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Casey Holdahl

PORTLAND, Ore. (April 6, 2024) – Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups has been named to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2024.&nbsp;

“As a five-time All-Star and 2004 MVP, Chauncey is well deserving of this wonderful recognition,” said Jody Allen, chair of the Portland Trail Blazers. “We are all proud of Chauncey’s many accomplishments as a player and his impressive 17-year career on the court.”&nbsp;

Billups, 47, played 17 seasons and averaged 15.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists in 1,043 games for seven teams; Boston, Toronto, Denver, Minnesota, Detroit, New York and the LA Clippers. Billups ranks seventh in all- time NBA history for his career free-throw percentage (.894 percent) and was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in 2004 when he led Detroit to an NBA Championship.&nbsp;

“I am humbled to be part of this year’s class for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame,” said Billups. “As an NBA Champion and as an NBA All-Star, I strived to play the game the right way. To have my place beside the all-time great players and individuals in the sport of basketball is truly a great honor.”&nbsp;

A five-time All-Star, Billups was named All-NBA Second Team in 2006 and All-NBA Third Team in 2007 and 2009. He also received NBA All-Defensive Second Team honors in 2005 and 2006. In 2008, Billups was awarded the NBA's J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award for outstanding service and dedication to his community. He also earned the NBA Sportsmanship Award in 2009, and the inaugural Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award in 2013 — an award that recognizes the player who best exemplifies selfless play and commitment to his team.&nbsp;

The Detroit Pistons retired Billups’ No. 1 jersey. During the 2004 championships as Billups led the Pistons to a title, he amassed 21.0 points, 5.2 assists and 3.2 rebounds in five games.&nbsp;

In addition to his NBA accomplishments, Billups was part of the Team USA Gold Medal FIBA World Championship team in 2010. 

A native of Denver, Colorado, Billups’ vast basketball career started at the high school level, where he was named a four-time All-State first-team pick at George Washington High School, earning Billups the Colorado Mr. Basketball award three times and Colorado Player of the Year twice before being named a McDonald’s All- American in 1995. After high school, he attended the University of Colorado where he averaged 18.5 points, 5.1 assists, and 5.6 rebounds per game over his two seasons with the Buffaloes. In the 1996–97 season, he was&nbsp;named to the All-Big 12 Conference First Team, the Basketball Times All-American First Team, and Consensus 2nd team All-American.&nbsp;

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Chauncey Billups Named To Naismith National Basketball Hall Of Fame

While it probably doesn’t qualify as history, something which has never happened before will take place Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee.

For the first time in his 11 NBA season, Damian Lillard will face of against the Trail Blazers rather than suiting up for the team that drafted him with the sixth overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. Now with the Milwaukee Bucks after requesting a trade prior to the start of the 2022-24 season, Lillard won’t play against many former teammates -- Anfernee Simons is the only player on the Trail Blazers’ roster who played more than one season with Lillard, and he won’t be in uniform Sunday due to injury -- when Portland starts a four-game trip versus the Bucks, but he’s played 783 games in his NBA career and not one of those has been the Trail Blazers. That’s rather uncommon in the modern NBA.

Of course, Lillard’s first return to Moda Center on January 31, 2024 will be much more of an event than Sunday’s tilt at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, but it’s one thing to see a former player suit up for another team and it’s another to see that player line up against his former team.

So here’s what head coach Chauncey Billups, who led the team during Lillard last two seasons in Portland, Jerami Grant, who was brought to Portland, in large part, due to his relationship with Lillard, and Anfernee Simons, who was mentored by Lillard during his first five seasons with the Trail Blazers, had to say about Portland playing their first game against the 6-3 point guard in his 12th season out of Weber State

"It’ll be fun man, fun to see him. I think I’ve watched probably two or three of their games so far. Just going to be fun to have him out there, obviously it’ll be weird man, to be playing against Dame. It’s just weird game planning against him having coached him for a few year. Pretty sure for most of our guys, it’ll be weird for them, too but it’ll be fun. I’m looking forward to it. it’ll be a good time."

"It will probably be more (of an event) when he’s here, I would guess, but yeah, he’ll be up for it. He’s can control his emotions better than most people do. I’m sure he’ll want to play very well and do good and show well, so I’m sure he’ll be pumped up. It’s his first time in his whole career having this type of situation."

