In his new gig in the Northwest, the longtime Suns’ GM headed into his first full season with a Blazers team that finished 33-49 the season before. Since the Blazers did not own their first this past draft, the team used the season as an opportunity to evaluate the team and see how they measured up with the rest of the league. After an up-and-down season, the Blazers finished with a 45-37 record to qualify for the play-ins in a very deep and competitive Western Conference. After the play-in games, the Blazers settled into the 8th seed and bowed out after a tough-fought series against the top seeded Denver Nuggets in 7 games.
Moves leading up to the ’30-31 season: most of the inherited roster remained intact in a relatively uneventful off-season for the Blazers, as the new GM wanted to take some time to evaluate the roster before constructing a path forward. The one transaction they did make was shipping Hamidou Diallo to Toronto in a move to grab a new starting PG in Markelle Fultz. Trey Murphy was drafted #4 overall last season, but he played sparingly and didn’t have a noticeable impact on the season.
What went well?
- Haliburton. Heading into the season, Hali needed a lot of help. He came into the league as a #4 overall draft pick due to his reputation for strong all-around play and incredible stroke, but he had shown little of that through 2 seasons. His trade value was surprisingly low throughout the league. Though drafted to be a PG, the new Blazers’ regime saw him as a much better fit at the off-guard spot, next to Fultz. Between moving him to SG and some heavy instructions, Haliburton saw his shot emerge in a big way (41% from deep on 6.4 3PA, and 59% from inside the arc on 5.2 attempts). Along with it, he gained a ton of confidence, as he averaged 16 points and 3.7 assists on 63 TS%. Compare that to his averages last year of 7.7 points and 4.0 assists on 55 TS% (despite playing 31 mins/gm). Hali capped off his breakout season by winning the MIP award in a very tight contest with Bruno Fernando of the Grizzlies.
- Shooting. The Blazers finished top 10 in FG% (.457), 3PA (24.3), 3P% (.379), OEFF (106.9), and OEFG% (51.2).
- Offensive Rebounding. On top of shooting really well, they were 5th in the league in OREB% at 29.0%.
- Road Warriors. The Blazers were the only team in the Western Conference to finish with a winning record on the road at 21-20.
What didn’t go well?
- Free Throw Shooting. Although the Blazers were middle of the pack at generating FTs, they finished an abysmal 27th in FT% (.684). Cheick Diallo and Birutis were the biggest culprits by generating over half the team’s FTs but making them at only a 58% clip.
- Turnovers. This was a major headache all season long. They finished 26th in TOs coughed up (14.5) and 23rd in TOs forced (12.6).
- Defending. Finished bottom 10 in FG% against (.458), 3P% against (.378) DEFF (106.0) and DEFG% (49.2). The poor defending basically undid most of the positives their offensive shooting provided.
- Defensive Rebounding. Finished 24th in DR% (72.8). Much like their poor defending, their poor defensive rebounding undid a lot of the positives their offensive rebounding provided.
Offseason moves
- Birutis traded away. There’s a number of things Birutis does really well: interior scoring, rebounding and defending among them. He will undoubtedly be missed, but the team brass didn’t feel like his timeline fit with the rest of the team. The Blazers’ coaches also grew a little frustrated at Birutis’s inconsistent play last year. Birutis’s overall effectiveness should flourish more on a star-studded Wizards team where he won’t have to lead the team every night.
- Dereck Lively addition. Arriving via the Birutis trade via Pick 13, Lively isn’t expected to make much of an impact early in his career, but the team is very high on him long-term. If he develops like they think he can, the Blazers feel like he could become a versatile player that can be used in a number of different lineups depending on the opponent.
- Jessup addition. Also arriving via the Birutis trade, the Blazers think he has plenty of untapped potential ready to be unlocked via coaching and deployment, much like they did with Hali this past season.
- Hoard departure. A source close to the team says there is a verbal in-place for Hoard that will ship him to a contender. Simply put: Hoard found himself the odd man out on a Blazers team that is very deep on the wings.
- Brissett FA signing. With their MLE, the Blazers signed a player that’s all defense, all the time. He’s invisible on offense, but he can block, steal and defend with the best of them. He even does a great job grabbing defensive rebounds against other wings.
- Ike Anigbogu FA signing. With the loss of Birutis, there will be a big need to replace his interior scoring. Enter Ike, a player that struggles on the defensive side of the court but is expected to play a major role in the offense this season.
- Rookie additions. Aside from Lively, the Blazers added 3 other rookies to the squad via the 2nd round or Free Agency (Nembhard, Fitts, and Samar). None are expected to have much impact in the CSL this season, but the Blazers are cautiously optimistic that they can mold one or two of these players into solid role players long-term.
’31-32 season outlook
There are definitely holes on the roster, and the team’s coaching staff will once again be busy experimenting and trying to fix-up various players. But there’s also some intriguing talent in Portland. The season could go a number of different ways, and the front office is taking things a week at a time. Internally, the Blazers feel they may be a season away from really becoming a team to watch, but they are optimistic they can be competitive like they were last season.
2020, 2023, 2027, 2035
