Joe Cronin made it abundantly clear on Thursday during his introductory press conference as the team's interim general manager: Changes are coming for the Portland Trail Blazers, likely sooner than later.

Players who signed new contracts in free agency become eligible to be traded on December 15th. The deadline for in-season trades comes and goes on February 10th, giving Cronin and the front office seven weeks to make moves that chart a better path for the Blazers over not just the remainder of 2021-22, but the long-term future.

Other than Ben Simmons, a long-rumored and ever-viable trade candidate, here's who Portland should be targeting before the 2022 NBA trade deadline.

Myles Turner

The Indiana Pacers are finally tearing it down, realizing even the treadmill of mediocrity isn't guaranteed for an ensemble cast that can't stay healthy. Damontas Sabonis is a popular potential target locally given his Rip City roots, and T.J. Warren—injured ever since exploding as a scorer in the bubble—is an intriguing buy-low candidate on the wing.

The Blazers' main goal is carving out a higher ceiling, though, and neither Sabonis nor Brogdon affords them more space to improve than Turner.

On the fringes of All-Defense consideration since 2018-19, Turner set to garner more votes for that honor than ever this season, leading the league in blocks per game and contesting more shots at the rim than every player in basketball but Jakob Poeltl, per NBA.com/stats. He's also taken much-needed strides on the glass, posting the second-highest defensive rebound rate of his career at 21.8%, a number still below-average for his position.

But Turner more than compensates for that relative existing deficiency on the other end. He's come into his own as a three-point shooter this season, taking more than half his shots from deep while hitting them at a clip just below 40%, both career-highs. Turner is also shooting an eye-popping personal best of 68.2% on twos, evidence of more patience and physicality around the rim as well as burgeoning overall touch with his jumper.

The archetype at center for a team led by Lillard has been obvious for years: A five who can pop to the arc in ball-screen situations and space the floor on the weak side while protecting the rim at an elite level. Turner is the rare player who fits that bill to a tee.

Unfortunately for Lillard and the Blazers, though, they aren't the only ones who stand to benefit from acquiring a scalable, role-playing unicorn with some room still left to improve.

Jerami Grant

Lillard reportedly wants to play next to a rangy, defensive-oriented wing who can knock down shots and finish at the rim. He's never had the luxury of that type of teammate in Portland, instead teaming with one-way forwards or guards shoehorned onto the wing like Norman Powell.

Grant proved last season that he was overqualified for that rough three-and-D outline, emerging as a solid individual shot creator as the Detroit Pistons' top option. But 2021-22 has laid bare that Grant's dreams of alpha dog stardom on a good team won't ever be realized. He's much more well-suited for a secondary role offensively, one that allows him to play off the attention garnered by a superstar playmaker while focusing his efforts on defense as a stout multi-positional defender and impactful back-line helper.

Grant looked good in that capacity with the Denver Nuggets in the 2020 playoffs, making life tough on LeBron James, capably switching onto Anthony Davis and shooting 70% at the rim, taking advantage of a floor spread by the two-man brilliance of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. He might have lost a half step defensively since then and has always been better checking high-usage wings than ball-dominant guards. Grant's dwindling catch-and-shoot accuracy from three is an area of concern, too.

Even so, Grant, 27, has the positional and stylistic versatility needed to plug multiple personnel gaps and is on a timeline that aligns with the remainder of Lillard's prime. His acquisition would hardly make Portland a title contender, but would afford Cronin and company some crucial flexibility in building out the rest of the roster.

Cam Reddish

The Atlanta Hawks signed Kevin Huerter to a pricey extension this summer and have Bogdan Bogdanovic locked up through at least next season. Even if injuries keep De'Andre Hunter from building on the flashes of legitimate All-Star potential he showed early last season, the No. 4 overall pick of the 2019 draft no doubt remains high in Atlanta's pecking order of long-term building blocks.

Where all of that leaves Reddish with the Hawks seems obvious. He's been frequent fodder for trade machine enthusiasts for more than a year, only gaining more fans among league followers and front office decision-makers with his stellar performance in the Eastern Conference Finals. How many players in basketball could make their playoff debut with a Finals berth at stake, shooting 52.8% overall and 9-of-14 from three while playing dogged, physical defense at the point of attack—let alone at 21 years old?

Reddish's play against the Milwaukee Bucks in June is an outlier highpoint of his career to date. His time in the NBA has been marked mostly by starts and stops related to injury and Atlanta's enviable depth. But at 6'8′ with long arms, quick feet, a smooth jumper and impressive all-around athleticism, Reddish is exactly the type of young player Portland should be looking to acquire.

Hopes of stardom are more far-fetched by now, but pervade nonetheless due to Reddish's rare package of physical tools, budding skill and awesome postseason performance versus the reigning champs. Even if he tops out as a quality on-ball defender of guards and wings while mostly subsisting on open threes and transition play offensively, bringing in Reddish would still be a major win for the Blazers.