Report: Trail Blazers not entertaining 1st-round pick offers for McCollum

The Portland Trail Blazers have rejected offers of first-round picks from teams inquiring about shooting guard CJ McCollum, reports Jason Quick of The Athletic.

Portland, which doesn't own a first-round pick in this year's draft, reportedly isn't entertaining the proposals because it intends to compete for a championship next season and prefers to add veterans over rookies to the roster.

The Trail Blazers are expected to have one of their busiest offseasons in recent memory. While he denied planning to request a trade, franchise star Damian Lillard publicly called for significant upgrades to the roster last week, stating he didn't consider it sufficient to compete for a title.

"I don't disagree that maybe (new head coach) Chauncey (Billups) can change our team and make us a better team," Lillard said following a Team USA practice last Friday. "But I think if you look at our team as it is, I don't see how you say, 'This is a championship team, we just need a new coach.'"

Portland drafted McCollum 10th overall in 2013, and he's spent his entire eight-year career there. The 2016 Most Improved Player averaged career highs in points (23.1) and assists (4.7) this past season. He also grabbed 3.9 rebounds per contest and shot 40.2% from beyond the arc as the Trail Blazers finished sixth in the Western Conference before falling in six games to the Denver Nuggets in Round 1 of the playoffs.

The team will also attempt to bring back guard Norman Powell, who impressed in Portland following a mid-season trade from the Toronto Raptors. Powell declined his $11.6-million player option for next season to become a free agent, but the Trail Blazers will reportedly make re-signing him a top priority.