The Portland Trail Blazers' decision to move on from Tiago Splitter after he just had this team back in the postseason was a controversial one. They certainly could've gone about the entire process of replacing him better, considering Portland already began searching for his replacement when he had this team fighting in the postseason against the San Antonio Spurs.
That said, after seeing how the 2026-27 season opener played out for both the Blazers and Chicago Bulls in their respective games on Wednesday, Blazers fans have to be feeling better about their decision to move on from Splitter.
Splitter's Bulls fell 135-92 in a blowout loss to the Toronto Raptors. He quickly learned that Josh Giddey wasn't on the same level as Deni Avdija when it came to initiating an effective enough offense.
Meanwhile, Micah Nori looked like an immediate upgrade for Portland. The Blazers were on the positive side of another blowout Wednesday, defeating the Suns 124-83. We'll see if this continues to be the case as we get a larger sample size as the season progresses. But early indications are that, even though the Blazers' process was a mess, they ultimately landed on the right coach.
Micah Nori already looks like the right fit for the Blazers
Splitter deserves a ton of credit for what he was able to accomplish in last season's playoff run. He was thrown into the fire just one game into the season after Chauncey Billups was placed on leave due to federal incidents. This young Blazers team easily could've fallen apart during those unprecedented circumstances, but they actually exceeded expectations under Splitter, securing a seven seed after a 42-40 record.
It was a night-and-day feeling for fans waking up after this season opener compared to last. Not only is our coach not in any trouble like Billups, but he's also looking like a good coach!
It took a creative mind like Nori, referred to by some as the Ted Lasso of the NBA, to get the most out of this wonky but talented roster. Splitter was a great stabilizing force, but you get the sense that Portland's ceiling will be higher this year under Nori.
That even appeared to be the case dating back to the offseason, when Nori meticulously explained just about every area the Blazers were flawed in -- shooting, turnovers, defensive rebounding, etc. -- and plans for how to improve that this season.
But this season opener was the Blazers officially putting Nori's plan in place, and they executed it close to perfection.
Portland has goal of winning 50+ games this season and securing home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. That's ambitious but looks increasingly realistic after seeing how they fared Wednesday against the Suns.
Nori took a bold bet on himself when he accepted the head coaching position given the structure of the contract. Early on, that bet is paying off in a major way.
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