Festus Ezeli likely to be second Blazers center to be moved
NBA Update: Portland Trail Blazers center Festus Ezeli may be the second Blazers center on the move prior to the NBA trade deadline, as ESPN’s Marc Stein reports that the team is “determined” to move the injured big man, preferably to a team that could use the cash influx in order to reach the salary cap floor. The team traded starting center Mason Plumlee (along with a 2018 second-round pick) to the Denver Nuggets earlier on Sunday in exchange for center Jusuf Nurkic and a 2017 first-round pick.
After signing a two-year deal with the Blazers in the offseason, Ezeli had an injection in his left knee that ruled him out for the beginning portion of the season. After suffering a setback in his rehab, he was shut down for the year, without having appeared on the court for Portland. The second season of his NBA career in 2013-14 was also taken away due to season-ending right knee surgery.
Ezeli was a member of the 2014-15 NBA Championship-winning Golden State Warriors, where he played for four years before joining Portland this past offseason. He started 41 games as a rookie in 2012-13, but developed into a role player off the bench for the Warriors over the past two years. Last season, he averaged a career-high 7.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in just 16.7 minutes per night. During the postseason, he appeared in 23 games for Golden State.
With less than two weeks remaining until the trade deadline, it appears whoever adds Ezeli may be doing so for strictly cap purposes.
Category: Basketball
