“I like the place we’re with this roster, however I like the place we’re going,” common supervisor Joe Cronin stated Monday in the course of the staff’s media day.
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Path Blazers did not make a lot progress this offseason, as a substitute opting to remain the course with a long-term rebuilding venture.
Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton and Anfernee Simons will kind the core of the staff as Portland continues to develop younger gamers, together with Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson.
“I like the place we’re with this roster, however I like the place we’re going,” common supervisor Joe Cronin stated Monday in the course of the staff’s media day.
The Blazers went 21-61 final season after commerce All-Star Damian Lillard and did not qualify for the playoffs for the third straight yr. They’ve been stung by accidents, with Simons, Sharpe and Henderson lacking a mixed 105 video games.
There is no such thing as a doubt that the Blazers are a younger staff. Grant, 30, is probably the most skilled with 10 years within the NBA. Ayton and Simons every have six years within the league.
Sharpe, 21, is getting into his third yr, whereas Henderson, 20, was a rookie final yr. Each suffered accidents, which slowed their progress. Simons injured his thumb within the first recreation of the season and required surgical procedure.
Grant led Portland averaging 21 factors per recreation, whereas Ayton averaged 11.1 rebounds. Henderson led the staff with 5.4 assists per recreation.
Portland made its greatest transfer of the season on draft day, choose Donovan Clingan with the seventh choose. They recovered striker Deni Avdija in July in a commerce with the Washington Wizards.
Coach Chauncey Billups made it clear he understands the place the Blazers are within the course of and that the win won’t come this yr.
“I simply need our guys to be linked, I would like our guys to know one another, I would like them to play for one another. We need not go for an ISO man each time. We will not so we do not enable ourselves to play that manner,” Billups stated. “Now we have to play quick. Now we have to maneuver the basketball. Now we have to assist one another on protection. Now we have to do all of the little issues to be aggressive.”
Billups stated Portland will deal with velocity. The Blazers tried to emphasise this final yr, however accidents thwarted these plans.
“We centered on this yr, already simply with our pickup video games and letting them hoop. The largest factor I instructed them is to play quick and have enjoyable,” stated Billups.
Simons, who is among the most skilled gamers on the staff although he’s solely 25 years previous, was wanting ahead to it.
“It’s going to be enjoyable. Clearly we now have a younger staff, very younger, very athletic and in a position to do quite a lot of various things. So I believe taking part in quick video games is to our benefit,” Simons stated.
The one Blazers rookie on the checklist is Clingan, who averaged 15.3 factors, 8.3 rebounds and three.2 blocks for the UConn Huskies within the NCAA event, however admitted the NBA is a complete new ball recreation. He can be mentored by Ayton, who stated Clingan makes use of his physique properly for an enormous man.
“I’m a freshman once more,” the back-to-back NCAA champion stated. “I am right here to study, I am right here to enhance. I’ve to work every single day, I’ve to indicate that I belong at this stage.”
Honor Walton
The Blazers will honor Corridor of Famer Invoice Walton with a tie-dye jersey band which incorporates Walton’s quantity 32 in white.
Named NBA Finals MVP in 1977 when he led the Blazers to their solely league championship, Walton died in Could at age 71.
The staff additionally introduced Monday that Brightside Home windows, a neighborhood Portland firm, would be the jersey patch sponsor for the Blazers and Rip Metropolis Remix, the staff’s G League affiliate.
TV provide
Final season, Blazers video games had been broadcast on Root Sports activities, a regional community owned by the Seattle Mariners. However the relationship soured final season when the channel was not obtainable to Xfinity clients at no further value.
The deal resulted in August and final week, The Blazers introduced a brand new deal with Sinclair Broadcasting Group to broadcast dwell video games on Sinclair stations in Oregon and Washington.
The Blazers are additionally introducing a direct-to-consumer streaming service known as BlazerVision.
