Who do you trust in this organization to make the Blazers contenders? Jody? Bert Kolde? Joe Cronin? Why would Jody even continue owning the team if its going to suck? She just got it as an inheritance from her brother. My theory is she wanted to see if they could win a championship around Lillard, but that ship may have sailed. If they trade Lillard, there is absolutely no reason for her to keep the team. Shipping out talent for cap flexibility and future draft picks is a signal that the team is for sale so the new owners can shape a new franchise from the ground up.
And a new owner. If the new owner is not local, why would they keep the team in Portland? The Team is more valuable in a bigger market. Plus, a place like Las Vegas, a Billionaire would actually maybe live there versus Portland due to various reasons. Why be an absentee owner for an NBA franchise? It worked for Paul Allen because he was essentially retired and didn't have much going on, but someone who is still working and running companies, to go fly to Portland to watch games?
The best chance for the Blazers is that a local ownership group steps up, but unless its Phil Knight, they will probably be outbid by a billionaire.