Will the Portland Trail Blazers go all in for a playoff push during their 2023-24 campaign?

Portland finished with a record of 33-49 last season, good enough for 13th in the Western Conference and fifth in the Northwest Division behind the Utah Jazz. They finished three games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for a spot in the Play-In.

During last year's regular season, the Blazers had a healthy mix of experienced veterans and budding young talent. Rookie guard Shaedon Sharpe, who joined the roster via the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, finished the year with 9.9 points in 22.2 minutes played per contest. Sharpe became the first Trail Blazers rookie to record three straight games of 25 points or more since former Ohio State guard Kelvin Ransey in 1981, according to an April tweet from NBA History.

Forward Jabari Walker, a second-round selection out of Colorado in 2022, saw the floor in 56 matchups and 11.1 minutes per contest for the Trail Blazers last season.

Should they walk away with a bright young prospect like forward Taylor Hendricks with their projected No. 5 pick, will center Dereck Lively be a solid selection to look out for at No. 23? How will Lively fit in with the roster's rising young talent and beyond?

A backup center for the Blazers

Jusuf Nurkic is the only listed center on the team's payroll for the 2023-24 season, according to Spotrac. He finished the year with averages of 13.3 points and 9.1 rebounds during his seventh season with Portland, playing and starting in 52 games while grabbing as many as 19 rebounds against the Indiana Pacers in January.

Lively finished the 2022-23 season with 82 blocks, just five blocks shy of Syracuse center Jesse Edwards for the top spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference, after averaging 20.6 minutes per game in 34 games.

“Dereck has had a special freshman season,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said in an April release. “He's grown as much as any player that we've had from the beginning of the season to the end and it's a reflection on the work he's put into his craft.

“He's the ultimate team guy. Any NBA franchise will be lucky to have a guy like Dereck because of what he brings to the table, of course from a basketball standpoint, but just as much as who he is as a teammate. I'm so proud of what he's done and wish him, Kathy and his family the best as he takes the next step. He's going to be great at the next level.”

Should he fall to Portland at No. 23, he could be a reliable backup for the Blazers if they do not bring back forward Drew Eubanks, who played in 78 games and started in 28.

Size and rebounding

The Blazers will need to add more size to the squad if they are going to try for more hopeful attempts for the NBA playoffs.

Two Portland forwards, Walker and Trendon Watford, are listed with non-guaranteed deals for the 2023-24 season by Spotrac. Watford is the team's only listed power forward for next season.

Even if the Blazers go after a forward with their earlier pick, they will have to continue investing in extra size and rebounding to compliment the team's talented guards.

Portland finished last season with an average of 40.6 rebounds per game, good enough to tie with the Miami Heat and put them two places ahead of the Dallas Mavericks for last place in the league. They allowed 53.3 points in the paint, giving them the 25th spot in the NBA behind the Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers and Charlotte Hornets.

Lively ended the 2022-23 season with averages of 5.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. He grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked eight shots against North Carolina in February, countering the 10 rebounds apiece held by UNC forwards Armando Bacot and Leaky Black.

“As his career goes along? He's going to continue to add things to his game and be such a difference maker,” Scheyer said in March, via On3. “But his ability to protect the rim, to move his feet, to defend on the perimeter? It's a huge skill for us. We're very lucky to have him.”

Lively's 7-foot-1-inch frame and rebounding ability would be an ideal addition to a Trail Blazers roster in need of reliable rebounders outside of Nurkic, who was the only player currently on Portland's roster to average more than 5.4 rebounds per game last season. Whether he is able to contribute right away, or he needs a few years to refine his craft, he can be a worthy investment for Portland's near and foreseeable future.