Blazers shed salary by trading Noah Vonleh to Bulls

By trading Noah Vonleh to the Bulls, the Blazers have gotten themselves under the luxury tax and saved themselves some money.

Noah Vonleh is gone, and Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has to be wondering what is going on in the team’s front office. According to NBA God Adrian Wojnarowski, the Blazers are sending Vonleh to the rebuilding Chicago Bulls in exchange for the rights to Milocan Rakovic. If you haven’t heard of that player, you’re part of the crowd, young basketball grasshopper.

The trade the Blazers made wasn’t about Rakovic. No, it was about salary, and their roster is too rich for the performance that the Blazers have put on so far this season. In addition to shipping out Vonleh, the Blazers got the real gift of getting out from under the luxury tax, and also got a $3.5 million trade exception, per Wojnarowski.

This also confirmed to everyone who has long suspected this that the Blazers, as currently constructed, aren’t elite and they can’t spend to keep a roster that’s not a championship contender. This might not be sitting too well with Lillard, who is growing increasingly frustrated about the Blazers’ future.

Lillard is currently in his prime, and no player of his stature wants to play their best basketball on a team that has no real shot of competing for a championship, and Portland, as of right now, fits that bill. Lillard met with the Blazers owner a few weeks ago to talk about the direction of the team. Seeing them shed salary and not complete any other moves at the deadline has to be frustrating.

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The Blazers have no real direction. Sure, they have one of the most dynamic backcourts in the NBA, but that isn’t translating into championship basketball.

That’s the real elephant in the room.