Season In Review: Toumani Camara

“A lot of ups and downs. I think one of the things I like the most about the game of basketball is winning games, so it was a really tough year. But I feel like I was able to learn so much being able to be on the court a lot as a rookie, which I didn’t expect. Just Looking back at it and looking at what I was able to do, I think it’s something that I never expected, especially not knowing if I was going to get drafted or anything, didn’t know how the process was going to happen. Just very grateful to have an impact on the team, be able to help a program and be able to learn so much as a player, too.” -- Toumani Camara

GP: 70 (49 starts) | MIN: 24.8 | PTS: 7.5 | FG%: 45.0 | 3P%: 33.7 | FT%: 75.8
EFG%: 51.6 | TS%: 54.7 | REB: 4.9 | AST: 1.2 | BLK: 0.5 | STL: 0.9 | TO: 1.2

According to Sportrac, Toumani Camara, who signed as a free agent after being selected with the 52nd pick of 2023 NBA Draft, has a base salary of $1,891,857 for the 2024-25 season. He is under contract through the 2025-26 season.

The 2023-24 season was the Year Of The Rookie for the Portland Trail Blazers. You had the draft picks in Scoot Henderson, Kris Murray and Rayan Rupert and a Summer League invite turned free agent signing in Duop Reath.

And then there was Toumani Camara, acquired via trade from Phoenix along with Deandre Ayton, less than a week before the start of training camp. It would be incorrect to state that the 6-8, 220 forward out of Belgium via Dayton was a throw-in -- he had a predraft workout with the Trail Blazers prior to be selected by the Suns with the 52nd pick -- but to be frank, he was an afterthought.

But it became apparent early on that Camara was not your average late second-rounder. With a useful combination of size, strength and aggressive mentality, Camara proved early on that he was the exact kind of wing that the Trail Blazers have been looking for, one who can defend multiple positions at a high level while also having enough of an offensive game keep opposing defenses honest.

Despite being a late addition, Camara won a starting spot by his 10th game. He would head back to the bench for a stretch in January, but once again got promoted to the starting five by mid-February, where he would stay until suffering a rib fracture that would sideline him for the last few weeks of the season.

Along the way, Camara would become the first Trail Blazer to record at least 500 points, 300 rebounds, 50 three-pointers and 50 steals in his rookie season. He’d go on to finish the season finishing among the best rookies in steals (tied for sixth), rebounds (seventh) and blocks (11th). After shooting 29 percent from three in December and 24 percent in December, Camara 50 percent in February and 44 percent in March from behind the line, a good indication that he is well on his way to being a valuable “three-and-D” player, at a minimum.

"I think, right now, who I am is defense-first person," said Camara. "I'm trying to still find myself as an offensive guy. I feel like throughout my whole career in college I've been a four/five man so it's my first year playing on the wing and being able to put the ball on the ground a little more and not playing back-to-the-basket. So it's a lot to learn, a lot of few habits that I have to have but I think my role is going to keep on growing depending on how much work I put in to my role, who I want to become. I think my shooting is going to get better, I think my ball handling is going to get better, so I don't want to put any limit on myself but I think that's who I am right now."

Toumani is the kind of player whose impact is felt far beyond the the box score. The toughness and edge he provides, especially on the defensive end, has been a revelation on a team deficient in both areas for some time. Same goes for his size and athleticism on the wing. So while Camara might not have been Portland’s best rookie -- though you could make a good argument that he was -- he is the rookie that seems to have solved some of the problems that has plagued Trail Blazers’ rosters in the last few seasons.

Picking out your favorite Toumani Camara performance this season comes down to individual preference.

If you’re a fan of filling up the stat sheet, you would probably go with his performance in a 114-111 loss to the Nuggets on March 23 in which he posted 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, 2-of-4 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the line, seven rebounds, six assists, a steal and a block in 39 minutes.

If your more of a “winning plays” kind of fan, his efforts to secure a 107-100 overtime victory versus the Grizzlies on March 2, in which he turned in clutch plays on both ends of the floor late in the game, while posting 15 points, seven rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block in 36 minutes might be your pick.

And if you’re a fan of great highlights, the post dunk he threw down in a 118-113 overtime loss to the Jazz might be enough to make it your best game of Toumani’s rookie season.

But while it might not be his “best” game, I’m going to go with his last game, a 17-point, four-rebound, two-assist and one-steal effort in a 120-106 loss to the Hawks on March 27. It goes down as my quintessential Toumani Camara game due to the fact he played 30 minutes despite suffering a broken rib and a lacerated kidney. While it’s a shame the injury ended his season, the toughness one has to display in order to gut out an injury of that nature might have been the most representative performance of his first season.