Portland Trail Blazers
Key Acquisitions: F Robert Covington, C Enes Kanter, F Carmelo Anthony, F Rodney Hood, F Derrick Jones Jr, F Harry Giles III
Key Departures: C Hassan Whiteside, F Trevor Ariza, F Kent Bazemore, F Mario Hezonja
Last season, the Portland Trail Blazers snuck into the NBA Playoffs as the 8th seed in the Western Conference after taking down the Memphis Grizzlies in a play-in game. The short-handed Blazers won 6 of their last 8 seeding-games in the NBA bubble thanks to the dazzling performances put on by Damian Lillard.
In those 8 seeding games, Damian Lillard averaged 37.6 points, 9.6 assists, 4.3 rebounds and shot just about 44% from the floor and 40.7% from three-point range. Lillard was named the unanimous MVP of the NBA restart and was named to the NBA All-Seeding Games First-Team.
If Lillard continues this type of success next season, with the additions the Trail Blazers made in the offseason, he will not only be a front-runner for the MVP award but could propel Portland to a top seed in the Western Conference.
This offseason, the Trail Blazers acquired Robert Covington via trade and brought back Enes Kanter in a trade with the Boston Celtics. Both Covington and Kanter not only give the Trail Blazers some veteran depth in the frontcourt, but Covington gives Portland another three-point threat. Not only has he averaged double-digit scoring for the last six seasons, but Robert Covington is a career 35.6% three-point shooter.
Enes Kanter returns to Portland after playing with the Blazers during the 2018-19 season, and will fill the hole that Hassan Whiteside leaves. With Jusef Nurkic back and fully healthy for the Trail Blazers, Kanter will be a key role player off the bench who should provide some stability on both the offensive and defensive glass.
The Trail Blazers’ biggest problem last season was that they did not have much depth at power forward and center due to injuries and foul trouble. Now, they have Robert Covington, Zach Collins, Jusef Nurkic, Enes Kanter, and Harry Giles III as reliable options in the frontcourt.
On the wing, the Trail Blazers brought back both Carmelo Anthony and Rodney Hood, who is returning after suffering an Achilles injury last year. Both guys will give Portland more scoring options to turn to and take a lot of pressure off of both Lillard and McCollum. Overall, when looking at the Portland Trail Blazers for the upcoming season, it is hard to find many flaws on this roster. They do not have a back-up point guard behind Damian Lillard, but when he is playing virtually the entire game, you do not really need a back-up.
If Damian Lillard stays healthy this season and they can get production from their frontcourt, there is no reason why the Portland Trail Blazers can not only be one of the top four teams in the Western Conference but be one of the legit contenders to challenge the Los Angeles Lakers.
