Ranking the 5 worst Blazers starters of the Damian Lillard era

4. Evan Turner, 2017-18

Evan Turner was electrifying to watch at Ohio State and was selected No. 2 overall in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He had a long NBA career by usual standards, playing in the league for ten seasons. But Turner didn't live up to the expectations of a top draft pick, averaging 9.7 points per game in his career. A significant reason why Turner didn't pan out as many expected was because he never developed a consistent three-point shot, connecting on less than 30 percent of his attempts in those ten seasons.

Turner spent three seasons in Portland towards the end of his career from 2016-19. In those three seasons, he was only a consistent starter in the 2017-18 season, averaging 8.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. Turner was always an underappreciated playmaker throughout his career. Still, it's tough for a wing player to become a starting-level player without a reliable jump shot.

Turner's offensive flaws were somewhat mitigated when playing alongside Lillard and CJ McCollum, who was one of the best shooting backcourts in the entire league, besides the Golden State Warriors' "splash brothers." So, spacing wasn't as much of a concern with the Blazers when Turner was in the starting lineup. However, his skill set was better suited as a role player coming off the bench and contributing to multiple aspects outside of shooting.