The Trail Blazers' summer league squad rolled to an easy victory in the team's debut Friday night, beating the Golden State Warriors 106-73. The crowd at Thomas & Mack Center was treated to a show befitting a Friday night in Vegas (the game tipped at 8:00 pm), and while many of the eyes and cheers were rightfully directed toward Trail Blazers rookie Yang Hansen, another rookie also acquitted himself nicely for Portland.
Caleb Love was a two-way signing by the Blazers immediately following the 2025 NBA Draft. The Blazers didn't have a second-round pick in the draft, but more than made up for it with the addition of Love.
Last season at Arizona, Love averaged 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He's an NBA-ready guard who can provide scoring off the bench for Portland, filling some of the offensive void left by Anfernee Simons. It's easy to overreact to what happens in the Summer League, but that was already apparent in Love's first game in a Blazers jersey. It looks like Portland landed a steal.
Caleb Love is ready to make an immediate impact for the Blazers
Love looked very comfortable among the competition, an encouraging sign as he enters the league at 23 years old. Love, who started at point guard for Portland, scored 18 points on a lukewarm 7-16 from the field, but shot 4-7 from beyond the arc.
The former North Carolina and Arizona star governed the offense confidently, both in the half court and on the break, even completing a nice behind-the-back assist in the open court.
Love has the measurables that Trail Blazers GM Joe Cronin and head coach Chauncey Billups seem to be looking for in a guard. An athletic 6'4", Love fits in nicely with a Portland guard rotation that will look to wear opponents down with size and defense.
Portland's current guard rotation consists of newly acquired veteran Jrue Holiday (6'4") and talented young players Scoot Henderson (6'3") and Shaedon Sharpe (6'5"). Henderson and Sharpe are both younger than Love, despite having multiple years of NBA experience, but both are capable of sharing the floor with another ball-handler. If recent All-Defensive Second Team player Toumani Camara spends the majority of his minutes at small forward this year (a move that would make sense given Portland's roster), there could be an opportunity for Love to get some minutes at the NBA level.