Portland Trail Blazers stock up, stock down

Sharpe averaged a moderate 9.9 points per game this season. Yet his 23.7 scoring average over his final 10 games of the year highlights why Portland is oozing with excitement. With Anfernee Simons potentially on his way out of Portland — more on that later — Sharpe looks destined to take on a larger role next season and solidify himself as the team's shooting guard of the future. 

Jerami Grant, F: Grant averaged 20.5 points and 4.5 rebounds with a career-best 40.1% shooting from beyond the arc during his debut campaign in Portland. Set to become an unrestricted free agent, the combo forward is expected to re-up on a new deal with the Trail Blazers this offseason, per ESPN's Zach Lowe. 

The versatile 29-year-old looks destined to remain a glue piece and the No. 2/3 scoring option for a Trail Blazers franchise looking to rework their roster around superstar Damian Lillard.

Stock Down 

Anfernee Simons, G: Coming off a career season in 2022-23, Simons has established himself as one of the NBA's premier volume shooters from deep — connecting on 39.7% of his threes since 2020-21. There are areas of his game that could use improvement, namely the 6-foot-4-inch guard's defensive play and playmaking ability. Yet, the main reason Simons finds himself on this list is the "win-now" mode Portland appears to be working towards. 

Simons is frankly not quite good enough to serve as an elite second-fiddle to Lillard, but a promising enough talent to yield a high-end return for Portland in a trade. John Hollinger of The Athletic reported in May that there is "widespread" speculation across the NBA that the Trail Blazers could package Simons alongside the No. 3 overall pick in this year's draft to acquire an elite small forward. 

Cam Reddish, F: Reddish was acquired in the deadline deal that traded Josh Hart to the New York Knicks. In 20 games (12 starts) with Portland, Reddish showed some life, averaging 11 points on 44.3% shooting. However, he continues to leave much to be desired four years into his professional tenure and now finds himself at career crossroads of sorts. 

Reddish enters the offseason as a restricted free agent alongside Matisse Thybulle. Chances are, the latter's defensive prowess will make him a priority re-signing over Reddish for the front office. Working out a team-friendly deal with Reddish should remain in the cards for Portland. Yet, their hunger to acquire a prolific wing likely halts any possibility of Reddish working his way back into the starting lineup.