NBA Trade Rumors: 7 Trades even more likely to happen after draft lottery results

The Portland Trail Blazers could move up

The Portland Trail Blazers fell outside the top 4 and will now be selecting No. 7 and 14 (via Golden State) overall. For a team that was hoping to move up and not down, it was hard to find many positives for the Blazers after the draft lottery. The Blazers are nearly a year removed from pivoting toward a rebuild and it will only get more difficult to find franchise cornerstones without another top pick in this year's NBA Draft.

But, if the Blazers truly wanted to, there could be a path toward moving up into the top 3-5 range. If Portland was willing, they could package one of their veteran or young pieces along with the No. 7 and/or 14 pick to move into the top 3. How smart of a move that would be; who knows? Especially as many continue to label this draft as weak. However, if there's a player the Blazers truly want to target in the top 3, then perhaps this is something Portland should think long and hard about.

With what transpired during the NBA Draft Lottery, I firmly believe there's a much greater chance that the Blazers could move up in this year's NBA Draft. How that will ultimately look like, it's anyone's guess. But they certainly have the firepower to do so.