It was the end of an era for the Trail Blazers as the franchise’s all-time leading scorer, Damian Lillard, was traded to the Bucks. After making the playoffs for eight straight seasons from 2013-14 to 2020-21, Portland missed out the following two years. Expectations weren’t very high for the Trail Blazers in 2023-24 without their longtime face of the franchise.
2024 NBA Off-Season Preview: What’s Next For The Trail Blazers?
Trail Blazers Season Recap
Entering the season, the Trail Blazers fanbase’s main goal was to see the youth continue to develop. While the hope was that the team would be competitive, a postseason berth wasn’t very realistic.
Unfortunately, much of their young talent was often not on the court. 24-year-old Anfernee Simons missed 36 games. 20-year-old Shaedon Sharpe missed 50. 25-year-old Deandre Ayton missed 27. While 19-year-old Scoot Henderson missed the last games of the quartet (20), he had his rookie struggles. Selected third in the 2023 NBA Draft, Henderson shot just 38.5% from the field (32.5% on threes) and averaged 3.4 turnovers per contest.
Portland finished the season 21-61, dead last in the Western Conference. There was a stark difference between their accuracy from the field compared to their opponents, especially from inside of the arc. The Trail Blazers shot a league-worst 49.4% on two-pointers (also a league-worst from three-point range) while their opponents shot 57.8% on two-pointers (again league-worst). Portland didn’t have anyone to deter the opposition from going into the lane especially with Robert Williams only playing six games.
Projected Cap Space and Draft Picks
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Over the cap
Not only are the Trail Blazers projected to be well over the cap, but they are relatively close to the first luxury tax apron. They have four players Deandre Ayton, Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, and Malcolm Brogdon who will make more than $22 million in 2024-25. For a team that was one of the league’s worst last season, it seems unlikely they would be willing to pay luxury tax penalties.
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7th and 14th overall Draft Picks
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Primary Targets
- Donovan Clingan
- Nikola Topic
- Zach Edey
- Ja’Kobe Walter
- Kel’el Ware
- Tyler Smith
Along with owning two lottery picks in this year’s draft, Portland also has picks 34 and 40 in the second round. In an ideal world, Clingan would be an excellent fit for the Trail Blazers as a defensive anchor at center. There’s a fairly good chance he will be gone by the time Portland is on the clock though. Edey is a huge man (listed at 7-4, 300 lbs.) who can certainly produce on the offensive end more than any other big man in the draft. The problem is, that he may be played off the court at times due to being a defensive liability. Ware visited the Trail Blazers on Monday for a pre-draft workout. The seven-footer has shown value as a rim protector as well as the ability to be a stretch five on offense.
Smith is a 6-9 forward from the G-League Ignite that was also at Monday’s pre-draft workout. Topic is a taller point guard at six-foot-six, which should enable him to be able to share the court at times with Henderson. Walter would bring value on the defensive end as a wing, something Portland could use more of.
Pending Free Agents and Possible Departures
Free Agents
- Dalano Banton (Club option)
- Moses Brown (Unrestricted)
- Justin Minaya (Restricted)
- Ashton Hagans (Restricted/Two Way contract)
- Ibou Badji (Restricted/Two Way contract)
None of Portland’s free agents should be a priority to bring back other than Banton. With how he performed at the end of last season, it should be a no-brainer to bring him back at his club option for slightly over $2.1 million. The 24-year-old posted averages of 16.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in 30 games after being acquired in a trade with the Celtics.
Trade pieces
- Malcolm Brogdon
- Jerami Grant
- Deandre Ayton
- Robert Williams
- Matisse Thybulle
Other than Henderson, Simons, and Sharpe, there is a pathway for anyone else on the roster to be dealt. The most likely might be Brogdon. The 31-year-old has one year left on his deal worth $22.5 million. He is just one season removed from winning Sixth Man of the Year with Boston. Brogdon would be highly valuable for contending teams looking for another guard. Grant would also be a highly coveted two-way wings perfect for a contender. Trading one or both of their larger contracts would make sense for Portland financially.
Realistic Off-Season Targets
Free agents
Again, it’s highly unlikely that Portland will want to enter the luxury tax which limits what they can do in free agency. They clearly need shooting, or they can take a cheap flyer on someone who perhaps can show more with further development.
While the 29-year-old Harris is a low-usage player, he connected on 39.2% of his three-point tries in his Magic tenure. He can also provide more veteran leadership for a team lacking it other than Grant and Brogdon.
The 23-year-old Wiseman was the second selection in the 2020 NBA Draft. While he has failed to come close to expectations, if Portland can sign him for cheap, maybe they will look into doing so. The 28-year-old Tate has been productive for the Rockets but often wasn’t in the rotation last season. He has a club option for slightly more than $7 million which may be declined.
