Blazers: 5 goals for Gary Trent Jr. to achieve in his rookie season

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TARRYTOWN, NY – AUGUST 12: Gary Trent Jr. #9 of the Portland Trail Blazers poses for a portrait during the 2018 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot on August 12, 2018 at the Madison Square Garden Training Facility in Tarrytown, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Switch on defense

With its roster finalized, the Blazers have seven guards to distribute 38.8 minutes to.

To utilize all of these players and speed up their development, Stotts will have to run a three-guard lineup. He did so last year with Lillard, McCollum and Shabazz Napier, but only for a total of 233 minutes. (Napier played 1535 total minutes, to put that into perspective.)

At 6 feet 6 inches tall, Trent Jr. will probably play small forward when a three-guard lineup includes him. That means the rookie will defend players much taller and longer than him.

Nik Stauskas is the only other Portland guard capable of playing forward in a small lineup, but he isn’t a strong defender. So if Trent Jr. can hold his own against opponents trying to post up or use their physicality to create an easy shot attempt, he’ll earn those third-guard minutes.

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Equally as important, Trent Jr. must be able to switch on screens and defend smaller, quicker opponents. Lillard and McCollum almost always call for a switch when they run into a screen, leaving players like Trent Jr. to handle their matchup.

He averaged 1.3 steals per game in Summer League, which tied for second on the team. His quick hands, plus above average agility and speed, will help him confidently defend opponents at either guard position, or at small forward.