The Portland Trail Blazers are nearly at training camp, and that means the first real answers of the season are about to start coming into view.
This is the first year of the Mikkelnori era in Portland, with the new coach arriving in the Pacific Northwest after spending the previous five seasons as the lead assistant for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He inherits a team that reached the playoffs last season, but there’s still plenty of uncertainty baked into the roster. Before camp opens next week, three issues stand out above the rest.
The biggest one is how Portland sorts out its scoring hierarchy. The Blazers now have three legitimate options at the top of the offense: Ja Morant, Damian Lillard and Deni Avdija. Morant arrived in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, while Lillard is working his way back from the torn Achilles that cost him all of last season.
Avdija emerged as the team’s leading scorer a year ago and earned his first All-Star nod in the process. He helped carry Portland to the playoffs as the primary option, and with him entering what could be the prime of his career, there’s every reason to think he can shoulder that load again.
The tricky part is making all three fit. Nori’s challenge is to get Morant, Lillard and Avdija to mesh without stepping on one another’s strengths. If he pulls it off, Portland could end up with one of the strongest teams in the Western Conference.
Lillard, even at 36, has already shown he can still be highly productive after the Achilles injury that sidelined him for more than a year. His shooting remains elite, and that alone gives the Blazers a major weapon this season.
He may not be the same player Portland knew from 2012-23, but if the Blazers can get something close to 80 percent of that version, they’ll still have one of the league’s best players in the mix.
There’s also a roster battle to watch at the bottom of the depth chart. The final spot is expected to come down to two of Jalen Krejci, Jeremy Sochan and Micah Potter.
Krejci is on a partially guaranteed contract, and that deal becomes fully guaranteed if he makes the opening-night roster. That means training camp matters a lot for him; a rough showing could cost him his place.
Potter and Sochan are both pushing as well, though neither has a clean path to a spot. Sochan is on an Exhibit 9 contract, which keeps him with the team only for training camp, though that can be converted into a standard deal without much trouble. Potter’s deal is partially guaranteed until January 10, 2027, which makes him a likely roster candidate, even if Portland can move on from him fairly easily if needed.
Of the three, Sochan appears to be the longest shot. Still, as a former top-10 pick, he has a chance to make a strong impression and force his way into a standard contract.
In Other News...
Blazers Face A Damian Lillard Ja Morant Problem They Cant Ignore
Portlands rebuild has been built around defense, length and athleticism, a clear identity pushed by general manager Joe Cronin and carried by coaches like Chauncey Billups and Tiago Splitter. The arrival of Ja Morant in the offseason gave the roster a new kind of pressure point, though, because the expected return of Damian Lillard has turned the backcourt into the teams most interesting puzzle before the season even gets going.
Micah Nori now has to decide how the Blazers want to look when the games matter, whether that means starting Morant or Lillard, staggering their minutes or leaning on a different mix altogether. Jrue Holiday gives Portland another way to smooth things out with his size, defense and shooting, and the question is no longer whether the Blazers have options. It is which one best matches the version of the team they have spent the rebuild trying to become. [Read more 🡒]
Robert Williams Could Decide How Far Portlands New Era Goes
The Trail Blazers are entering a different kind of phase, with new ownership, a new coaching staff and a high-profile trade addition all pointing toward the 2026-27 season as the start of something more ambitious. In that setting, Robert Williams has become more than a backup center on the depth chart. After a healthier stretch last season, he looks positioned to matter in the areas Portland will need most, especially on the defensive end and on the glass.
Williams is still the kind of player whose value can swing a lot depending on availability, and that is what makes him such an intriguing piece in Portlands new era. If he can stay on the floor and deliver the rim protection and rebounding the Blazers are counting on, he could help determine whether this group merely stabilizes or actually moves into the playoff conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Face A Tough Young Guard Decision With Sharpe In Focus
Portlands backcourt has quickly become one of the most interesting balancing acts on the roster, with Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe both standing out as young guards who need the ball, the right minutes and a clear path forward. After the Blazers recent playoff experience, the front office has a better sense of how hard it is to make multiple guards fit cleanly on a team trying to rise out of the middle, and that makes every roster decision around this pair feel heavier than it might on a rebuilding club.
Hendersons timeline matters because his rookie-scale extension window is approaching, while Sharpes health situation adds another layer of uncertainty to an already crowded picture. Portland has to decide not just who it wants to keep, but which young guard gives it the best mix of upside, timing and roster balance as it tries to avoid clogging the same lane twice. [Read more 🡒]