Portland Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin will have to make difficult roster decisions in the coming weeks. Not only are we approaching the Feb. 5 trade deadline, but Portland also has two-way signings such as Caleb Love and Sidy Cissoko making strong cases to have their contracts converted to standard ones.
One obvious roadblock is that the Blazers have a full 15-man roster, meaning they would have to clear space. If they do decide to make changes, one former draft pick that should be considered expendable is Rayan Rupert.
Rayan Rupert's time with Blazers should be coming to an end
The Blazers took a low-risk flyer on Rupert with the No. 43 overall selection in the 2023 NBA Draft. Unfortunately, that hasn't paid off. Now in Year 3, Rupert is having the worst statistical season of his career, averaging 2.2 points and 1.6 rebounds in 9.8 minutes while shooting just 36.1% from the field and 28.6% from deep.
The French guard was always expected to be a project, but how much longer can the Blazers afford to wait if he's not showing any legitimate signs of progress?
The fact that Rupert wasn't able to crack the rotation this season, while Portland has dealt with one injury after another, is extremely telling.
When fully healthy, the Blazers actually have underrated depth. Outside of Duop Reath, it's challenging to make a case for anyone other than Rupert to be considered the odd man out (barring a trade of one of their higher-profile players). With Rupert and Reath both on expiring deals, it makes perfect sense for the Blazers to cut ties on each respective failed experiment, whether that's to clear space for Love, Cissoko, their 2026 draft prospects, or someone else entirely.
The concern with Rupert is that the Blazers front office will continue to try to see this project through. After all, he's 21 years old and, in theory, an excellent fit for their roster given his unique skill set and positional size as a 6-foot-7 guard. But with Rupert's production trending in the wrong direction, it's becoming increasingly unlikely that he'll ever reach that potential.
The Blazers consistently rank near the bottom of the league in three-point shooting, and they need to make significant changes to their roster, starting from the bottom on up. Continuing to roster players like Rupert is proving to be a liability, even beyond his shooting woes. They haven't had players capable of making an immediate impact and stepping up to fill the void during their injury crisis.
Given his first-round investment, rookie Yang Hansen should be the project Portland turns its attention to. They can't afford to have this many players unable to contribute, especially when considering a spot is already taken up by an injured Damian Lillard.
We were intrigued by Rupert's upside, too, but the sooner Portland realizes that it's not happening, the better.