One of the most consequential seasons in Portland Trail Blazers history tips off in exactly two weeks. Chauncey Billups' team had the day off following its loss to the Golden State Warriors in the preseason opener, the second off-day Portland has enjoyed since training camp officially began September 28th.
After a full week of practices—at least some of which were two-a-days, per Marc Stein—here are five big-picture takeaways from Blazers training camp.
The Offensive Identity Shift Is Real
Billups knows he can't break an offense that finished second in efficiency last season. Damian Lillard has reached the rare stratosphere where he's essentially a quality offense unto himself, and C.J. McCollum is an objectively quality second banana in spite of overarching questions about his on-court and salary fit beside Portland's greatest player ever. The Blazers' supporting cast offensively is full of proven veterans across the positional spectrum, at least one of whom anticipates a career season, and a pair of intriguing young players everyone in the organization agrees is ready to take the next step.
There's only so much any rookie coach could do to blunt Portland's offensive attack in 2021-22. It'd be shocking if the Blazers didn't finish top-10 in offensive rating based on personnel alone; any ranking below fifth would be a minor disappointment. Good thing for Billups, then, that Portland's collective embrace of its new coach's offensive principles at Media Day has turned out to be far more than empty rhetoric.
The Blazers are pinging the ball from side to side and making concerted efforts to play early in the shot clock. Their halfcourt spacing is better, and so is the overall pace of their movement without the ball. Remember, Billups isn't trying to reinvent Portland's offensive wheel. The tenets he believes will make Portland a tougher out come playoff time can be manifested as simply as Lillard pitching the ball ahead to McCollum after a make, then the latter getting into side hand-off action with Jusuf Nurkic before the shot clock hits 20 seconds.
Just because the Blazers already seem comfortable implementing Billups' offensive principles doesn't mean there won't be growing pains. Billups said his team took too many contested threes against Golden State, and there were definitely times guards didn't exploit opportunities to crease the paint. The regular season grind will make it easier for Lillard and McCollum, in particular, to revert to the playstyle they know best during times of strife, fatigue or injury.
All that is to be expected, though. What wasn't guaranteed is the Blazers already playing with the type of flow, pace and overall continuity just a week into practice that Billups has been preaching since taking the reins in late June.
No More Waiting On Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little
Simons only became a full-time member of Portland's rotation last season in March, and Little never earned that place in Terry Stotts' pecking order despite being publicly promised he had in early April. To a man, the Blazers have waxed poetically about the positive impact of Billups' constant communication and frank means of clarifying player roles and responsibilities. Going into 2021-22, basically, Simons and Little will know exactly what's expected of them.
Simons will be Portland's first guard off the bench, splitting nominal point guard duties with McCollum when they're on the floor without Lillard—a notable departure from his previous role as caretaker and spot-up shooter. Little entered Monday's game before any of his fellow reserves, taking Norman Powell's place at small forward. Billups also has plans to play Little at small-ball four, plus the hope he emerges as the Blazers' designated stopper of superstar wings.
For now, Simons seems better equipped than Little for their leveled-up standings in Portland's rotational hierarchy, no surprise considering his significantly more playing experience. Both will have to reach realistic peaks of providing reliable production off the bench every night for the Blazers to compete toward the top of the Western Conference. But the bet here is Little's play emerges as an X-factor for Portland, the key to bigger, more versatile lineups defensively and the only player outside Lillard and Powell who's shown a proclivity for attacking downhill.
Either way, we're bound to learn much more this season about where Simons and Little are now and where their games might be going than in years past.
The Defense Is A Work In Progress
The sense of accountability Billups has instilled in his team is poised to pay off most defensively, where he's promised to “put an address” on individual players' mistakes on the bench and in film sessions. Pointing out miscues directly and immediately working to prevent them is a necessary part of substantially improving a defense that ranked second-worst in basketball last season. But it won't be enough unless Billups can successfully force some square pegs on the Blazers' roster into the round holes of his aggressive defensive scheme, and the loss to Golden State laid bare just how difficult that may be.
Billups expressed before training camp how important physical fitness would be to Nurkic's ability to disrupt defenses on the perimeter before scurrying back to the paint. Nurkic is in arguably the best shape of his career, but admitted after the game that better conditioning would make executing his new defensive responsibilities easier. The Bosnian Beast can only get so much quicker, though, and there's no lengthening Portland's guards when they get stuck as the as the last line of defense at the rim or splitting the difference between two defenders at the elbow.
Against some opponents, even Little—with his ridiculous 7'2” wingspan—will be exploited by shooters with deep range if he's not in exactly the right help position.
The good news for Portland is its defense doesn't need to be among the league's top third. Even league-average defense or slightly below it would be enough for a team bound to be among basketball's best on the other side of the ball. But getting there will take time, patience and inevitable growing pains, perhaps with Billups toggling his rotation based on specific opponent to get his most optimal defensive units on the floor.
Don't Underestimate Larry Nance Jr.
Nance was among the league leaders in steals and deflections per game last season before getting injured, proving his chops as one of basketball's most disruptive, versatile defenders. Billups and Lillard each mentioned plans to play him at small-ball five this season, further evidence of Nance's improvement switching onto guards, an area in which he's clearly superior to Robert Covington.
Needless to say, Nance's defensive influence will be huge for Portland. Billups couldn't stop gushing about what he provides on the other end of the floor after the Blazers' exhibition debut, though.
“Larry’s just a basketball player,” Billups said. “He’s one of the best in the entire league at setting those screens, catching dribble hand-offs really, really quickly, roll quickly, catch it, make another secondary play. He’s really, really good at that. We have to find a way, and we will, to keep getting to know each other on the floor out there. And he’s gonna be a huge asset for us in the way he plays like that.”
Nance embodies the way Portland wants to play on both sides better than any other player on the roster. Odds are he doesn't force his way into a seemingly ironclad starting lineup, but don't be surprised when Nance establishes himself as the Blazers' most indispensable, impactful role player this eason.
Follow Us
Subscribe