NBA Trade Deadline 2022: Los Angeles Clippers trade for Norman Powell and Robert Covington from Portland Trail Blazers
Norman Powell and Robert Covington are set to join the Los Angeles Clippers as part of a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers; Eric Bledsoe, Keon Johnson and forward Justise Winslow are going the other way, along with a 2025 second-round draft pick
Saturday 5 February 2022 09:13, UK
The Los Angeles Clippers are acquiring swingman Norman Powell and forward Robert Covington from the Portland Trail Blazers, multiple outlets reported on Friday.
The trade is set to see guards Eric Bledsoe and Keon Johnson, and forward Justise Winslow moving to the Trail Blazers, who are also acquiring a 2025 second-round draft pick
The addition of Powell and Covington will aid a Clippers team which has played without Paul George since late December and Kawhi Leonard all season due to elbow and knee injuries respectively.
George's elbow tear will be examined again later this month, but the status of Leonard remains unclear.
Powell has been averaging 18.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 40 games (39 starts) for the Trail Blazers this season. The 28-year-old is shooting 40.6 percent on three-pointers as well.
Covington, meanwhile, has been contributing 7.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots in 48 games (40 starts) during the current campaign.
The emergence of Anfernee Simons allows for the Trail Blazers to move off the balance of Powell's long-term contract, which runs until the end of the 2025/26 season.
In addition, Portland are now under the luxury tax threshold while from the Clippers' point of view, the trade gives them a proven two-way wing to partner with Kawhi Leonard and George when he returns.
In Bledsoe, the Trail Blazers are acquiring a player who is chipping in with 9.9 points, 4.2 assists and 3.4 rebounds in 54 games (29 starts).
Winslow is averaging 4.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 37 games (one start) this season, and the 19-year-old Johnson has come up with 3.5 points and 1.4 rebounds in 15 games off the bench.
