I don't want to keep writing about Tom Dundon, really. This will be my fourth Tom Dundon or Tom Dundon-adjacent piece of the month. I've said the name Tom Dundon so much that it's lost all meaning. Unfortunately, the new Blazers owner keeps making really odd decisions — none of which have endeared him to fans, and some of which look like early red flags about what he's willing to do (and not do) to build this team.
So far, the "not" column seems to include paying a coach a competitive salary and paying for two-way players (which includes Caleb Love, who was legitimately a hero throughout the month of January) to attend the team's playoff games.
Frankly, it's hard to believe that Dundon will shell out for free agents this summer after how his tenure as owner has started — and if he actually plans for the team to start winning immediately like he's claimed, he'll have to. Game 1 against the Spurs didn't "expose" the depth problem for the Blazers, but it did reinforce that this roster simply doesn't have enough impact NBA players.
With two rotation players set to hit free agency, that issue isn't going to fix itself. The frontcourt needs some serious beefing up and the wing position is going to be extremely thin, and if Dundon isn't willing to cough up some money to fill those holes, the Blazers' ceiling for next year will be lowered drastically.
Blazers' lack of depth is about to get worse this offseason
Yes, Damian Lillard will be back next year. He will provide a massive boon to this offense, which needs all the help it can get.
But an already-thin team is going to lose two of its few bench veterans, Robert Williams III and Matisse Thybulle, who have both been far better this season than anyone expected. Thus, backup center and wing depth will be even bigger problems going forward than they were this year when Rob Will was injured.
Is Dundon willing to sign free agents for more than the veteran's minimum? He hasn't given us any reason to think that yet... But. And there is a but. Dundon also owns the Carolina Hurricanes, who finished with the second-best record in the NHL this year and could well make a run to the Stanley Cup Finals. Fans of the Hurricanes aren't new to Dundon's type of ownership, which they seem to admit is cheap around the margins — but not cheap when it comes to actually signing players.
Everyone is frustrated with how the new ownership group has started operations in Portland — the author of this piece included. The quickest way for Dundon to earn back some goodwill is by actually addressing the needs of this roster in the offseason. After what we've seen from him so far, it's tough to remain hopeful. But there is precedent in the NHL that he knows how to help build a winning roster.
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