The Portland Trail Blazers finally have an All-Star to guide their rebuild in Deni Avdija. Following his star ascension, the next step in Portland's roster construction is to surround him with the ideal complementary pieces. That means adding more reliable shooters who can space the floor for his aggressive, downhill style of play.
"We need to be a better shooting team," Damian Lillard said at his end-of-season exit interview. "When you've got a guy like Deni who's getting downhill, that's going to generate good shots."
That also aligns with what general manager Joe Cronin emphasized at his exit interview, adding that the first-round loss to the San Antonio Spurs exposed their fatal flaw.
"The Spurs series showed us that we don't shoot the ball well enough," Cronin said. "Shooting is something we knew we were deficient in. Dame will definitely help us, but something we need to address going forward. We played a lot of possessions in the mud."
Blazers look to add more shooting this summer
It was difficult for the Blazers to maintain leads in the Spurs series as their offense stalled at inopportune times. Unfortunately, it was a predictable outcome, as Portland shot just 34.3 percent from beyond the arc in the regular season, tying the Orlando Magic for 28th.
Adding 3-Point Contest champion Damian Lillard will certainly give this offense a much-needed boost. Still, it's also not a sustainable solution to rely so heavily on a 35-year-old coming off such a brutal Achilles tear.
The Vit Krejci trade-deadline acquisition proved that Portland can't continue to address this glaring roster flaw with marginal moves. At this point, it needs to be considered a weakness in their building blocks. They either need drastic internal shooting improvement from players like Shaedon Sharpe or need to address the issue externally. If it is the latter, it has to be a key piece that plays enough minutes to make a meaningful impact.
It should also make Portland seriously consider whether star trade targets like Giannis Antetokounmpo or Anthony Davis truly fit this roster. Now that Avdija has become a point-forward in Portland, they could be better off surrounding him with a better shooting option, such as Kevin Durant or Trey Murphy III.
It remains to be seen which piece Portland will ultimately add this summer, but it's encouraging that they seem aligned on what needs to be addressed. Avdija finished second in drives per game at 20.8, tied with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and only behind Cade Cunningham. That's elite company, proving Portland has the right blueprint to build around.
Avdija also finished top ten in potential assists (13.4 per game), meaning there's a lot of opportunity that they left on the table. It makes it even more impressive that he had an All-Star season despite a poor supporting cast fit. With a fully healthy Avdija surrounded by Lillard and better floor spacing options, it's reasonable to expect an even better season out of Portland's newest star.
Now it's just a matter of acting on the identified issue this summer.
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