Trail Blazers
Last season: 21-61, missed the playoffs for the third straight year.
COACH: Chauncey Billups (Fourth season with Portland, 81-165).
SEASON OPENER: Oct. 23 at home against the Golden State Warriors.
DEPARTURES: G Malcolm Brogdan.
ADDITIONS: C Donovan Clingan, F Deni Avdija.
BetMGM championship odds: +10,000.
What to Expect
The Trail Blazers made few offseason changes and Portland remains in rebuilding mode after a season without All-Star Damian Lillard. The perennial All-Star bolted for the Milwaukee Bucks and Portland has committed to a young core which may not get the team to the postseason after a three-year drought. The youthful roster could set the Blazers up for a bright future. Forward Jerami Grant, 30, is the oldest player on the roster. He led the team with an average of 21 points per game last season. Guard Anfernee Simons is just 25 but already has six years of experience.
Coach Chauncey Billups, recently inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame, is realistic that this season may still be a struggle. His plan? “We’ve got to play fast. We’ve got to move the basketball,” Billups said. “We’ve got to help each other on defense. We’ve got to do all the small things to even be competitive.”
Strengths and Weaknesses
The good: Portland’s strength is its youth. And it’s weakness is also its youth. The young players have the athleticism and energy to fit into Billups’ plan to play fast — and that could be entertaining for fans. But the roster’s inexperience could be a hurdle.
The not-so-good: Three of Portland’s projected starters — Grant, Simons and Deandre Ayton — will be leaned on as locker room leaders to keep the youngsters in check. “We want to win as soon as possible,” Simons said. “As competitors, as players, we all want to win. So for me, it’s still the same thing: What can I do to get better for us to win?”
Players to Watch
Shaedon Sharpe, 21, is a dynamic playmaker but he’s been hampered by injuries. In January he had core surgery and missed the rest of the season. He won’t play at the start of this season because of a small labral tear in his left shoulder. Scoot Henderson, 20, was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 draft out of the G League’s Ignite had some growing pains in his rookie season, but showed improvement over his final dozen games, when he averaged more than 19 points a game.
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