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Portland Trail Blazers: 3 crucial storylines to watch for during the Blazers’ preseason matchups

By Marlow Ferguson Jr.

Mar 4, 2020; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0), guard CJ McCollum (3) and forward Carmelo Anthony (00) during the singing of the national anthem before a game against the Washington Wizards at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2020; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0), guard CJ McCollum (3) and forward Carmelo Anthony (00) during the singing of the national anthem before a game against the Washington Wizards at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports /
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Portland Trail Blazers
Anfernee Simons, Portland Trail Blazers (Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports) /

No. 2: What does Anfernee Simons show with increased playing time?

On a team of future Hall of Famers, a perennial All-NBA teamer, and potential first-time All-Stars, it’s an uphill battle placing Anfernee Simons high on the pecking order of importance among Blazers players in 2020-21. But here’s the case.

We briefly hit on it, when discussing how Carmelo Anthony and Gary Trent Jr. could contend in the Sixth Man of the Year race. Among those benefiting most from the Blazers’ newfound depth are Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, the NBA’s No. 1 and No. 2 in minutes per game last season.

Historically, Terry Stotts’ plan has been to almost always have one of either Lillard or McCollum on the floor. But to ensure their freshness for both future seasons, and the potential 2021 postseason run, having someone competent enough to allow them to play more together, where they’ve been at their best. For reference:

Lillard, McCollum on-off statistics, since 2015-16:
Lillard + McCollum together — 9,241 minutes, +4.34 rating
McCollum on-court, Lillard off — 4,189 minutes, -3.14 rating
Lillard on-court, McCollum off — 4,110 minutes, +1.10 rating

Enter Anfernee Simons.

Kenny Smith had an old saying on NBA on TNT: by year three, you basically know what you have in a player.

Pairing Neil Olshey’s public show of support in Simons — he kept the final roster spot clear, in faith that he would be the backup point guard — and Simons’ workouts with pure point guard Darren Collison this summer are reasons for optimism.

Simons should have the chance to put that on display, since Lillard and McCollum won’t log heavy minutes during the preseason. It should give Simons a chance to generate momentum heading into the regular season.

I recently went back to watch Simons’ postseason games against the Lakers, with Lillard sidelined for some of Game 4 and all of Game 5.

There, he displayed a few tendencies: he has an absolute nose for the basketball and crashing the glass. In those last two games, only Jusuf Nurkic and CJ McCollum grabbed more rebounds than Simons. And when he did, he pushed the ball at a blistering pace.

If nothing came of that, and the offense needed to reset, he showed the ability to driving, one-handed dish to the corners that’s so important for point guards, as shown here.

The key for Simons should absolutely be to get efficient offense for himself and others early on, if he wants to carve out his role. Maybe he isn’t the most important player on this Blazers team. But this preseason feels as if it holds more importance for him than nearly anyone.