4 Portland Trail Blazers guaranteed to have a bigger role in 2023-2024

With the NBA Draft Lottery a week away, the Portland Trail Blazers will soon have either a new crown jewel prospect to add to their team or a “needle-mover” they acquire in a trade. Even with the roster about to go through a major renovation, there are a few Blazers still on the roster that are in line for a more significant role next year.

It’s unclear whether Portland will push all of its chips in and try to contend with Damian Lillard, or whether they will rebuild with the trade package from dealing Lillard. Still, the team has a young, shallow roster outside of the starting lineup.

That leaves a number of potential roles for players to step into and expand their games. Here, we’ll look at four Blazers who are best set up to play those more important roles on the team.

Bigger Role Candidate #1: Ibou Badji

The least-heralded player of these four, Ibou Badji didn’t spend much time with the Blazers this season, but he figures to have a more prominent role once he gets healthy. Badji initially went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, but after a quick stint with the Wisconsin Herd, Portland signed him to a two-way contract.

Badji is a young, athletic center hailing from Dakar, Senegal, who brings a punchy mix of dunking, finishing, and shot-blocking to the floor. He has great length to contest attempts at the rim, finish sky-high lobs, and can run the floor with ease, which makes him the type of center the Blazers need to retool the position:

Once Badji returns from his knee surgery, he won’t feature heavily in the Blazers’ rotation, as he’ll likely have to fight for the backup center role at best. Earning even the third center role, however, would be a major feather in Badji’s cap, as he’d be back on track to carving out a defined role as a rim-running big on a team that desperately needs one.

That bigger role would allow him to still work on his game but get valuable NBA minutes.

Bigger Role Candidate #2: Jabari Walker

After a great season at Colorado, Jabari Walker found himself taking a surprise tumble down the draft boards before the Blazers snagged him with pick 57 last year. Walker averaged just 3.9 points and 2.9 rebounds on middling efficiency in a limited role last season.

That doesn’t speak to what Walker can be once he develops, however, as he has the prototypical measurements for a combo forward. Walker’s wingspan, defensive instincts, and burgeoning shooting touch are all ingredients that, with enough seasoning on the court, could help him carve out a major role with the team this season:

It’s hard to see Walker starting over Jerami Grant if he is brought back or starting next to Grant as the small forward, but given his consistent play as a rookie, there should be a bigger bench niche for Walker to step into this year. If he can start hitting shots at a reasonable clip, Walker could find himself emerging into a bigger role as the first forward off of the bench for the Blazers as soon as next season.

Bigger Role Candidate #3: Trendon Watford

Trendon Watford’s rise has already been documented, but he’s a clear candidate to see more playing time next year. After bouncing around the garbage time minutes of the Blazers and sparing G League opportunities, Watford strung together a handful of impactful games toward the end of the season that speaks to the positive impact he could have with more playing time.

The center of Watford’s appeal comes from his funky inside scoring and versatile game outside of putting the ball in the hoop. He has great footwork, timing, and touch, all of which make him a great short-roll passer and playmaker. The passing and defense are still in the works, but he’s shown enough to command a larger role for Portland:

What that role could be is still up for debate – the forward core of the Blazers will be one of the most heavily affected by roster movement this year – but Watford is on a team-friendly deal that keeps him tied to the team for the near future.

Whether he’s the first power forward off the bench or not, Watford should be one of the few players Chauncey Billups can count on to stabilize the offense when one of the star guards sits, which is a much more significant role than he had this year.

Bigger Role Candidate #4: Shaedon Sharpe

Of all of the players who graced the court for the Trail Blazers this year, the one who earned himself the most playing time next year was undoubtedly Shaedon Sharpe. It didn’t matter that he didn’t play a minute of college basketball at Kentucky and was regarded as one of the rawest lottery-level prospects in the draft; all Sharpe did was awe crowds and opponents with his high-flying play.

Sharpe just barely missed out on the NBA All-Rookie rosters, but he had one of the best closes to a season in recent memory. He stepped into the primary scoring role on the team and dazzled with clever fakes, hard drives, and deep jumpers that should make the Blazers seriously consider him as a potential fulcrum of their offense:

It’s hard to know exactly what kind of role Sharpe will have as next year’s roster isn’t finalized, but it will either be as a starter or the first player off the bench. If he starts, Sharpe will get to play as a tertiary creator next to Lillard and Grant, while his bench role would give him potentially more reps as a ball-handler to attack rims and showcase his immense unfinished potential.

Either way, Sharpe has earned a bigger role in Portland’s offense, which speaks to his ultimate potential to one day be the face of the franchise.