On Friday morning, the Portland Trail Blazers shipped out Derrick Jones Jr. along with a first round pick as part a three-team deal that landed them former Cleveland Cavaliers forward, Larry Nance Jr. The move was largely praised around NBA circles. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor had this to say upon hearing the news live while recording on The Mismatch podcast:
"“I’m a Blazers fan now! Larry Nance Jr., this could be a great acquisition for Portland, Nance is a very good defender and is now the guy who could screen for Dame and if they switch or if they trap or they pressure Dame, he’s the outlet. Because he can make plays off the bounce, he can finish a lot at the rim, with lobs. Larry Nance Jr. is a perfect, a perfect fit for Damian Lillard. Is he a guy that’s going to make Dame want to stay well that remains to be seen but this helps. This is a good trade for Portland.” “Larry Nance Jr. is a more important acquisition than I think people realize on the surface because he was so underrated and overlooked in Cleveland.”"
Zach Harper of The Athletic also had good things to say about the trade:
"“For what Portland is giving up here, the Blazers are getting great value with Nance joining the roster. Forward position is a big hole for the Blazers. Their big men consist of Jusuf Nurkic, Cody Zeller, Robert Covington and maybe second-round pick Greg Brown. That’s it. As much as you can like what Derrick Jones Jr. tries to bring to the table as a wing, Nance gives you more in pretty much every area. He’ll help defensively one of the worst defenses in league history. He’ll allow them to play big or small at times. He can be a great roll man for Lillard or CJ McCollum. Nance sets good screens, which can help that backcourt or Norman Powell get free to light up the opposing defense.”"
A deep examination of how the Larry Nance Jr. acquisition will impact the Portland Trail Blazers
This is undoubtedly a step in the right direction for the Portland Trail Blazers who had been facing a lot of external pressure to bolster the roster before the season starts on October 20th. Ahead, let’s take a look at the Blazers roster and rotation for the 2021-22 season now that Larry Nance Jr. is in the fold.
Trail Blazers Roster
As it stands, the Blazers currently have 13 players signed to standard contracts for next season as well as one two-way player in Trendon Watford. When the NBA season begins, teams are required to carry at least 14 players on their roster out of a maximum of 15 players allowed (two-way contracts don’t count), meaning the Blazers still have another roster spot to fill.
The addition of Larry Nance Jr. has done wonders in terms of balancing out the roster. The Blazers have been searching for an adequate backup four ever since Carmelo Anthony revealed he would be joining the Los Angeles Lakers. Derrick Jones Jr. was a bit too undersized at 6’5”, neither Kenneth Faried nor Michael Beasley impressed in their summer league showings, and Greg Brown III, who the Blazers selected with the 43rd pick in the NBA draft, is probably a little too raw to be thrown into the rotation so early on in his career.
Nance Jr. joins Covington as the only two players on Portland’s roster capable of manning the 4/5 positions in a “small-ball” lineup, without sacrificing easy points on the defensive end. This would be a vast improvement from last season’s small lineup which featured Anthony and Covington in the front court, and whose defensive efficiency ranked in the 3rd percentile during the regular season and the 11th percentile in the playoffs, according to cleaningtheglass.com.
Portland's net rating last season when they went small (Anthony/Covington at the 4/5) was -0.3. Even though their offense was bludgeoning teams, it was entirely undone by their defense - which ranked in the 3rd percentile compared to all other lineups who played at least 100 poss pic.twitter.com/nlubNsO6dW
— Hassan Ladiwala (@ladiwala_hassan) August 30, 2021
Nance Jr. aside, the Blazers have a number of guys available to play on the wings for them in 2021-22. Though CJ McCollum and Norman Powell will start, new additions Ben McLemore and Tony Snell, as well as hold-overs Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little, will provide some solid depth at the two and three positions.
Given that Billups is a coach who seems to value defense, I’m especially excited to see if Nassir Little will be able to carve out a spot for himself in the rotation. Little, the sixth-rated prospect in the ESPN 100 back in 2018, is entering his third season in the NBA and said last year that he felt he had “all the tools to be one of the best perimeter defenders in entire league”, something you love to hear from a young player with Little’s athleticism.