Black Friday Discussion: Name the Biggest Bargain in Blazers History

It’s Black Friday in America, traditionally the biggest shopping day of the year. Bargain-hunters are getting a start on their Christmas shopping. Every outlet from the local mall to cyberspace is trying to convince shoppers that their deals are the best, money well-spent with happiness to follow.

To honor the occasion, here’s a question for Blazer’s Edge Readers today.

Who was the biggest bargain “get” in Portland Trail Blazers history?

Before you answer, let’s define terms, avoiding a couple of common pitfalls.

“Bargain” does not necessarily mean the best player in franchise history. The two could be synonymous, but only if you think that person’s contributions overwhelmingly outweighed the cost paid for them. Otherwise if you want a Rolls Royce, pay for a Rolls Royce, and get a Rolls Royce, that’s a hell of a car, but not a bargain as we’re defining it. If you paid for a Honda and got a Rolls Royce? That’s a different matter.

But “bargain” does not necessarily mean “cheap” either. Just because you pay next to nothing for something doesn’t make it an automatic bargain. The utility you get out of it has to be demonstrably higher than the cost paid. Maybe I paid a buck for something and got $20 worth of utility. That’s awesome! But paying $200 and getting $5000 out of it actually turned out to be a better bargain even though the starting cost was 200x higher.

You get the idea. Who has been the biggest bargain in Blazers history? Share your thoughts in the comments below and happy shopping to those who are bargain hunting today!