"It should be a good one. We know the type of team that they have, championship-caliber team, so we’ve got to come out ready to play. Definitely going to be a lot of emotions for the organization, obviously, playing against Dame and everything but we’ve got to come out and do what we need to to try and get the win."

"It’s still good. "He wants to win, he’s a winner, so he brought me here to try to win. I’ll always respect that, still got a good friendship, so yeah… Still friends but at the same time, at the end of the day we’ve got to come out and try to get the win. We’ll talk a little bit before the game, little after the game but during t he game we’ve got to lock in."

"It’ll probably be different, for sure, when I play against him for the first time. I watch enough Milwaukee games to get used to him being in a Bucks uniform. Every chance I’ll watch Bucks games, catch the Bucks games, see what they up to. The only thing that will feel different is when I actually play against him for the first time. I’d say that will be the craziest part."

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Lillard's Former Coach, Teammates Discuss His First Game Versus Portland

PORTLAND -- Prior to Portland’s preseason opener versus the New Zealand Breakers, head coach Chauncey Billups listed off some of the things he would like to see out of his incredibly young, new-look team as they prepare for the regular season.

“You want to see them play fast, you want to see them share the ball, you want to see them attack the paint,” said Billups. “Defensively, you want to try to control the ball the best you can, help each other and protect the rim. You want to just see that every night, no matter who you’re playing.”

Billups and those in attendance Tuesday night might not have seen all of that, but they likely saw enough, at least for a first attempt.

After playing to a draw in the first quarter, the Trail Blazers outscored the New Zealand Breakers of the National Basketball League 83-43 thereafter to come away with a 106-66 win in front of a crowd of 12,694 at Moda Center in their 2023 exhibition season debut.

“I thought defensively, I thought we did a good job, just played hard as heck defensively,” said Billups. “(New Zealand) plays so fast and so hard, it’s hard to guard teams like that and I thought we did a really good job. Offensively, I thought we had a lot of nervous energy. Everybody was in a rush.”

On defense, Portland held New Zealand to 30 percent shooting from the field and 16 percent shooting from three while converting 22 turnovers into 22 points. But on the other side of the ball, the Blazers were one worse than the Breakers in turnovers and shot just 39 percent in the first half. Portland’s offense shows flashes of being the high-pace, free-wheeling unit Billups has envisioned, though Tuesday’s game showed the work is still very much in progress.

“We came out very rusty, we kind of expected that,” said Anfernee Simons, who started Tuesday’s game at guard alongside rookie Scoot Henderson. “I think we’re on a good track, I feel like we’re going to get better as preseason goes along and we’ve got plenty of time to the first game. There’s a lot to learn from tonight as well, so we’ll be good.”

Simons led the Blazers with 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting. Henderson, who Portland selected with the third overall pick of the 2023 Draft out of the G-League Ignite, posted seven points, a game-high six assists and a rebound in 19 minutes.

“I felt comfortable with the floor spacing and all of that,” said Henderson. “Getting up and down the way we was playing, the way Chauncey want us to play this year, you guys kind of seen a glimpse of it, but I think we’re going to adjust pretty well.”

Deandre Ayton, acquired a little more than a week ago from the Phoenix Suns, started at center and finished with eight points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals in 15 minutes. Matisse Thybulle also finished with eight points as did Jabari Walker, who also tallied six rebounds and two steals.

Billups turned the game over to the bench and those playing for contracts in the second half. Toumani Camara, who came over with Ayton in the trade with Phoenix, posting 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal in 14 minutes. Duop Reath, who played for Portland’s summer league team, added 12 points, five rebounds and a block in 17 second-half minutes.

Next up, the Trail Blazers host Jusuf Nurkic, Nassir Little, Drew Eubanks and the rest of the Phoenix Suns Thursday night at Moda Center in their last home preseason game of 2023. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on ROOT SPORTS Plus and Rip City Radio 620 am.

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Trail Blazers Shake Offseason Rust In Win Versus Breakers

If the Trail Blazers are to have any chance of repeating as Las Vegas Summer League Tournament champions, they’ll have to help themselves and will need a significant amount of help from outside.

