Following the Anfernee Simons trade, the Portland Trail Blazers’ offense is quite lacking. They have a talented team, especially on the defensive end, but their three-point shooting is flawed.
Anfernee Simons’ Trade Exposes Blazers’ 3-Point Shooting Flaws
Throughout the past decade, most people associated the Trail Blazers with superb firepower. Damian Lillard spearheaded that charge, as he was a fantastic superstar scorer. He also generated plenty of open shots for his teammates, which made them one of the top three-point shooting teams in the league.
Simons was one of those teammates, and he succeeded Lillard after his trade to the Milwaukee Bucks. In the past two seasons, the 26-year-old has been the Blazers’ top scorer and three-point shooter. Simons’ trade to the Boston Celtics exposed Portland’s lack of perimeter shooting, which is required to succeed in the NBA.
The Concerns About Portland’s Offense Are Valid
With Simons off to Boston, Scoot Henderson is the primary ball-handler. Chauncey Billups will probably split the starting point guard duties between him and Jrue Holiday. Despite those two options, they don’t have the dynamic shooting.
When they had Simons or Lillard, they always had a three-point threat. With the current team, they lack high-volume shooters. Spot-up shooters like Toumani Camara are key, but the designated sniper is missing from the roster.
Catch & Shoot, Camara
pic.twitter.com/rItzqfY0ge
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) March 4, 2025
However, Shaedon Sharpe can evolve his game to become a three-level scorer with an elite three-point shot. During his rookie campaign in the 2022-23 season, he shot 36% from deep. If he can regain that kind of accuracy, the shooting woes might not be as big an issue.
Trail Blazers Will Focus On Getting To The Paint
The current Blazers roster will look to get to the paint to generate offense. Henderson is quick enough to beat his defenders off the dribble and get inside. The same goes for Deni Avdija, who loves to make powerful drives to the hoop.
Deni Avdija is 9th in the NBA on drive FG% (56.0%) and 12th foul drawn% on drives (10.1%).
He also gets an assists on 9.7% of his drives. The 6’9 24yo has a lot of underlying metrics pointing to him being very effective when he get’s down hill in the half court. pic.twitter.com/tfumMFSNQd
— NBA University (@NBA_University) March 24, 2025
Sharpe should be the team’s most versatile scorer, as he loves shooting from the mid-range. At the same time, he has the athleticism to finish in the paint with his impressive dunks. Sharpe’s development will be key for the Blazers.
Portland’s offense does not look as strong as expected following the Simons trade. However, the front office focused on improving the defense. They already have a franchise center with Donovan Clingan, who is a defensive stalwart. A versatile defender like Camara and a veteran lockdown defender like Holiday are all important. But the Blazers need a boost on the offensive end, which was probably a reason behind the Yang Hansen pick.
Portland Has Room For Growth After Simons Trade
The Trail Blazers are a young team with a few veterans. Jerami Grant is still with them, even though he is often mentioned in trade rumors. If he stays with the team, he provides some perimeter shooting. However, he does not fit the timeline, so Portland prefers to trade him. Unfortunately, teams do not want to swing on his contract, as it’s too risky.
if Jerami Grant gets traded, his new team is getting a valuable floor spacing wing that can flip an entire game with his 3 point shooting:
– 42% on catch and shoot 3s this year
– 45% in the corner
– 96th percentile on spot ups
– no dip 3 aura boost
– 86th percentile off screens pic.twitter.com/WpiVuU3qnU— Slightly Biased (@BiasedSlightly) June 26, 2024
Billups is leading the charge for this team with a defense-focused system. Every player will want to compete on that end of the court. However, general manager Joe Cronin and Billups must address Portland’s offense, especially with its shooting woes.
There is still room to grow, but with a strong defensive foundation, this team has considerable potential. They already addressed the guard dilemma with the Simons trade. But three-point shooting is still a priority for this team. Whether they do it in free agency or through a trade, it’s time to look for shooters.
Featured image: © Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images
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