Veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon seemingly is hoping he’s found a long-term home with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Per Marc Stein of The Stein Line, Brogdon would prefer to remain with Portland and sign an extension. This is one of several reports indicating as much, as Brogdon is a reported trade candidate heading into Thursday’s deadline.
But again, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year is aiming to stay put. And you can’t blame him. He has spent time with the Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers and Boston Celtics, before being acquired by the Blazers before the season.
In other words, for being such a reliable, team-first guy, he sure has moved around a lot.
“There have been some recent rumblings that Brogdon, with one season left on his current contract after this one at $22.5 million, has been hopeful that the Blazers would entertain contract extension talks,” Stein wrote. “Portland’s willingness to go that far is rather hard to picture given the understandable focus on its array of young guards — most notably Anfernee Simons and rookie Scoot Henderson — but the prospect of a longer stay than anticipated in the Pacific Northwest for the 31-year-old has gained credence.”
Brogdon is averaging 15.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.5 assists, shooting 44 percent from the field and 41 percent on 3-pointers. He’s making $22.5 million this season and is due to make the same amount next year before entering free agency.
He told Jason Quick of The Athletic that he hoped to remain in Portland.
“I’m happy here. I’m valued here. Valued in this leadership/lead-guard role,’’ Brogdon said. “And I can’t complain with that. I’m happy in Portland. … When I was first traded, I viewed it as an opportunity. I really did. You can ask people around me how my energy was in training camp. I was excited to be here. I was excited to be with a championship coach. And I was excited to go from a place where I wasn’t as valued, and go to a place where I am very valued.’’
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