Two years for $25 million! An All-Star ball-handling core! The Blazers traded him away as fast as possible.

Avdija's impressive play last season was clear for all to see. He has emerged as another ball-dominant guard in the league. During the regular season, he posted averages of 24.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 6.7 assists, with field goal, three-point, and free-throw percentages of 46.2%, 31.8%, and 80.2%, respectively, making him an All-Star. In the postseason, he recorded 22.2 points, 6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, shooting 44.9%, 35%, and 72.3% from the floor.

However, the Trail Blazers don't seem fully committed to rebuilding around Avdija. This summer, to everyone's surprise, they traded for Ja Morant from the Grizzlies — a player notorious for his injury-prone reputation — in exchange for forwards Jerami Grant and Chris Murray.

The Blazers now have five guards: Jrue Holiday, Damian Lillard, Ja Morant, Scoot Henderson, and Shaedon Sharpe. Each of them needs the ball in their hands. As a result, Avdija's usage will undoubtedly decrease in the new season, making it difficult for him to perform at an All-Star level again.

In a recent podcast, CBS Sports reporter Sam Quinn stated: "The Trail Blazers are like a sinking ship, and their current approach doesn't preserve the necessary salary cap space to renegotiate and extend Avdija in the future."

Avdija, currently 25 years old, stands at 2.03 meters tall with a wingspan of 2.04 meters. He was the ninth overall pick in the 2020 draft. His current contract runs through the summer of 2028, with two seasons remaining totaling $24.99 million (no team or player options), an average annual salary of about $12.5 million. If he and the Blazers do not make progress on an extension soon, trade rumors will undoubtedly persist.

In fact, Yahoo Sports reporter Joey Haverford recently said:Avdija is an ideal trade target. The Warriors could package young players (to match salaries) and draft picks to acquire him from the Blazers.

Of course, the Blazers won't easily let go of a young and productive player like Avdija. However, given their new owner's reputation for being tight-fisted, they may not be willing to offer him a max or near-max contract in the future. Both sides should seriously reconsider their partnership from this point on, and perhaps an early split could be a good option.

One is aiming for a big contract, while the other is always thinking about pinching pennies. Clearly, they are not on the same page...