Shaedon Sharpe's career night proves one essential point to the Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers have an active three-game winning streak after defeating the Washington Wizards 129-121. This game was won in large part due to the play of Shaedon Sharpe, who finished with a career-high 36 points to go along with eight rebounds, five assists, one block, and one steal.

Sharpe had a high volume of attempts but was still efficient in his increased role, going 13-of-26 from the field, 3-of-7 from three, and 7-of-10 from the charity stripe. However, one of those 13 makes stood out amongst the rest.

Sharpe had an electrifying poster over Justin Champagnie that is a strong candidate for being the Dunk of the Year.

The storyline heading into the game was Deni Avdija's reunion as the Blazers took on the Wizards for the first time since the offseason trade that has been working out in Portland's favor. Unfortunately, Avdija was limited to just six minutes before exiting the game due to a left quad injury.

Sharpe stepped up in Avdija's absence, taking advantage of his increased role. His 33 minutes were the most he's played all month, while his 26 shots were the most he's attempted all season.

The extent of Avdija's injury remains to be seen. If he were to miss time, one of Scoot Henderson or Sharpe would likely start in his place. But who starts and comes off the bench often gets blown out of proportion. Legendary UCLA coach John Wooden once said, "It's not so important who starts the game but who finishes it."

Blazers must prioritize Shaedon Sharpe's All-Star upside

Who closes out games, the number of minutes they play in the game, and the role they play are arguably more important than who the starting five is. The main issue from Chauncey Billups deciding to bench Sharpe back in mid-January wasn't necessarily that he was coming off the bench but that his role and minutes both diminished.

The wake-up call that this performance by Sharpe gave the Blazers wasn't that he needed to start for the rest of the season. They've done well with their new starting five. Regardless of who the starting five are and how long Avdija is out, Sharpe needs to play 30-plus minutes a game and have an increased role for the remainder of the season.

Defense remains an issue. However, Sharpe has proven that he can still impact winning without being a lockdown defender because of his high-level scoring and underrated playmaking. The Blazers are also well-equipped to compensate defensively for Sharpe's weaknesses. But the one thing they still lack is a go-to player.

Sharpe just showed why he's still their best bet at having an All-Star currently on their roster. And the Blazers won't make a deep playoff run until they have one. They need to do everything possible to unlock Sharpe's All-Star potential by making him the focal point of the offense and, by extension, the centerpiece of their rebuild.