The Portland Trail Blazers are now 1-1 in preseason play after a 124-123 win in their home opener against the Sacramento Kings. Portland won despite shooting just 10-of-37 (27.0%) from beyond the arc, which is a concerning problem that will continue to haunt them throughout the regular season.
They were slightly better in their loss to the Golden State Warriors, where they shot 16-of-48 (33.3%) from deep. Still, this is well below league average. For context, the Blazers shot 34.2% last season, which ranked fifth-worst in the NBA. The year prior, they were dead last at 34.5%.
It's a small sample size of just games, but so far, the preseason has shown that the Blazers have managed to get worse in a key area where they were already horrible. That's not surprising, considering Portland's moves this offseason.
Lack of shooting is hindering Blazers' short- and long-term goals
The central theme of this surprising summer for the Blazers was doubling down on their defensive identity. They swapped Anfernee Simons for Jrue Holiday, losing a guard who has shot 38.1% from three on high volume (6.5 per game) throughout his career.
General manager Joe Cronin acquired an overpaid and declining Holiday in a move that he believed set Portland up for both short and long-term success. Despite the decline, he's still a more impactful two-way player than Simons this season. More importantly, Portland is still taking a long-term approach to its rebuild. They brought Holiday in because they wanted his veteran presence to boost the development of their young core.
While reasons all appear to be valid, the Blazers aren't doing themselves any favors with the lack of shooting they have on this roster. Portland won't end a four-year playoff drought in the star-studded Western Conference if it keeps shooting like they have the past two seasons. And, from a long-term view, they won't be able to optimize the development of their young core without reliable floor spacers.
Yang Hansen needs shooters to become the best version of himself as an elite passer. Shaedon Sharpe, Scoot Henderson, and Deni Avdija all need the paint to be unclogged to effectively take their man off the dribble. Chauncey Billups also wants Portland to increase its pace, but it will be challenging to do so if they don't have shooters to space the floor in transition.
To a certain extent, the Blazers could address this flaw through internal development. Sharpe, for instance, looks set to improve on his 31% from deep last season. Still, Portland won't get to where it hopes to go until it adds shooting specialists externally.
In a league that values the three-ball now more than ever, this is a fatal Achilles heel for the Blazers to have. And it makes you wonder why it wasn't made more of a priority this offseason.