Portland Trail Blazers
The trade: Jusuf Nurkic, Anfernee Simons, Rodney Hood and POR 2020 and 2022 first-round picks for Rudy Gobert.
This trade assumes former Jazz guard Rodney Hood opts into the next year of his deal, which seems likely, given his ruptured Achilles. Jusuf Nurkic was nearly Gobert’s equal before his bad leg injury, and his contract is puny compared to Gobert’s, so- unless he regresses to a bench player – it shouldn’t completely cripple a team’s flexibility.
Anfernee Simons is a nice second or third guard on any team, and Hood should be expected to return by the end of the calendar year.
From the Portland Trail Blazers’ point of view, if they bring back Carmelo Anthony, and unless Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum improve their defense as they enter their 30s, the only way to keep the team’s defense respectable is with an elite center. And Rudy Gobert is one of, if not the, best center in the NBA right now.