With unresolved logjams at both the point guard and center positions, it makes sense that the losers of the Portland Trail Blazers' offseason were those who wound up buried at the bottom of the depth chart.
This is a strange but talented new roster in Portland, with the biggest addition being the playmaking of Ja Morant and Damian Lillard in the backcourt. It remains to be seen if GM Joe Cronin has another move on the horizon to find a better roster balance, but as currently constructed, here are the biggest winners and losers so far this summer.
Winner: Ja Morant
Ja Morant may be joining a crowded backcourt in Portland, but it's a new backcourt, a new city, and an overall much-needed change of scenery. The Blazers bought low on Morant in hopes that he could return to the two-time All-Star he once was in Memphis, and they're going give him every opportunity to do so regardless of how many other guards there are.
He also couldn't have possibly joined a better situation as far as veteran mentorship, learning alongside Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday.
Loser: Scoot Henderson
Part of the reason Portland decided to bring in Morant was that Scoot Henderson has yet to take the keys to the backcourt. That's also why last season was largely viewed as a make-or-break one for him to claim the starting spot for good. Some of that was due to unfortunate injury luck, but regardless of the circumstances, it's only getting harder for Henderson to carve out a significant and consistent role.
Winner: Damian Lillard
All these guards mean Damian Lillard's numbers will inevitably take a dip, but that's in his best interest, as the Blazers don't want to rely too heavily on a 36-year-old guard coming off a brutal Achilles tear.
He will no longer have to take on such a playmaking burden, particularly during the regular season gauntlet, as he can lean on the likes of Morant and Deni Avdija. That's the perfect recipe for Lillard to ease himself back, slowly returning to form as the postseason gets closer.
In the meantime, the Blazers will still need his elite shooting.
Loser: Shaedon Sharpe
Similarly to Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe failed to seize his opportunity to claim this backcourt as his own. Now, he's buried on the depth chart, which is arguably even more problematic than Henderson due to Sharpe's inability to make a 3-and-D impact. He's at his best when he's able to create shots for himself, which isn't a scalable role in this current Blazers roster.
Bleacher Report's Dan Favale recently predicted Henderson and Sharpe to be among the NBA's trade candidates this season. After the offseason Portland just had, in which they pushed their future backcourt further down the totem pole, it's easy to see why.
Winner: Sidy Cissoko
Perhaps the Blazers bring in more players on non-guaranteed deals to compete with Micah Potter and now Jeremy Sochan for the final roster spots. But as currently constructed, wing depth behind Toumani Camara and Deni Avdija remains a glaring issue. Matisse Thybulle, Kris Murray, and Jerami Grant are now all out of the picture.
Sidy Cissoko could be in line for a bigger role than he's probably supposed to have on this deep, but unbalanced roster.
Loser: Yang Hansen
The fact that the Blazers now roster four centers is telling about their confidence level in Hansen's short-term impact. He should start the season fourth on the depth chart behind Donovan Clingan, Robert Williams III, and Branden Carlson. To make matters worse, his inability to defend the perimeter makes it impossible to carve out any minutes at the four.
One silver lining is Portland is deep and healthy at the position, meaning it could give Hansen more opportunity to develop in the G League compared to last year.
Add us as a preferred source on Google