The Portland Trail Blazers have finally gotten healthy, or at least as healthy as they are going to be this season.

While that's cause for celebration among Blazers fans, it's also opened up issues for the team of late.

Deandre Ayton, Malcolm Brogdon, and Jerami Grant – the three most veteran starters on Chauncey Billups' roster – have all returned from various ailments this week. Guard Anfernee Simons returned last week.

While it's hard to find problems with four of the Blazers' top five scorers returning to action, there have been problems that have bubbled up in conjunction; noticeable slippage on the defensive side of ball, less than crisp passing, failure to execute schemes out of timeouts.

When asked about the team's issues after the Blazers' 13-120 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, coach Chauncey Billups recognized the difficulties in integrating players back into the lineup.

Said Billups, “It's essentially like being at the start of the season, and it takes teams two or three weeks to figure out their real rotations – who plays better with who – and it takes time. You can't just throw guys back together. Guys have been out and the other guys that have been in have been playing with extended minutes and getting more shots and that's an adjustment for them too. You have to pull back on some of that. It really is, it's a real adjustment for everybody. Those things just take time.”

Hopefully the team can continue to work through some of the needed adjustments. Billups has seemed frustrated with his team's defense in his last two postgame media availability sessions – in general against the Utah Jazz, and when discussing a timeout taken just 18 seconds into the second half against the Mavs due to a missed scheme.

The Blazers are a work in progress. But with the team reasonably healthy and the glimmers of potential starting to emerge, so are expectations. Not necessarily to win games, but to compete and maintain their identity as a defensive-minded team.

Up next – The Blazers host the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.