With a 2-1 record, the Trail Blazers currently sit in 11th place in the Las Vegas Summer League standings with one scheduled game left to play, a 6 p.m. contest versus the Orlando Magic Thursday night on ESPN at Thomas & Mack Arena. And since it will take at least a 3-1 record to be one of the four teams that qualify for the tournament semifinal, Portland must win their game on Thursday -- Orlando is currently winless in three games in Las Vegas -- to have any chance of winning a second-straight Las Vegas Summer League tournament championship.

But winning Thursday’s contest alone won’t be enough, for multiple reasons.

First, there are currently three teams -- the Cavaliers, Rockets and Jazz -- that are 3-0 with one game to go. So if any of those three teams win their final game, they’re through to the tournament semifinal -- again, only the top four teams have an opportunity to play for the championship. So if you’re pulling for a summer league repeat, you want all three of those teams to lose their fourth game.

But with regard specifically to the Blazers, with 13 teams tied at 2-1 going into their last scheduled game, there is a mathematical certainty that multiple teams will finish tied at 3-1. And since point differential is the tiebreaker in the event of a multiple team tie, not only will the Trail Blazers need to best the Magic to get to 3-1, they’ll very likely need to do so by a significant margin.

At +2.7, Portland has the eighth-best point differential among the 13 teams with a 2-1 record -- for comparison, the Nets are the 2-1 team with the best point differential at +11.7 while the Bucks have the worst at -1.7 -- so if Portland is to have a legitimate chance of making the semifinal, they’ll need to win big. If you’re looking for reasons for optimism, the Magic are tied for the worst point differential at summer league at -12.

It’s also possible that we won’t know which four teams have qualified to play for the tournament championship until after all the games are completed Friday night. If the Cavaliers and Rockets, two of the three currently undefeated teams, win their games Thursday, we’ll know that only two spots are still up for grabs come Friday. However, the Jazz, the other undefeated team, play the Suns Friday night at 7:30 p.m., so we likely won’t know for sure which teams have qualified until after that game has been decided.

So if you're rooting for the Trail Blazers to repeat, you want Portland to win big versus Orlando, the undefeated teams to lose and the 2-1 teams above the Trail Blazers in the standings to lose, or at least win by small margins.

No word yet on the availability of Scoot Henderson (shoulder) and Keon Johnson (finger) for Portland's game versus Orlando Thursday night. The Blazers have started Michael Devoe, Shaedon Sharpe, Kris Murray, Jabari Walker and Ibou Badji in their last two games, both wins, in Las Vegas.

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Blazers With A Chance To Summer League Repeat, Though They'll Need Some Help

Scoot Henderson, Kris Murray and Rayan Rupert, after being selected by Portland with the third, 23rd and 43rd picks, respectively, at the 2023 NBA Draft, are about to begin their careers as Trail Blazers, at least in earnest.&nbsp;

This weekend, the Trail Blazers are expected to begin a week of practices in preparation for the Las Vegas Summer League in which Henderson, Murray and Rupert will line up with at least a few of their new teammates and a number of players who could potentially be teammates at the team’s facility in Tualatin. It will be their first time wearing a Trail Blazers uniform as members of the team rather than potential draftees. After a couple practices, the team will head off to Las Vegas for at least five games, starting with a contest versus the Houston Rockets on Friday, July 7, the first day of Summer League play. 

So in a week’s time, we’ll have a slightly better idea of who Henderson, Murray and Rupert are as players. But their introductory press conference last Saturday already gave fans a window into who they are as people. Here’s what the new trio of Trail Blazers had to say...

Scoot, when was the first time you really felt like the NBA was a real possibility for you? When did you recognize that?

Scoot Henderson: I think when I was in high school going into 11th grade. We had the gym, NextPlay360, but that’s where I really started to lock in and I realized my dream was closer than I expected. I got the opportunity to go to the Ignite and I just maximized my opportunity. I’m blessed to be here in Portland.&nbsp;

Kris, what were you thinking when you fell a bit in the draft and how did you feel when Portland selected you with the 23rd pick?

Kris Murray: Kind of the whole think I’ve been doing during this process is being patient, so definitely draft night is a night where it can be stressful for a lot of people. And for me, it was just kind of being patient. I knew that I’d end up with an organization that would be a really good fit for me and the Blazers took that chance on me and I’m excited for it, too.&nbsp;

Rayan, could you talk a bit about your basketball journey and how you’ve reached this point in your career where you’re now in the NBA?

Rayan Rupert: So I grew up in France. I played four years with INSEP Academy. Tony Parker, Evan Fournier played there, so I spent four years there. Last year I made the decision to play in New Zealand with the New Zealand Breakers in the NBL, so it was a great opportunity to grow up as a player and as a person, play far from my country. It was an amazing journey and now I’m happy to be here.&nbsp;

I think I’m a two-way player...I just love to be disrupt defensively, play with maximum energy, bring as much energy as I can to my team... Just bring energy, that’s me.&nbsp;

Scoot, I wanted to ask about all the hype around you. People are using words like “transcendent” and “generational.” What does that do to you mentally? Does it fuel you? Is it too much sometimes?&nbsp;

Scoot Henderson: Honestly, I don’t really pay attention to it. It’s kind of hard not to see it, obviously I’ve got social media but I just always rely on the gym. I wouldn’t have none of this if it wasn’t for me and my work ethic. Me coming in every single time, me coming in days when I didn’t want to. I always just fall back to getting back in the gym, so whenever it’s word like that -- generational, special -- I know who I am as a person and that’s all that matters.&nbsp;

Rayan, Nic Batum has made reference to you a couple of times. What’s your connection with him personally and is he someone who can help with your adjustment to Portland?

Rayan Rupert: Nic Batum is like a big brother for me. He called me yesterday, so I know him since 10 years. I did a camp and I finished MVP at this camp so I spend 10 days with him when he was in Charlotte. When he called me yesterday he just said a lot of good things about the organization, the people here. And yeah, I like his game, I try to learn about him on the court and off the court. He’s like a big bro for me.&nbsp;

Kris, how much has your relationship with your brother, Keegan, and watching him in the NBA going through that experience given you something to pull from?&nbsp;

Kris Murray: Yeah. it’s definitely a unique experience when your brother that you’re really close to gets to go through this whole process and I kind of get to see in the shadows last year, just kind of what it all entails. So just little things I learned from him, especially not on the basketball side, what is important. Just kind of how you take care of yourself on and off the court. The biggest thing I learned from him is just kind of doing the same thing ever day, don’t change who you are. He had a really good group around him last year, too, to kind of help him as a rookie, just kind of get used to the environment, used to the game. Definitely learned some things from him and grateful for it, too.

Scoot, one of the things you hear from great players over time is you come into the league with this kind of label, it’s not just about you, it’s what your impact is going forward. You’re responsible for other guys. Have you thought about that process of getting that mantel and not just being responsible for your own growth, but being a franchise cornerstone?&nbsp;

Scoot Henderson: Definitely. I’m blessed that I did the two years at Ignite as a pro. Having to tell Pooh (Jeter) who is 20 years older than me, where to go on the court. So I’m going to continue to get comfortable with that and I’m going to embrace it. That’s the thing I can do, embrace that. I’ve got a lot of responsibility but it comes with just the work ethic. I always go back to that and I work on things like that, just talking, little stuff in my game that I think can really go far.&nbsp;

Scoot, you mentioned your family and support system often on draft night. Why is your family so important to you and how have they helped you?

Scoot Henderson: They got me to where I am today. They molded me into the man I am today. There’s no other way to repay them than continue to say thank you and just try to find different ways to say that. Just hopefully they know how much of an impact they had in my life. There’s been plenty of people in my life but they always been my foundation and you can’t do nothing without a foundation. It takes a village.&nbsp;

Scoot, can you explain your motto, O-D-D?

Scoot Henderson: O-D-D means Overly Determined to Dominate. Made it up when I was in the car but I was just trying to find a slogan that represented me and something I could put on everything. Basically just being able to dominate the day, just basically words that describe me, who I am as a person. And I’m overly determined to be the best version of myself, overly determined to help the people around me and impact everybody’s lives. That’s what it is. It’s a way of life, it’s not just things on the basketball court. Also, being a great human being, being a great business partner, whatever the case may be. Just being overly determined to dominate the day.&nbsp;

Was there any reason you picked double zero for your number?

