The Portland Trail Blazers initially appeared as though they were sitting out day one of 2021 free agency, but the team eventually announced a few signings later in the day.
While the two newcomers weren’t exactly what the Rip City faithful have been hoping for this offseason, it was still a relief to see that General Manager Neil Olshey was making moves and he did come away with one crowd-pleaser.
The team and its fans might be kicking themselves watching notable and affordable mercenaries ink deals with other teams such as Nicolas Batum, Trey Lyles, and Otto Porter Jr.
The Portland Trail Blazers still have a lot of work to do this offseason
Neil Olshey knew that he had to reinforce the Blazers bench coming into this offseason as Enes Kanter and Carmelo Anthony were both headed for free agency. Derrick Jones Jr. opting into his player option helped to solidify the wing depth, but the team was already lacking a backup point guard from last year. Olshey and the Blazers are probably counting on young guns Nassir Little and Anfernee Simons to continue developing into reliable support pieces, but that shouldn’t stop the brass from finding some stable veterans to fill their bench.
In the first day, the Blazers found a reserve center and wing, while also retaining one of their most marquee pieces in Norman Powell. Re-signing Powell was of the utmost importance to the team and despite the lackluster of the two additions, Olshey can consider the first day a win on his resume as he was able to keep their expiring acquisition from the Toronto Raptors.
Here are the grades for the three moves the Portland Trail Blazers cemented on day one of free agency: