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The Portland TrailBlazers shocked nearly everyone last year as they fought their way to a fifth place finish in the West last season, led by Damian Lillard’s continued outstanding play and the rise of players like CJ McCollum and Al-Farouq Aminu. The Blazers signed new players this off-season and kept their losses to a minimum, so they will certainly look to continue to improve in Rip City. The only question is in the loaded NBA West this season, what will be an achievable goal for Portland this season, and what steps can they take toward improving and moving towards their eventual goal of winning an NBA championship?
You have to keep and play Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. I mean, this goes without saying. Luckily the Blazers signed Lillard to a 5 year, $120 million extension last summer and this offseason they agreed with McCollum to a four year extension worth $106 million. The two were one of the best duos in the NBA last season, with McCollum winning Most Improved Player and emerging as one of the best shooting guards in the league and Lillard even getting some MVP nods. If McCollum can continue to improve his game and assert himself as an elite scorer and Damian Lillard can continue to play at a should-be-all-star level with a massive chip on his shoulder, the sky is the limit for what this young pair can do for the Blazers.
The Trailblazers have continued to draft well and acquire young pieces to complement their veteran players. The only problem is many of their veteran players left last off-season, including four of their five starters from the 2014-2015 season. This is essentially the reason so many young players got the opportunity to step up last season. Portland isn’t a large market and many big name free agents don’t consider the Blazers a potential landing spot when choosing a new team yet. It’s essential that Portland continues to develop their young assets in order to improve as a team. Lillard has proved to be a great leader for the team, and they will go as far as he can take them.
With the addition of veterans like Festus Ezeli and Evan Turner, who have playoff experience on good teams, the postseason is a realistic goal for the Blazers. With Golden State getting even stronger and San Antonio and the LA Clippers always eyeing a top finish in the west, it looks like the young Blazers can finish as high as fourth in the NBA West this season. The end goal isn’t next season though, and if the team can continue to build around their young core, and more importantly keep that young core in place, the sky is the limit for what this team can achieve further down the line.