Scoot Henderson: Honestly, I picked it. I seen the roster and obviously zero is taken, but double zero kind of came full circle. We designed my Puma shoes a year ago and I put double zero on it and literally two days ago I chose double zero. I guess everything in full circle. God does everything for a reason.&nbsp;

Scoot, you’ve got the connection with Pooh Jeter here and Mookie Cook was with you on draft night, he’s just down the road at Oregon. How nice is it to be somewhere where you have connections?

Scoot Henderson: It’s extremely... it’s kind of crazy. I came in to be a pro at 17, pretty young, and Pooh just always believed in me and helped me throughout. Throughout hard days, through hard games or whatever the case was, it’s very special to have a guy like Pooh, someone that’s going to keep it real with you. I kind of felt that the first time I came to Portland, my first workout, I just felt loved. The fact that I’m here now, it’s a blessing. I appreciate the organization for believing in me. I’m going to for sure repay them.&nbsp;

Kris, you made a significant leap between your sophomore and junior seasons. Could you talk about the growth and if your game changed or if you were just able to show more of it?

Kris Murray: I think last summer was big for me, just the opportunities I got, just being able to grow every single year. That’s kind of something that the University of Iowa, especially Coach McCaffery, really emphasizes is just getting better every single year. I feel like I did that freshman year going into my sophomore year and then sophomore year to my junior year. For me, it was definitely just kind of honing in my skillset and just kind of getting the opportunity to show it a lot more. So I definitely thought I did this past year, kind of show everything in my game. I knew that Coach trusted me and that’s really all I needed. He let me play through my mistakes and mentally that helped me a lot, just knowing that he trusted me like that. Honestly, just got the opportunity to kind of just show what I could do. That’s kind of what made me take the jump these last few years.&nbsp;

For all three of you, how do you expect to impact the team in your rookie season?&nbsp;

Rayan Rupert: Personally, I will try to help my minutes by energy and my defense at the beginning, do whatever the coach want me to do to help the team. So that, my energy. I will keep working on all aspect of my game, for sure.&nbsp;

Scoot Henderson: I think I can put pressure on the defense in all kind of ways. Coming as a voice, try to lead by example and gain that trust from my teammates. Then on the defensive side of the ball, just grow. Just grow in that aspect and become one of the premiere defenders in the league.&nbsp;

Kris Murray: I think for me, it’s just my versatility, offensively and defensively. I feel like I can guard multiple positions and play multiple positions. Definitely my basketball IQ. I just think I’m a low mistake kind of guy. Definitely going to grow with these guys these next few months and just get better.&nbsp;

Kris, you’re going to be 23 on opening night, making you older than some of the guys already on the roster. In that regard, what role do you see in terms of leadership and learning and blending those things together?

Kris Murray: I definitely think I can help just with my experience -- I’m definitely older and was able to kind of see Keegan go through it last year, so I have some experience that way. But I think for me, I’ve always been kind of a leader by example, I used my voice a little bit more last year and I think that kind of helped me a lot, preparing me for the NBA coming up. So I think definitely having that older presence in the locker room, you could say, will help me out, just help me lead some of the guys. Scoot, Rayan, I think just kind of getting to know these guys a lot more, get familiar with each other... just become that tight knit group.&nbsp;

Rayan, there’s been some reporting that your agent asked teams not to draft you so you could end up in Portland. What was it like having that go down and waiting to see if you’d be a Blazer?

Rayan Rupert: It was a little bit stressful at the beginning but in the second round, when my agent told me “Yeah, Portland wants you,” I said okay, let’s go, I want to be a Blazer. I was happy.&nbsp;

Scoot, seeing you on draft night and here after your workout in Portland, it’s obvious you have a real joy and enthusiasm for the game. Where do you think that comes from or what it feels like, because it seems like there’s a real excitement about being Scoot Henderson.

Scoot Henderson: Honestly, I don’t know where it comes from, just from playing the game and loving the game. It feel like when a kid gets some candy. His mom was like “No” all day and he finally get a piece of candy, that’s kind of what that feeling is, kind of hard to describe. It’s a real joy when I’m on the court. It’s a blessing to be there, so why not have fun.&nbsp;

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Portland's Rookie Trio Begin Their Careers As Trail Blazers

After over a month of constant speculation, the 2023 NBA Draft is finally upon us. And after years of scouting and months of focused preparation on this specific class, Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin and his staff head into Thursday's event, which begins around 4:30 p.m. Pacific on ESPN, armed with the third, 23rd and 43rd picks.

