The Portland Trail Blazers are heading into Halloween with a spotless record, but not everyone around the team is buying into the feel-good start without a few nerves attached. There’s plenty of optimism in Portland right now, yet the next stretch of the season also brings a few things that could turn ugly fast.
One concern is what happens if the Blazers pile up wins in the regular season and still run into trouble when the games get tighter. Austin White pointed to a familiar kind of trap: a team that looks strong for months, only to get exposed once the postseason starts.
“The Blazers continue to feel like those young Memphis teams from a few years back that dominated the regular season, got a top two seed and flamed out quickly in the postseason. Portland is going to be a try-hard team for the next five months, and I could see them finishing higher in the standings than expected.
But will they be able to beat a No. 7 seed Denver Nuggets team or a No. 6 Golden State Warriors?
I don't think so, and then an early playoff exit could wipe out all the good of a strong regular season.”
That worry ties into the reality of the Western Conference, where Portland won’t have much margin for error. The Blazers also haven’t spent a ton of time together as a complete group, which could matter against teams that have already been through plenty of playoff battles over the past few years.
Frontcourt size is another issue that keeps coming up. Ethen Hutton said his biggest concern is how Portland handles the interior over the course of an 82-game season, especially against the deeper frontcourts out West.
“My biggest fear with the Blazers this season lies in the frontcourt. Ja and Dame form a high-ceiling pairing in the backcourt, but I'm nervous to see how Portland’s interior on both sides of the ball holds up against the deeper frontcourts that reside out West (Denver, San Antonio, OKC) over the course of 82 games.”
Rocco Moschella zeroed in on the same area, but with an even narrower warning: the depth behind the top options. “The thing that scares me the most about the Blazers this season is their lack of frontcourt depth. If either Deni Avdija or Toumani Camara goes down, the Blazers will have to hope that Sidy Cissoko or Micah Potter can step up.”
That concern matters because Portland already saw what a strong frontcourt can do against them. The Blazers were beaten in the first round of the playoffs last season by the San Antonio Spurs, who leaned on Victor Wembanyama to control that area of the floor. In a conference loaded with teams that feature a major presence inside, that kind of weakness can become a problem quickly.
There’s also the question of whether the current roles can hold up all season. Sahal Arwo called out the sacrifices the roster is making, from Deni Avdija’s reduced usage to Scoot Henderson and Jrue Holiday coming off the bench after starting playoff games together.
“This Blazers team is making a lot of sacrifices: Deni Avdija was the go-to guy last season and now has his usage cut. Scoot Henderson and Jrue Holiday were starting playoff games together and are now coming off the bench.
I’m not entirely convinced that these things are sustainable for the entirety of the season. Winning solves everything until it doesn’t, and that's my fear for this Portland squad.”
For now, the chemistry is working. But the pressure changes fast if the losses start to stack up, and then the fit becomes part of the conversation too.
The Blazers’ togetherness may wind up being one of the biggest factors in how far they go. If someone isn’t fully bought in, it won’t stay hidden for long.
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Doncic arrives with the kind of recent scoring burst that demands a detailed plan, and Portland appears set on making him work for everything with a group effort on defense. The Blazers know one defender alone is unlikely to solve the problem, so the focus is on using multiple bodies to disrupt his rhythm and cut down the damage he can do. [Read more 🡒]
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Blazers Just Added A New Win Tradition Players Will Want To Earn
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Its a fitting touch for a team trying to build a stronger identity from night to night, because the honor can land on anyone who swings a result in Portlands favor. The first two players to take home the gloves were Damian Lillard and Toumani Camara, giving the tradition an immediate blend of established star power and the kind of all-around contribution coaches love to reward. [Read more 🡒]