2 Strong Trade Candidates Emerge in Trail Blazers Backcourt

The Portland Trail Blazers backcourt is like rush hour. Very crowded, and everyone is waiting for someone else to move. With Ja Morant joining Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe (though the latter is out until after the All-Star Break), the NBA rumor mill is rife with Portland guard trade candidates.

Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report suggested the Blazers could look to "rehabilitate and flip" Morant, while Heavy's Sean Deveney opines that Holiday is the most sought-after trade piece. 

Let's start with Ja, as that's the most intriguing bit here. The controversial point guard's injury- and suspension-riddled run in Memphis finally came to an end after a season in which he only suited up for 20 games. 50 the year before that, and only 9 games in 2023-24. 

Fischer suggests that not only are there too many bodies back there in the Portland backcourt, but the overall roster is a "clunky fit". He says executives around the league are monitoring the whole thing with an eye on what happens with Morant.

There is a play where Portland just kind of rehabs Ja Morant's trade value and new situation, tries to offload him. I'm not saying that's definitely what the plan is, but you could see that happening based on all the bodies in this backcourt and the kind of weird, clunky fit of all these pieces. Again, the fact that Deni Avdija has shown his best play comes with the ball in his hands as well. So it's an interesting, clunky fit of pieces I think everyone around the league is going to be very, very curious to see how it all comes together.

As for Holiday, this isn't the first time he's been rumored to be a trade candidate. From the moment he got to Portland (for the second time) in a salary dump trade by the Boston Celtics in 2025, it was thought that the Blazers would flip him. And it was a good one, in the 53 games he played, averaging 16.3 points and 6.1 assists, both his best marks in three years. But his defensive acumen, while not quite at its peak anymore (he is 36), is still Holiday's calling card... And that will have other GMs around the NBA calling. 

"Though there are no plans to move him just yet, he would fetch the best return," Deveney writes. "If Morant and Lillard hold up, health-wise, Holiday could be a top NBA trade rumor piece this winter, especially for contenders looking for an experienced piece to put them over the top. Holiday has championships with the Bucks and Celtics, and is considered one of the best teammates in the league."

The Blazers will be a team to keep an eye on as this season progresses.