Will they end up using all three picks to add young talent to the roster? Do they use those picks in trade in order to bring back veteran talent, one of the stated goals heading into the offseason? Some combination of the two? We'll find out soon enough.

As previously noted, there's no real point in trying to figure out what is real and what is a smokescreen, but in general, one of the best ways to tell who the Trail Blazers are going to draft is by looking at who they brought in for workouts. While workouts are just one part of the draft evaluation process and not a guarantee of interest from the team, the fact is that players such as Shaedon Sharpe, Anfernee Simons and Damian Lillard all had pre-draft workouts with Portland before being eventually selected by the team.

So with that in mind, here is just about everything you need to know about the Trail Blazers' pre-draft workouts conducted in the run up to Thursday's draft. You can either tune in to ESPN around 4:30 p.m. to find out how it shakes out, listen to the live broadcast on 620 AM or go hang out with my podcast partner, Brooke Olzendam, at the team's part at Big Al's in Vancouver.

Trey Alexander, sophomore, guard, Creighton (withdrawn from draft)D’Moi Hodge, senior, guard, MissouriJordan Miller, senior, guard, MiamiDillon Mitchell, freshman, forward, Texas (withdrawn from draft)Julian Phillips, freshman, forward, TennesseeBen Sheppard, senior, guard, Belmont

Toumani Camara, junior, guard, DaytonTristan da Silva, junior, forward, Colorado (withdrawn from draft)Nadir Hifi, guard, Le PortelDaRon Holmes, junior, forward, Dayton (withdrawn from draft)Andre Jackson, junior, guard, ConnecticutColby Jones, junior, guard, Xavier

Blazers Host Six Players In First Workout Since Draft Lottery

The Portland Trail Blazers held their first pre-draft workout Monday morning at their facility in Tualatin since beating the odds to secure the third overall pick at the 2023 NBA Draft. And while it seems unlikely that any of the players who participated in Monday’s workout will be who the Trail Blazers select with the third pick, they could very well be in the conversation when Portland makes their second pick of the first round or their first pick of the second round.

After holding their first workout before the Draft Lottery and fresh off of returning from the 2023 NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, the Trail Blazers hosted Toumani Camara, a 6-8 wing out of Dayton, Tristan da Silva, a 6-8 forward out of Colorado, Nadir Hifi, a 6-2 guard out of Le Portell, DaRon Holmes, a 6-10 forward out of Dayton, Andre Jackson, a 6-7 wing out of UCONN, and Colby Jones, a 6-6 wing out of Xavier, in their second pre-draft workout. » read more

First Workout Clues On The Brief Case podcast

Amen Thompson, guard/forward, Overtime EliteAusar Thompson, guard/forward, Overtime Elite

Amen, Ausar Thompson Discuss Their Workouts in Portland On The Brief Case

Kobe Brown, senior, guard, MissouriSidy Cissoko, guard, G-League IgniteTrayce Jackson, senior, forward, IndianaMiles Kelly, sophomore, guard, Georgia Tech (withdrawn from draft)Nae’Qwan Tomlin, junior, forward, Kansas StateJalen Wilson, junior, forward, Kansas

Jalen Wilson Discusses His Workout In Portland

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Jalen Wilson Media Availability | Pre-Draft Workout

Kobe Brown Discusses His Workout In Portland

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Kobe Brown Media Availability | Pre-Draft Workout

Scoot Henderson's solo workout highlights

Scoot Henderson Makes His Case During Workout In Portland

Sterling "Scoot" Henderson, a 6-3 guard who has played the last two seasons with the Ignite of the G-League, participated in a predraft workout with the Trail Blazers at their practice facility in Tualatin on June 3.

