Trail Blazers general manager Neil Olshey showed up for the Kentucky-Mississippi State game in Lexington on Tuesday night according to an NBA scout who was present.

The Blazers hold a lottery-protected first-round pick in June's NBA Draft. And when the scout let on that Olshey made the trip, he added, "It was 24 degrees there. Neil's apparently not (bleeping) around."

Meaning, Olshey is acting like he wants to use that potential lottery pick.

Falls in line with ownership, too. Paul Allen loves the draft. It's what gets his juices going. Even as Portland could be one of the few teams willing to take on "dead money", the smart bet is on Portland missing the playoffs and keeping its lottery protected pick. I'm just not sure it's the best available move.

The Blazers remain $13 million below the salary floor, and are sitting just four games in the loss column out of the No. 8 spot in the playoffs. The Feb. 18 NBA Trade deadline is looming and for those holding out hope that Portland may try to alter its future by obtaining a front-line player at the deadline, there's a move that could be made.

CJ McCollum (20.9 points per game) is putting together a nice bounce-back season. At $2.5 million annually he's currently a terrific value. But anyone who has watched McCollum play when paired with Damian Lillard knows that you can't play them successfully together on a team that will compete at the top of the Western Conference.

That's the goal, right?

They can score together, but they're a defensive disaster when paired. They're both chuckers, too. And there's no way that Olshey is trading Lillard, his prized draft pick. Further, the Blazers don't want to get into a position beyond the 2016-17 season where they have to pay both Lillard and McCollum.

They're not the "Splash Brothers." We know that. But we don't want them to become the "Cash Brothers."

Even as Olshey has a man-crush on McCollum, and has privately said he wouldn't dream of trading him, the general manager should be looking and listening when it comes to offers for the guard between now and Feb. 18.

Portland also has a potential first-round lottery pick as trade bait (but theoretically would have to wait until the draft to make that deal). And even as Olshey feels stuck on a refusal to part with any of his future draft picks, the Blazers general manager should be quietly shopping McCollum, gauging his trade value. If the return resulted in a front-line player who would start for multiple seasons and better complement Lillard, you'd have to consider making it.

To be clear, I'm not saying "McCollum must go," here. I like his game. Just not as much as Olshey does. I'm saying, McCollum's value isn't going to be greater than it is in the next two seasons. It's just not sustainable. Also, I'm saying that this season shouldn't just be viewed as a throw away in which the Blazers roll out a the lowest-paid roster in the league and pretend that's all there is to see.

The prevailing strategy among league GMs at the deadline is now centered around preserving cap space. There are few teams willing to take on long-term contracts and money. Portland is one of them, potentially. It feels like it's uniquely positioned to be one of the few buyers should a front-line player be available at the deadline.

It's risky business to make a move that could leave Allen out of the first round of the draft. Maybe that's too much risk for Olshey. There's further risk in trading away a player who has demonstrated his ability to perform, as McCollum has. But if the Blazers really are going to get somewhere big, it's exactly the kind of thinking they need to adopt.

I'm glad Olshey was in Lexington, scouting college players. But while he's there, I'm hoping he was eyeing the No. 8 playoff spot, wondering what it will take to get this franchise into the postseason.

--- @JohnCanzanoBFT