After bringing in Ja Morant, Micah Potter, and Branden Carlson this offseason, the Portland Trail Blazers have both logjams at the point guard and center positions. Considering how important two-way wings are in the modern NBA, where versatility and switchability are more valuable than ever, you'd assume this is a major flaw in Joe Cronin's roster construction.
That certainly could still be the case, but Portland seems content on keeping this roster the same heading into the 2026-27 season. That buys them until February's trade deadline to evaluate whether these pieces can coexist.
It's a puzzling fit overall, but if there's one reason for optimism, it's the success the Oklahoma City Thunder have had with a team full of ballhandlers and bigs.
Blazers have similar positional weaknesses to the Thunder
Mark Nilon of Thunderous Intentions recently predicted the Thunder's revamped depth chart after an eventful offseason, and similarly to Portland's situation, forward depth is a glaring issue. It's talented but top-heavy, with Jalen Williams named the starting small forward only to be spelled by an undersized Alex Caruso.
"The Thunder's small forward position is equally as imposing as it is scarce," Nilon writes.
The Blazers are in a similar situation after parting ways with Jerami Grant, Kris Murray, and Matisse Thybulle this offseason. Fortunately, they have their own version of Caruso in Jrue Holiday, another versatile guard who can punch above his weight when it comes to positional flexibility.
Could this be the Victor Wembanyama effect?
This points to a new trend of teams embracing playmaking and frontcourt size in the NBA. That 7-foot-4 alien Victor Wembanyama down in San Antonio certainly plays a factor in the latter as teams like the Thunder look to matchup with their biggest threat on the road to the Finals.
They now have Isaiah Hartenstein, Aday Mara, Thomas Sorber, Chet Holmgren, and Jaylin Williams to all throw at Wembanyama for stretches if needed. Portland has a similar situation (in terms of depth, not talent), as they can relatively contain him with a combination of Donovan Clingan, Robert Williams III, Potter, Carlson, and eventually (?) Yang Hansen.
Besides the talent disparity, the difference between the frontcourts is the versatility of OKC's bigs. They have found a working formula thanks to Holmgren and Williams' ability to play the four in double-big lineups, something Portland addressed to an extent by bringing Potter and Carlson into the mix this summer.
Blazers added more playmaking this summer
But the strength of the Thunder roster lies in their elite guard play. GM Sam Presti has successfully assembled a roster in which whoever has the ball is capable of initiating the offense. That's something Portland was missing last season as they were overly reliant on Deni Avdija and Holiday, having too many one-dimensional players out there.
Avdija's aggressive style of play didn't help, but there's a reason the Blazers led the league in turnovers per game by a wide margin last season. Now, they have so many options to prevent the offense from being too stagnant. Damian Lillard, Ja Morant, Holiday, and Avdija are all more than capable of generating quality possessions with the ball in their hands.
It's not a perfect comparison by any means, especially because the Thunder are an elite defensive team and the Blazers sacrificed part of that identity in pursuit of more playmaking and offensive firepower this summer.
But from a positional-need standpoint, it's encouraging that the best team in the league enters the 2026-27 season with similar weaknesses to Portland.
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