Portland Trail Blazers open 2021-22 season – Raise, Call, Fold
Lightning Round
Short answers.
Anfernee Simons has a breakout year.
RR: Raise. I agree, but strictly as a backup shooting guard.
TP: Raise. Simons has been working on his game this offseason, and it showed in the preseason. I don’t see why it wouldn’t continue.
CC: Raise. He’s ready to take a big jump.
CP: Raise. Simmons gets the most improved player.
RoCo returns to Houston levels of production.
RR: Call. I don’t see his stats increasing unless CJ is traded.
TP: Fold. That trade was a bust. RoCo has never lived up to the price that was paid for him.
CC: Fold. Since arriving in Rip City, nothing he’s done leads me to believe Covington won’t be much better than he is right now.
CP: RoCo has a similar year to last year but with an increase in points scored.
Chauncey Billups finally gets the Portland Trail Blazers to play defense.
RR: Meh, I think they will improve in some areas, but that improvement will only further highlight how inadequate the backcourt defense is.
TP: Call. Billups will try his best. I believe the Blazers need more defensive players.
CC: Raise. Yes, they play defense, but not enough of it to make a long playoff run.
CP: Call. 82 games is a long time. If the team is going to the playoffs, they’ll have to play some level of D.
Acquiring Larry Nance, Jr. was a good move.
RR: Raise. His addition should unlock so much lineup potential that the team did not previously have.
TP: Raise. Larry Nance brings offense and defense to the team.
CC: Call. He’s a significant improvement over Derrick Jones Jr., But the price was too high.
CP: Raise. Nance is a good move. Just hate the first-round pick to get him.
Neil Olshey is with the Blazers longer than Dame.
RR: I hate to say it, but if Dame gets traded, I expect it will be Olshey doing it. Then he gets fired the following day.
TP: Fold. As much as Dame has professed that he does not want to leave Portland if he ever says he does, Olshey is gone.
CC: Fall: Now that Lillard expressed his loyalty to the Portland Trail Blazers, Olshey’s fate might be in his hands.
CP: Call. Again, if the Trail Blazers the playoffs, no problems. If not, then it’s a rebuild with all the major people being gone.
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