The Portland Trail Blazers made it clear at Media Day that they view having this many ball handlers on the roster as a good problem to have. Just last season, this injury-riddled team would've killed for this backcourt depth, and who knows, maybe they wouldn't have led the league in turnovers.
It's not that having this amount of point guards and centers is necessarily a bad thing. Rather, it's the opportunity cost of how thin Portland now is at the wing/forward positions.
The Blazers shipped Jerami Grant and Kris Murray to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for another point guard, Ja Morant. They also saw two-way wing Matisse Thybulle walk in free agency, joining their rival Los Angeles Lakers.
Blazers are confident in their wings from last season
General manager Joe Cronin said that his decision to ignore that depth or not directly replace those players was largely due to his belief in their existing group of wings/forwards.
That mainly points to traits like Toumani Camara's underappreciated availability or Deni Avdija's well-rounded game that makes him the NBA's version of the Pokemon Ditto. But what shouldn't get lost in those comments is the Blazers' remaining wings coming off the bench, specifically Vit Krejci and Sidy Cissoko.
Former Atlanta Hawks sharpshooter Krejci is due for a resurgence after surprisingly struggling coming over to Portland at the deadline. That should give Portland a much-needed boost both in terms of spacing the floor and finding pieces to spell Avdija and Camara for stretches.
But perhaps the most overlooked piece on this entire Blazers roster is Cissoko.
Sidy Cissoko is an underrated piece of this Blazers roster
This is someone who was an afterthought on this roster just one year ago as a two-way signing. To say he made the most of his opportunity would be an understatement. Cissoko not only managed to start in 26 games; he even saw his two-way contract converted into a standard one.
That was the right decision to continue investing in Cissoko. He continues to get better at just 22 years old, particularly as an evolving 3-and-D wing. His 29.8 percent shooting from deep last season isn't overly encouraging in general, but it is when looking at it compared to his shooting struggles with the San Antonio Spurs to start his NBA career.
The two-way wing archetype is arguably the most valuable in the league, and the Blazers managed to land a hidden gem in Cissoko. They've already increased his role and minutes accordingly, but these offseason moves by Cronin could mean Cissoko is in store for an even bigger 2026-27.
That comes with some level of risk for a Blazers team with playoff aspirations. They have a thin margin of error and can't necessarily afford to go through many of Cissoko's growing pains on the offensive end.
But the fact that they lost all these wing pieces and just simply stood pat suggests the Blazers' belief in Cissoko to take on an even more significant role this season.
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