The Toronto Raptors have traded Norman Powell to the Portland Trail Blazers for Gary Trent and Rodney Hood.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted the announcement Thursday afternoon.
The Raptors shooting guard has been having a career year in scoring, averaging 19.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 41 games this season—including 30 starts. He’s got more 30-point games this season (six) than his first five seasons combined (four).
The recent AND1 signee holds a player option for the 2021-22 season, which would pay him $11.6 million should he decide to exercise it. If not, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent after this year and could be looking at a massive payday in the open market.
Trent, 22, is averaging a career-high 15 points per game in his third NBA season, and is shooting nearly 40 percent from three-point range. In the NBA bubble last season, he was one of the Blazers’ best shooters from beyond the arc. Defensively, he was the teams’ x-factor on both sides of the floor. When the Blazers played Memphis with a playoff berth on the line, he had five steals and two swats in 35 minutes.
Trent is also a restricted free agent after this season, but won’t cost nearly as much as Powell.
Hood, 28, is averaging a career-low 4.7 points per game, but is only playing fewer than 20 minutes per contest. His contract is non-guaranteed next season.
Powell was one of the earliest success stories of the Raptors’ We The North era, being molded by the team’s developmental arm from a second-round draft pick into a reliable rotation player and capable spot starter. He was also arguably the most lit guy at Toronto’s championship parade.
