Blazers' Joe Cronin Should Be Facing Do-or-Die Season in Portland

Portland Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin signed a contract extension in early April, committing himself to the franchise for a renewed multi-year term.

Despite not leading the team to a playoff birth, the Blazers organization felt comfortable giving Cronin more time to see his basketball vision develop.

Cronin took over the Blazers as the team was at a crossroads. After years of playoff runs that ultimately fell short, the roster appeared to have reached its full potential with its Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, and Jusuf Nurkic-led core.

He led a total rebuild for Portland, trading away all three players during his tenure. It was not an easy decision considering how long those players had been with the Blazers and the fans' connection to them.

Those deals landed the Blazers a significant number of assets and allowed the franchise to turn the page on a chapter that had run its course.

In terms of team building, he has made several good moves, adding Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara, as well as drafting Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe.

Cronin made the bold call to draft Henderson with the third overall pick in the draft rather than use the selection for an established veteran.

This decison led to Damian Lillard leaving the team, but it gave the team a potential franchise player.

Henderson has flashed potential, but he remains far from a finished article. Sharpe, on the other hand, has shown far more in the NBA, becoming one of the brightest scoring guards in the league.

If these two players continue to develop, the Blazers will be playoff contenders in the near future.

Avdija is proving to be a great building block for the team, providing two-way value, while Camara is one of the key players who has elevated the Portland defense.

While these moves all provide a solid foundation, there are still a number of moves that raise questions.

He bought out Deandre Ayton, who only had one year left on his deal, rather than have him play with the team for the first half of the season and hope he generates some trade.

Cronin's Youth Movement at Center

Additionally, Cronin drafted promising young center Yang Hansen with a first-round pick after selecting Donovan Clingan the previous year. Clingan has established himself as a quality center, making the Yang pick all the more questionable.

Arguably, the most puzzling move from this front office was trading for a 35-year-old Jrue Holiday who is on the decline and has multiple years left on his contract.

He makes a high yearly salary, and while Holiday can help mentor some of the younger players, the veteran offers more to a win-now contending team.

Along with signing Holiday, Cronin also secured a multi-year deal with Damian Lillard, who is recovering from a torn Achilles, to pay him during his recovery this upcoming season.

These two 35-year-old guards do not fit the team's younger timeline and commit money to players whose best is behind them.

If Holiday and Lillard stay healthy for most of their deals, and the younger players develop, Cronin should secure another contract.

However, if these moves hinder the team's performance, he could be out of a job sooner rather than later.

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