The Portland Trail Blazers already face adversity this 2026-27 season, as they'll unfortunately be without Shaedon Sharpe for at least the next six months. The Blazers' shooting guard suffered a torn meniscus during an offseason workout, and his recovery timeline likely puts him out through the All-Star Break in February.
It's a major blow for Portland's offense, missing out on a 20-point scorer whose game has only improved each season at 23 years old.
If there is a silver lining to such a brutal injury, it's the newfound depth in the Blazers' backcourt heading into the season. Damian Lillard returns from his gap year, Ja Morant surprisingly comes over in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, and Scoot Henderson gets another chance to prove himself in an increased role.
Blazers will miss Jerami Grant after Shaedon Sharpe's injury
That said, the Blazers will still miss the positional size and individual shot creation that Sharpe provides off the bench. It's something they had last year in a sixth man role that Jerami Grant willingly embraced. It was an ideal fit as he filled the scoring void for a Blazers second unit that's almost entirely defensive-minded.
That could still be the case this year, depending on what Micah Nori ultimately decides his starting five to be. But with players like Henderson and Sidy Cissoko in the second unit, Portland's offense would far too often get stagnant. Grant's ability to use his 6-foot-7 frame to shoot over his defender is similar to Sharpe's elite athleticism to blow past, or sometimes even over, defenders.
It's one of those "break glass in case of emergency" options the Blazers can go to when these Hendersons and Cissokos of the world are struggling to create any separation. That's why the Blazers were right to finally bench Grant as the veteran to complement this young core in the second unit.
Say what you will about his contract, but Portland will still miss that aspect of Grant's game, especially since Sharpe was the only one in the second unit capable of creating that same level of bailout shot creation.
There's no perfect solution for Nori here to replace Grant and now Sharpe in the rotation. In all likelihood, he'll have to compromise size by leaning on the Henderson, Lillard, Morant, Jrue Holiday backcourt for increased minutes.
For better or worse, this is going to be a guard-heavy Blazers roster. They'll have to rely on that increased ball-handling and playmaking to generate looks for others, seeing as they'll now be without both shot creators, Grant and Sharpe, to help generate buckets in that second unit.
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