-around good game.
The chemistry existing with the Trail Blazers in 2015-16 is undeniably great at this point and that bodes well for Portland entering 2016 NBA free agency. The Blazers may not play in a huge NBA market, but what they are doing on the hardwood in the Pacific Northwest this year has the league’s attention. Deng would fit in well with that young corps as a veteran leader should he sign with the Trail Blazers.
Next: 2. Los Angeles Clippers