Damian Lillard’s box score was solid enough in Portland’s preseason opener. The more encouraging sign, though, was how easily he seemed to get where he wanted to go.
That was one of the key takeaways Elias Esquivel of Blazers on SI pulled from the Blazers’ 123-118 win over a short-handed Warriors team on Wednesday. Lillard finished with 15 points, while Deni Avdija was the headliner for Portland with 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting and three made 3-pointers. Esquivel pointed to Avdija’s ability to stay productive while taking on more of the offensive load alongside Lillard and Ja Morant.
Morant’s first outing was rougher around the edges. He put up eight points and five assists, but also committed four turnovers. Esquivel, though, urged caution about drawing big conclusions from a single preseason game.
Portland also got useful work from its interior pieces. Donovan Clingan grabbed 10 rebounds, and Robert Williams III added eight points, five boards and five blocks. With Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and other notable Warriors sitting out, the Blazers were able to get an early look at how their new offensive pieces fit together on the floor.
Golden State had its own reasons to pay attention to Wednesday’s game, even in defeat. Miles Kelly and Dalen Terry both made a case for more consideration. Kelly scored 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting, while Terry filled the stat sheet with 23 points, nine assists, eight rebounds and four steals.
Joey Akeley of Warriors on SI argued Kelly should be in the conversation for a two-way spot. The Warriors’ three current two-way slots belong to LJ Cryer, Graham Ike and Malevy Leons, and Akeley questioned whether Leons, who went 2-of-11 on Wednesday, should hold his place over a player with more offensive pop. He also said he has not seen reporting that Golden State plans to waive Leons.
Terry’s path is trickier. He is not eligible for a two-way contract, and Akeley noted that the Warriors’ full standard roster, along with financial limitations, makes keeping him complicated.
Brandon Williams also helped himself. He scored 17 points and handed out four assists in 18 minutes, boosting his case to remain on his non-guaranteed deal. Akeley described him as an increasingly clear fit behind Curry.
Chicago’s preseason opener brought a different set of encouraging signs. Matas Buzelis and rookie Caleb Wilson each scored 15 points in the Bulls’ 124-117 win over the Suns, even though neither could connect from deep, combining to miss all 10 of their 3-point attempts.
Elias Schuster of Bulls on SI liked the way Buzelis attacked the basket early and also pointed to flashes from Wilson against Phoenix’s physical defense. He also noted something worth monitoring in coach Tiago Splitter’s rotation: Patrick Williams and Noa Essengue did not check in until midway through the third quarter, after Splitter had already gone deeper into the bench.
One preseason game won’t settle every role, but it gave Chicago an early glimpse of how minutes might be distributed once the roster gets healthier. Nic Claxton and Zach Collins were among the players out.
Jalen Smith contributed 13 points and eight rebounds, while Dailyn Swain added 10 points and six assists. The Bulls also helped themselves at the line, making 28 of 32 free throws.
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Bulls Already Have A Rotation Debate Fans Will Want To Watch
The first preseason look offered the Bulls a little of everything in a 124-117 win over Phoenix, and it also offered the kind of early rotation conversation teams usually prefer to avoid this soon. Caleb Wilson came out aggressively and finished with 15 points, Matas Buzelis kept attacking the rim even while the outside shot wasnt falling, and Tobe Awaka made his case off the bench with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Dailyn Swain added 10 points and six assists, while Norman Powell showed immediate value with his three-point shooting.
For Chicago, the bigger takeaway is less about the final score than about how several newcomers and young pieces fit into the same mix. A single preseason game is hardly a verdict, but it did give the Bulls a first glimpse at players who can push for minutes in different ways, whether through energy, rim pressure, playmaking or spacing. The challenge now is figuring out which of those performances were one-night flashes and which ones can actually shape the nightly rotation once the games count. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Already Face A Tough Dailyn Swain Decision
Chicagos preseason has been a testing ground for Tiago Splitters new-look approach, and rookie Dailyn Swain has been right in the middle of it. The Bulls have been giving him on-ball reps early, letting him handle more creation than most first-year players are asked to manage, a sign that the staff wants to learn quickly what kind of upside he can carry and how soon it might matter.
Swains path, though, is still very much in evaluation mode. His Summer League stint was rough, and a recent game against the Suns showed both the promise and the growing pains of asking him to do so much so soon. For now, the question is less about whether he can eventually take on a bigger role and more about whether he first needs steadier comfort in off-ball work before Chicago pushes him any further. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Rotation Questions Are Already Mounting After Preseason Opener
Caleb Wilsons preseason debut gave the Bulls a first look at just how fluid the early rotation could be, even with a team-high 15 points. His scoring stood out, but the rest of his night was uneven, and the same was true in different ways for the backcourt and frontcourt pieces trying to take advantage of extra minutes. With Tyus Jones sidelined by a hip injury, rookie Dailyn Swain handled more of the ball and finished with 10 points and six assists, a sign the Bulls may need to lean on him sooner than expected.
The bigger wrinkle came inside, where injuries to Nic Claxton and Zach Collins pushed Jalen Smith into the starting center spot and opened the door for two-way rookie Tobe Awaka. Awaka made the most of it with 14 points and 11 rebounds, giving Chicago a useful answer in the moment while also adding another name to a rotation picture that already looks unsettled after one preseason game. [Read more 🡒]