Portland Trail Blazers: Top Five Under 25
Chris Phillips
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The Portland Trail Blazers have turned a page with their team. They are no longer led by the dynamic backcourt pairing of CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard. Dame is still around, but now Rip City fans are getting a chance to view the future.
The Portland Trail Blazers are in a very unique situation. Two of their three stars are not currently playing in Portland. CJ McCollum was traded to New Orleans before the NBA trade deadline. This trade is shaping up to be a win-win for both teams. However, you could say the Blazers got a bigger return of Hart in the deal. That’s Josh Hart for those that didn’t get the awesome joke.
Getting back on topic here, Damian Lillard is still out with injury, leaving only Jusuf Nurkic as the lone veteran star for the Portland Trail Blazers. While most thought this turn of events would mean the Blazers will be losing more games than they’ll win, the opposite is happening. The Blazers went into the All-Star break on a four-game winning streak. All while getting a really good look at some of the less-heralded and younger players.
The Portland Trail Blazers currently have seven guys on the roster who are under 25-years old. It’s with this in mind that we look at the next wave of Rip City players. Even though Brandon Williams is under 25, he won’t make the list as he’s hardly got any playing time.
Honorable Mention
The “old man” of this group Elijah Hughes (23), missed the top five. He is a guy who needed this situation to happen to get some playing time. Unfortunately, the results haven’t been great for him. In the three games he’s played for Portland, he’s getting 14 minutes a game shooting a putrid .176 percent from the field for two points a game. Along with zero free throw attempts, 2.7 rebounds, an assist, and .7 blocks per game.
Coming out of college, he drew comparisons to Malik Beasley. It took Beasley a little time to get going in the NBA. So maybe there’s hope for Hughes as well. As of now, he’ll need to vastly improve his performance with any amount of minutes he gets if he wants to be a part of the Portland Trail Blazers beyond this year.
Elijah Hughes CLUTCH three to force OT ? pic.twitter.com/rNPaLOWTZ0
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) August 12, 2021