Nov 29th 2008 11:25AM by Tom Ziller (author feed)
Filed under: Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, NBA RumorsSince Portland won the No. 1
pick in the 2007 draft, rumors about the Blazers seeking the rights to Mike
Conley have abounded. Conley and Greg Oden have played with each other for
years, and call each other best friends. Portland’s point guard position
remains unsettled (despite the hefty attention paid to it in the draft), and
it’s believed that Conley is the right guard to match with the Blazers
core on the court and with Oden off it.

Yahoo!’s Adrian Wojnarowski
reports Memphis and Portland have been discussing a swap which would reunite the
pair, with Travis Outlaw serving as the apparent bait. Woj reports that nothing
is in place as the teams negotiate over the extra parts — I’d guess
Memphis requires more assets in return for a still-prized young PG.

If
Outlaw is the principal and the Grizz don’t get much more in
considerations, this is a coup for Portland. Just a year ago, LaMarcus Aldridge
was the rumored Blazer involved in Conley talks. No slight to Outlaw, but
Aldridge is a significantly better player — one of the best young pivots
in the game. Aldridge’s ability makes Oden more special. Outlaw happens to
be a decent wing, a cross between a poor man’s Kirilenko and a poorer
man’s Stackhouse circa 2004. Outlaw could win a Sixth Man award
eventually, and be a vital cog in championship team. But he’s not your
star small forward.

That makes me question the move from Memphis’
end, assuming there isn’t a lot more kitty in the pot. Unless Conley looks
even worse from the inside than he does from the fan’s view, or the Grizz
know something we don’t, it’d be a rather epic sell-off to lose him
at this point. I understand O.J. Mayo has turned into the team’s top
option as future lead guard. But Conley’s worth a lot more than a sixth
man, right?