- The Portland Trail Blazers won only 33 games last season
- Damian Lillard has requested a trade and wants to get traded to the Miami Heat
- The Blazers’ projected starting lineup for next season is tough to examine
The Portland Trail Blazers had a miserable 2022-23 season. They went only 33-49 and Damian Lillard played in just 58 games.
Some good came out of the Blazers winning only 33 games last season, though, as they got the third pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and selected Scoot Henderson. However, Portland’s positive vibes didn’t last long.
On July 1, Lillard requested a trade from the Blazers, which is why projecting Portland’s starting lineup for next season is difficult since we don’t know if/when Lillard will get traded.
Point Guards
Starter: Damian Lillard (until he’s traded)
Reserve: Scoot Henderson
Damian Lillard averaged 32.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 7.3 assists last season for the Blazers while shooting 46.3% from the field, 37.1% from beyond the arc and 91.4% from the free-throw line. He will make $46.6 million next season. Lillard signed a two-year, $121.8 million extension with Portland in July 2022.
Lillard requested to be traded from the Blazers to only the Miami Heat on July 1. He has spent all 11 seasons of his career with Portland, which selected him with the sixth pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
During his trade request discussion with the Blazers, Lillard expressed his frustration with the franchise for failing to construct a roster capable of making a title push. The All-Star felt the time was now to request a trade after coming off a career season.
Lillard still wants the Blazers to trade him to the Heat despite the NBA’s initiative to warn Lillard and his agent that any further comments made “suggesting Lillard will not fully perform the services called for under his player contract in the event of a trade” will be subject to discipline, according to NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Lillard will remain the starter in Portland until he’s traded. The Blazers don’t even have to honor Lillard’s trade request since the superstar point guard doesn’t have a no-trade clause in his contract.
Shooting Guards
Starter: Anfernee Simons
Reserve: Shaedon Sharpe
Anfernee Simons averaged 21.1 points last season while shooting 44.7% from the field, 37.7% from beyond the arc, and 89.4% from the free-throw line. The 24-year-old has career averages of 12.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists.
Simons signed a four-year, $100 million contract with the Blazers in July 2022. He won the 2021 Slam Dunk Contest. Portland was open to trading Simons and the third overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft for a star. However, no trade happened.
Many people around the NBA believe the Blazers should trade Damian Lillard and Simons and start Scoot Henderson at point guard and Shaedon Sharpe at shooting guard. It will be intriguing to see if that happens.
Small Forwards
Starter: Matisse Thybulle
Reserve: Nassir Little
Despite having the same agent as Damian Lillard, Matisse Thybulle told reporters in Las Vegas on July 10 that he was happy to be back in Portland. Thybulle signed a three-year, $33 million offer sheet with the Dallas Mavericks as a restricted free agent. The Blazers matched the Mavericks’ offer sheet, keeping the two-time All-NBA defender.
“I got here and immediately stepped into a bigger role than I’d ever had,” Thybulle said. “It was an opportunity to showcase more. I’m grateful for it.”
Thybulle played for the Philadelphia 76ers and Blazers last season. He averaged 4.1 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 43.5% from the field, 36.5% from beyond the arc, and 67.9% from the free-throw line. The 26-year-old is one of the top perimeter defenders in the NBA.
Thybulle has career averages of 4.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists with the Sixers and Blazers. He played his college basketball at Washington.
Power Forwards
Starter: Jerami Grant
Reserve: Kris Murray
An anonymous member of the Blazers fired back at detractors who criticized the franchise for giving Jerami Grant a five-year, $160 million contract during a private conversation with Keith Smith of Spotrac.
“Jerami Grant’s contract isn’t a bad contract,” the anonymous member of the Blazers said. “People got downright idiotic with the things that were said and written about that deal. He’s making 20% of the cap and people acted like we gave him a max deal. No matter what direction our roster takes, that’s a good deal.”
Grant finished the 2022-23 season with averages of 20.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists. He shot 47.5% from the field, 40.1% from beyond the arc and 81.3% from the free-throw line.
The 29-year-old Grant has played for the Sixers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, and Blazers. He has career averages of 12.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists. Grant will make $27.6 million next season.
Centers
Starter: Jusuf Nurkic
Reserve: Moses Brown
Jusuf Nurkic signed a four-year, $70 million contract with the Blazers in July 2022. He’ll make $16.9 million next season. The center averaged 13.3 points and 9.1 rebounds last season while shooting 51.9% from the field, 36.1% from beyond the arc and 66.1% from the free-throw line. The 29-year-old played in 52 games.
Nurkic has career averages of 12.3 points and 8.6 rebounds with the Nuggets and Blazers. He’s close friends with Damian Lillard and some pundits think Portland wants to include Nurkic in a potential Lillard trade.
The Blazers were focused on trading Nurkic this summer, according to NBA insider Matt Moore of The Action Network, but The Bosnian Beast is still on the team, for now at least.
