On Portland Trail Blazers media day, Toumani Camara expressed confidence in his development this offseason. "This was a summer where I was fully healthy and didn't have the predraft stuff. I was able to just work on my game and become a more mature basketball player," he said.
It only took one preseason game to see how much Camara has already evolved as a player.
Toumani Camara … man, this guy was already good last year, and tonight in the preseason opener, he looks like he’s WAY better than last season. On his way to becoming a household name around the NBA.
— Jason Quick (@jwquick) October 9, 2025
The Blazers lost to the Golden State Warriors in their preseason opener, with a final score of 129-123. In the preseason, the result of the games doesn't matter as much as the process. And from that standpoint, there was a lot of reason for optimism surrounding this young Blazers roster. That started with Camara. He finished with a well-rounded stat line of 14 points, four rebounds, three assists, one steal, and two blocks... in just 20 minutes!
Is Toumani Camara the Blazers' best player?
Camara already made the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in just his second season, leading the league in drawn charges by a wide margin. What oftentimes gets overlooked about Camara is that he was a big throughout his collegiate career. That turned out to be a blessing in disguise in terms of his NBA career trajectory, as it's made him the versatile defender he is today -- someone who can pick up guards the length of the court and effectively guard positions one through four when required.
But what it also means is that Camara is still learning how to be effective offensively on the wing.
He's already incredibly valuable as a 3-and-D piece for Portland, shooting 37.5% from beyond the arc last season. That alone makes the Deandre Ayton-Jusuf Nurkic swap with the Phoenix Suns an absolute steal, especially considering how desperate Portland was to find a versatile wing -- something they haven't had since the Nicolas Batum days.
The scary thought is that there's still plenty of room for him to grow on the offensive end, making the trade even more lopsided in Portland's favor. In that first preseason game, Camara showed flashes of on-ball creation and playmaking -- two aspects of his game that fans aren't accustomed to seeing. He really did look like a more mature and complete basketball player.
Chauncey Billups still has a challenging decision to make regarding what direction to take Portland's starting unit. But whatever that group is, Toumani must be included. If he can maintain his level of shooting efficiency and elite defense from last season while generating more offense for Portland, Camara will have a strong case to make as the Blazers' best player this season.