The Marietta, Georgia native averaged 16.5 points on 43 percent shooting from the field, 28 percent shooting from three and 76 percent shooting from the line, 6.8 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 30.7 minutes per game this season for the Ignite last season and is projected to be one of the first players selected at the 2023 NBA Draft. » read more

Scoot Henderson Discusses Workout In Portland On The Brief Case

Colin Castleton, senior, center, FloridaKaodirichi Ehiogu, senior, forward, MemphisCam Henry, senior, guard, Indiana StateJarkel Joiner, senior, guard, North Carolina StateKevin Obanor, senior, forward, Texas TechMalachi Smith, junior, guard, Gonzaga

Colin Castleton Discusses Workout In Portland

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Colin Castleton Media Availability | Portland Trail Blazers Pre-Draft Workout

Malachi Brown Discusses Workout In Portland

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Malachi Smith Media Availability | Portland Trail Blazers Pre-Draft Workout

Cameron Whitmore, freshman, guard/forward, Villanova

Whitmore Discusses Solo Workout In Portland

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Cam Whitmore Media Availability | Pre-Draft Workout

Whitmore And The 6-8 Guard/Forward On The Blazers Balcony

Myles Burns, senior, forward, Ole MissAntoine Davis, senior, guard, Detroit MercyMax Lewis, sophomore, forward, PepperdineSir’Jabari Rice, senior, guard, TexasOscar Tshiebwe, senior, center, KentuckyDeAndre Williams, senior, forward, Memphis

Tshiebwe, Lewis Discuss Workout on The Brief Case

Brandon Miller, freshman, forward, Alabama

Brandon Miller and Cam Whitmore Join The Brief Case

Souley Boum, senior, guard, XavierRicky Council IV, junior, guard, ArkansasElijah McCadden, senior, guard, MemphisOmari Moore, junior, guard, San Jose StateKhalil Shabazz, senior, guard, San FranciscoHunter Tyson, senior, forward, Clemson

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After Much Preparation, Portland Settles In For Thursday's Draft

Just as the Trail Blazers’ roster and style of play has changed considerably this season, so too has Portland’s broadcast.

As you’ve surely noticed if you’ve tuned into ROOT SPORTS PLUS, Trail Blazers broadcasts this season feature a host of next-generation features meant to improve not only the aesthetics, but how pertinent information about the game is conveyed.

Between bringing in new broadcasters, utilizing advanced analytics, updated and upgraded graphics, Second Spectrum player tracking, encouraging fan participation in the broadcast through social media and a significant increase in behind-the-scenes and exclusive content, the Trail Blazers as an organization have made significant investments in turning what was already a quality viewing experience into an industry leader.

“I think the goal is really to provide the viewers another level of viewing experience, and that goes through many different concepts,” said Jeff Curtin, Portland’s director of broadcasting. “Micing up players, advanced stats, bringing in Cory Jez, our new broadcaster, giving the viewers new graphics that they haven’t seen before on broadcast and hopefully telling the story of the game through all those ideas.”

Some of the changes the Trail Blazers have made to their broadcast this season...

In an effort to increase both the utilization of statistics in the broadcast and fans understanding of what those numbers mean, the team has brought in Analytics Insider Cory Jez as a broadcaster alongside Kevin Calabro, Lamar Hurd and Brooke Olzendam. Jez, having previously served as director of analytics in both NBA and MLS front offices, joins the Trail Blazers this season as the NBA’s first full-time on-air statistical analyst.

“Our hope with the ‘analytics segments’ within the broadcasts is to expose viewers to the types of metrics and data that the coaching staff and front office is using throughout the season,” said Jez. “Data has become ubiquitous in the NBA, and - like it or not - teams have entire departments of people dedicated to working with that data to help their team.

“Almost no staff is looking at basic metrics like points per game. Instead they are looking at things like The Four Factors or data about specific skills, like how often a team will switch the pick & roll, and how players like Damian Lillard can exploit that when it happens.”

Jez joins the broadcast multiple times a game remotely from his home studio in order to provide context to what fans are seeing on the court through the use of advanced stats and Second Spectrum tracking data. As the former head of the analytics for the Utah Jazz, Jez was responsible for developing tools that allowed others to analyze players, though in his role with the Trail Blazers, he’s is doing a bit of both.&nbsp;

“My main job is to use these same types of platforms (though I am using publicly available data, not information developed internally by the team) to find metrics that can help fans better understand what is going on with the team and the league,” said Jez. “It has definitely shifted my preparation from a software-first focus to an analysis-first focus. I’ll often times start by watching clips of an opponent or taking a quick look at their Four Factors, and then see what types of in-depth metrics make sense to explain something about how Portland or their opponent is playing.”

