After a year full of important moves, the Portland Trail Blazers are ready to return to the playoffs. The team finished 27-55 with Damian Lillard missing a number of games due to an injury. The front office also decided it was time to try something new and traded CJ McCollum after years sharing the backcourt with Lillard. The Blazers also traded Norman Powell and Robert Covington.

The 2022 offseason has been a very active one for Portland. The Blazers acquired Jerami Grant without giving up any rotation players, and they signed Gary Payton II in a steal of a deal for three years, $28 million.

The team also agreed to a $122 million extension with Lillard, securing the All-Star until 2026-27 if he opts in, and re-signed Anfernee Simons for four years, $100 million. Additionally, Portland was also able to draft Shaedon Sharpe, already thinking for the future of the franchise.

However, if the backcourt looks established and secured for the future, the same cannot be said about the frontcourt.

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Blazers' Worst 2022 NBA Offseason Move

Jusuf Nurkić has been an important piece for Portland since he was acquired in 2017. After years of being a backup to Nikola Jokić, the Bosnian Beast immediately proved he could become a starter on a playoff team.

But in most recent years, Nurkić missed a ton of games due to multiple injuries. Portland still trusts him enough and re-signed him to a four-year, $70 million deal, with hopes he can still contribute in a supportive role to Lillard.

Was this the correct move for the Blazers' championship hopes? Nurkić already knows the system and has chemistry with Lillard, but there is too much uncertainty surrounding if he can remain healthy.

And to be his backup, Portland re-signed Drew Eubanks, after he came over from the San Antonio Spurs last season. The big man out of Oregon State has career averages of 5.9 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 59.0% from the field.

Both Nurkić and Eubanks are not well known for their 3-point shooting, hitting only 23.2% and 30.8% for their careers, respectively. In a league where big men are getting more and more distant from the rim, having two non-shooting centers could become an issue.

If there is something the Blazers could have done this offseason, it could have been being more aggressive and creative in the center market.

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Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns felt very distant after the team's elimination of the playoffs. Perhaps Portland should have tried to pursue Ayton, even if it was via sign-and-trade. Ayton is still young and already has a solid midrange shot, so he could still develop 3-point shooting ability.

The team that offered him a big deal, the Indiana Pacers, have been in trade rumors for a long time regarding their starting center Myles Turner. The former Texas Longhorn averages 2.3 blocks per game for his career, leading the league twice. He also hits 34.9% from beyond the arc.

Portland could have explored all those options, but decided to play safe. There are still some available free agents such as DeMarcus Cousins, who could help the team offensively and should not be a very expensive backup.

Yes, bringing back Nurkić could turn out to be the best decision, but Ayton and Turner are very big what-if scenarios that could have helped the remaining  years of Lillard's prime. Since the Blazers already parted ways with McCollum, trading another longtime starter is not impossible.

Should Nurkić remain healthy, he can contribute and grab many boards on both ends of the floor. Should he still have trouble staying on the court, perhaps the Blazers could take another look around the market.