LaMarcus Aldridge has been off to a hot start in the NBA playoffs for the Portland Trail Blazers and that may get the previous trade rumors and buzz surrounding him to wear off, as reports last season had the Chicago Bulls, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks and LA Lakers interested in him and now the Blazers may look to extend his contract before he hits free agency in 2015.
Aldridge has been considered an underrated player over the past few years and he broke through a couple years ago and finally made an All-Star team after being snubbed a few times and now he has been selected to the game for three straight years. Aldridge started off the playoffs with a fantastic game, scoring 46 points and grabbing 18 rebounds as the Blazers won over the Rockets and followed that up with another game with over 40 points in Game 2 to take a 2-0 lead heading back to Portland and that leaves the Rockets in a very tough situation.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, earlier in the season and over last summer both Aldridge and the team looked at trade options and he reporteldy asked to be traded, but that was refuted later on by both sides. Either way, the team was interested in making a deal at one point when an extension didn't get anywhere and now it looks like the team will be making a different choice for the future. Aldridge has shown that he can be a franchise player and along with Damian Lillard, the Blazers now have two of the best young players in the game and they are players that a franchise can build around.
Aldridge was impressive while averaging 23 points and 11 boards this season and he also has a career average of 18 and eight and that should only get better as time goes on. Aldridge helped the team get off to a 10-2 start this season and during that time he was averaging 22 points and nine rebounds per game. Aldridge made over $14 million last season and is set to get paid $16 million next year and with his contract expiring after that and him becoming a free agent, the team has to decide whether to sign him long term or to trade him to make sure they get something back if he leaves as a free agent.
GM Neal Olshey now has a tough choice to make and Aldridge could make things tough if he asks for "too much" money and that could lead to a trade, ala Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony after they were dealt. Aldridge has made any decision one to think about, as he now is just the third player to score over 40 points in the first two games on the road in the playoffs, with two big names in Michael Jordan and Tracy McGrady as the others. Aldridge has shown that he is not a one-trick pony either, as he can score inside and has a very solid mid-range jumper that he used to perfection on Wednesday night.
Teams like the Houston Rockets and NY Knicks will be very interested in Aldridge no matter what happens.
