As part of a new series of articles produced exclusively for Sky Sports by NBA superfans from across the UK and Ireland, we look at the state of play for every franchise with preseason now under way ahead of the new campaign
Tuesday 18 October 2022 08:14, UK
Blazers follower Nick Pither assesses the 2021-22 season for his team, and then casts an eye ahead to the 2022-23 campaign for Portland.
My love for the Blazers began with a game of NBA 2K11 (similar to a story written recently on this website). I bought it in a sale, and had a match-up against my sister who chose the Celtics. I found it hard to choose a team – I had heard of a few names: the Lakers, the Celtics, the Bulls, but fancied picking an underdog or lesser-known team. I saw the pinwheel logo and it somehow drew me in. Fast-forward 11 years later, and here I am running a UK fan account for the Portland Trail Blazers.
I didn't watch a live game that first year, only highlights. That was enough though for me to fall in love with my favourite Blazer of all time - Brandon Roy. The Natural. If you haven't seen it, search 'Brandon Roy vs Mavericks Game 4' and you'll see why it was impossible for me not to become a Blazers fan.
The 2021-22 season looked potentially promising for the Blazers, but gradually became a write-off. Before the season started, I would've expected us to grab a play-off spot. NBA veteran Chauncey Billups was brought in as head coach, replacing Terry Stotts who had held the role for nine seasons. It was a big change, but I felt optimistic that Billups could bring something different and have a real impact.
Unfortunately as the games flew by, we struggled to keep a positive record. By Christmas we were 10th in the West. Our franchise star Damian Lillard was hurt, having injured himself early November. He wasn't playing his usual best - shooting a career-worst field goal percentage and 3-point percentage.
Lillard needed to rest and recover, and ended up sitting out for the remainder of the season as the new year began. February saw some much loved faces finally traded, it was time for the CJ McCollum-Dame backcourt partnership to sadly end. Things had to change. With Dame out and some key players traded, there was only one option for us… tanking season.
Tanking the season brought some positives. The poor final season record (27-55) helped bring a favourable draft lottery number, as well as some invaluable game time for some of our younger players.
Looking forward to the 2022-23 season, the main talking point is the same as always: 'How can we get Dame the right help?' – something that the Blazers have never quite nailed.
Lillard and Simons are the stars of the roster. The latter was given more minutes last season and proved he was deserving of the increased play-time, ranking 16th in field goal percentage and 9th in three-point percentage among shooting guards.
The 23-year-old was handed a four-year extension worth a reported $100 million, something that may raise a few eyebrows across the league, but I'm sure all Blazers fans are happy with the deal. Simons is athletic, silky and a composed shooter, and hopefully a major part of the Blazers' future.
As mentioned however, the focus is the now, and how we can maximise our chances of winning a ring while our franchise cornerstone Damian Lillard is in his prime. There have always been question marks over Dame's future as a Blazer. Every summer, he gets photoshopped in a Miami jersey (but then again, everyone does). To every Blazers fan's joy, Dame quashed any trade rumours by signing an extension deal with the team until 2026-27. l expect Dame to have a very strong season this year after having a long recovery time. He may start a little slow as he gets back into the competitive flow, but I expect him to be at his true best this year.
The younger players also look very exciting for us. There's a host of names we have that can all be a contributing part of the upcoming roster. Our draft picks look strong; Jabari Walker (second-round pick), will bring energy and solid rebounding, and Shaedon Sharpe (the No 7 pick) could well be the steal of the draft class. Unfortunately, Shaedon was injured during Summer League and is expected back in a few months. He really is one to watch, an effortless scorer with a huge upside.
The future looks bright, but also the clock is ticking on Dame's prime. Who knows how many elite years Dame has left in him. Unfortunately, we could see some of our bright sparks traded for more seasoned championship-experienced players in order for us to challenge with Dame next year. Or we could win it this year? Who knows…
Speaking realistically, I expect us to find our way into the play-off places this year. We finally signed Jerami Grant (who Blazers fans have been wanting for years), as well as Josh Hart and Gary Payton II, who are fantastic editions. We are quite guard-heavy, however. I'd grade our off-season an 'A'. The deals for Dame, Simons and center Jusuf Nurkic were all important and deserved, plus, the mentioned additions bolster out the roster pretty well.
Look 3.30am tip-offs are difficult, okay? Really difficult. Living in the UK, I can't watch too many games myself, but if you're nocturnal then I highly suggest catching some Blazer-mania this year. #RipCity Baby!
