All signs were pointing towards a breakout season for Portland Trail Blazers high-flyer Shaedon Sharpe.
Everything aligned as Sharpe built on the momentum he had gained following a strong finish to last year. Sharpe was the one standout player at Blazers training camp, earning a starting role over veteran Jerami Grant. That was particularly significant, considering Chauncey Billups had benched Sharpe midseason the year prior, proving there were legitimate signs of improvement.
Shaedon Sharpe's breakout justifies Blazers' investment
General manager Joe Cronin clearly saw enough progress as well, deciding to invest in Sharpe in the form of a four-year, $90 million extension before the season. It wasn't just the extension, either. Cronin also invested in Sharpe with Portland's offseason moves, particularly the subtractions of Anfernee Simons and, to a lesser extent, Deandre Ayton. With their offense now out of the equation, and Scoot Henderson sidelined with a hamstring injury, Sharpe was set to take over as the Blazers' secondary scoring option alongside Deni Avdija.
Considering all these factors, it was surprising, disappointing, and somewhat concerning that Sharpe had such a slow start to the season. He had an inefficient month of October, averaging 17.3 points while shooting just 35% from the field and 26.7% from beyond the arc. Considering his high usage at 17.2 field goal attempts per game, this was a major roadblock in Portland's offense early on.
However, Sharpe's recent play proves the importance of patience early on in the season, as difficult as that may be after a highly anticipated offseason. He's now coming off the best game of the season, recording 35 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals while shooting 13-of-18 from the field in Portland's win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
Shaedon Sharpe just needed time to get healthy
That's now back-to-back 30-point performances, contributing to improved November averages of 23.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.8 steals on 51/28/73 shooting splits. And he's accomplishing this despite a restriction of 27-28 minutes per game.
Sharpe has been dealing with a sore left calf to start the season, which appears to have been affecting his play more than many expected. In retrospect, it makes sense considering how much of Sharpe's game depends on his elite athleticism.
Sharpe's three-point efficiency remains a significant concern, but he's still finding ways to score by getting to his spots in the midrange and utilizing his athleticism to attack downhill and in transition. For instance, he just went 11-of-11 on his two-point attempts against New Orleans.
Now that he's healthy, Sharpe is proving he doesn't necessarily need to be a knockdown three-point shooter. He's already having the breakout season fans have been waiting for, justifying these starting lineup and extension decisions for Portland.
But if he ever becomes a consistent three-level scorer, Portland will have a legitimate star on its hands.