Our bench scoring needs to improve

The Blazers have stagnated at this point in the season, in part due to injury to players like GPII and Little, but it is clear our problems go well beyond that. Currently we have the 3rd least bench minutes in the NBA, which speaks to our lack of depth in general, but our bench woes mostly come as a result of our inability to score.

Our bench ranks 25th in defensive rating, but I am willing to trust that the return of GPII and Little will help boost that back up. The real problem comes with us ranking 28th in offensive rating, because neither of those players are really going to make a notable impact on that side of the floor, combined with Winslow, Sharpe, Eubanks, Watford, and Keon we don’t have a player we can trust to consistently put up 10+ points per game off the bench.

I think the perfect player for us would be Rui Hachimura, he is a 6’8″ PF with a 7’2″ wingspan putting up about 12 ppg off the bench for the Wizards. Rui is by no means a strong defender, but his size in general on this bench unit would be huge since we are incredibly undersized. He is 24 years old on an expiring $6.2 mil contract going into RFA this off-season, meaning assuming we look to re-sign him he would fit perfectly into our timeline.

The Wizards are clearly looking to move him, as the starting PF role has been taken by Kuzma and they will not be willing to pay what he will demand this off-season. The Wizards offered Rui in a trade to the Suns for Jae Crowder, which the Suns declined due to Rui not being good enough to fill their starting PF role.

It is hard to tell what the Wizards are looking for, but I can imagine a package of Winslow and Keon in exchange for Rui would be enough. For perspective here is an article on the Wizards Fansided page which lays out 3 potential trades: [https://wizofawes.com/2022/12/05/3-trades-washington-wizards-centered-around-rui-hachimura/](https://wizofawes.com/2022/12/05/3-trades-washington-wizards-centered-around-rui-hachimura/) these include trading Rui and a first for Coby White, along with trading Rui straight up for Ricky Rubio (who has yet to play this season), so it is clear his value is not particularly that high.

The money would work where we would be about $600k below the tax, allowing us to fill our last roster spot with a prorated contract and stay below the luxury tax. The Wizards get a defensive player in Winslow that can fill a role on their bench immediately, while Keon would add to their young core, and both players can provide some playmaking that the Wizards have been lacking.

A bench unit of GPII, Sharpe, Little, Rui, Eubanks, and Watford would provide us with necessary depth that could carry its own weight on both sides of the floor come playoff time. Do you think Rui would be the right fit for this team, and would Winslow and Keon be enough to get him?

by Ripcity_on_they_ass0