The Trail Blazers are set to add another young guard to their two-way mix, agreeing to a deal with free agent John Tonje, according to agents George Roussakis and Mark Bartelstein, who told Shams Charania of ESPN.
Tonje’s path to Portland has moved quickly. He spent most of 2025/26, his rookie season, on a two-way contract with Utah before being dealt to Boston in February. The Celtics then passed on giving him a qualifying offer last month, which pushed the 25-year-old into unrestricted free agency.
Portland is getting a player who has already logged a little NBA time, even if the sample was small. Tonje, the 53rd pick in the 2025 draft, played in six games for Boston and averaged 2.5 points in 7.0 minutes per contest. He never got into a game for the Jazz.
His real production came in the G League, where he was far more active for the Salt Lake City Stars and Maine Celtics. Across 43 total appearances - 32 with Salt Lake City and 11 with Maine - the 6’4″ shooting guard put up 18.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 0.9 steals per game while shooting .460 from the field, .371 from three and .899 at the line.
Tonje also spent time with Boston’s Summer League team in Las Vegas, where he averaged 14.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals over five games while shooting .510/.452/.500 in 24.2 minutes per game.
A Nebraska native, Tonje played college basketball at Colorado State, Missouri and Wisconsin.
The Blazers have room to make the move without cutting anyone, since they currently have a two-way opening. Their other two-way players are Chris Youngblood and Jayson Kent.
Tonje’s deal will pay him $678,882 in 2026/27, which is half of the rookie minimum. He’ll be eligible to appear in up to 50 of Portland’s 82 regular season games.
In Other News...
Tom Dundon Is Already Testing Blazers Fans In A Big Way
Tom Dundons first months as the Trail Blazers owner have not exactly calmed nerves around the franchise. Since being officially appointed in March, he has already made a series of unpopular moves that have left longtime employees and a wary fan base uneasy about where the organization is headed, especially after a round of job cuts and the kind of internal churn that tends to linger well beyond one offseason.
The bigger concern now is what happens next in Portland. Negotiations with the city over a new arena deal have reportedly not gone well, and that has only added to the uncertainty around the teams future in the market. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has voiced support for keeping the Blazers in Portland, but for now the questions around Dundons direction remain very much alive. [Read more 🡒]