Trail Blazers fans have long been some of the most knowledgeable in the NBA, but the hope is that Jez’s segments can help viewers better understand analytics and how they’re applied on the court and in the locker room.

“More than anything else, I hope they take away that analytics is really just more precise information about the game they love,” said Jez. “I love basketball as much as any other fan; and what I think is so cool about analytics is that it can help us better understand what is happening on the court. Instead of just saying ‘That guy can get a bucket,’ we can use things like tracking data to help us understand how and where he gets those buckets.”

“We always say that our viewers are so intelligent about the game of basketball in our market, and I think this just takes that to the next level,” said Curtin. “It’s a deeper dive in the analytics and the advanced stats, which we’re all kind of learning together as a production crew with Cory Jez. So it’s really been a fun experience to do that deep dive of what these numbers mean and how it applies to the game.”

A NEXT-GEN APPROACH TO DISPLAYING STATISTICS

Relaying statistics has always played an important role in game broadcasts. Be it tracking percentages from the field, three-point and free throw lines or disparities in rebounds, assists or any of the other counting stats, giving viewers up-to-date information about the numbers that define the likelihood of success in a given game have always been a staple of NBA broadcasts.

But this season, the Trail Blazers have taken a “next-gen” approach to the utilization and visualization of statistics in various ways. The standard box scores used on broadcast have been modernized by pulling in different, less traditional statistics and using new graphics to display that information. The use of the Second Spectrum basketball database, which “provides an unparalleled machine understanding of every game,” has allowed for statistical information, such as what percentage a player shoots depending on where he is on the court, to be displayed in real time while the game is in progress.

And in an effort to give better context to some of the standard statistics, the broadcast is utilizing new data visualizations that not only display a players’ statistics, but where the player ranks in the NBA in terms of those statistics.

There’s the Percentile Spectrum Slider, which uses a custom built color gradient to allow fans to quickly understand things such as where Drew Eubanks ranks when it comes to effective field goal percentage, points scored per shot and points scored per possession. And the Percentile Bar Chart, which provides a statistical snapshot using color-coded graphs in order to give fans a quick and easy way to contextualize how a player or team stacks up in various important metrics.

By using new visual elements to display information, along with Jez’s contextualization and analysis of those elements, the hope is that Blazers fans, or anyone watching their broadcast, will come away with a better understanding of the game and the statistical performances that often make the difference between wins and losses.

BEHIND-THE-SCENES AND EXCLUSIVE VIDEO CONTENT

In addition to coming up with new strategies to deliver statistical content, the Trail Blazers have made a point this season of bringing more exclusive video elements to their broadcast.

In addition to The Trail, a documentary series that tells the story of Portland’s season through behind-the-scenes footage from practices, games and interviews with players, coaches and staff, the Trail Blazers have integrated various new video elements into their broadcast this season. There are additional cameras stationed in various parts of Moda Center, including on the scorers table where players check in to enter the game, that provide a new level of access to viewers.

But few things have provided more of a window into the inner workings of the team and the thoughts of the players and coaches than increasing the number of “mic’d up” segments this season. In the past, players or coaches wearing mics during games was mostly reserved for national broadcasts, but this season, the Trail Blazers have utilized that technology on their local broadcasts to give fans a better understanding of the way teams communicate during games.

With these changes, along with a few more that are in the works -- expect to see a “second screen” broadcast featuring former players some time later this season -- the Trail Blazers are striving to better serve their fans while being a leader in the sports broadcast industry.

“I think the response has been really good,” said Curtin. “We’ve seen a lot of positive comments from fans and viewers about the additional graphics and some of the new segments we’re doing. So overall, I think it’s been well-received.”

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Trail Blazers Look To Take The Lead With 'Next-Gen' Broadcast

The hook shot might be synonymous with centers, but Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons says he’s had that shot in his repertoire for some time.

While he’s known more for his accuracy from deep -- he’s shot better than 40 percent from three the last two season -- and his uncommon athleticism at the rim -- he won the 2021 NBA Dunk Contest at All-Star weekend -- Simons has been putting in work on one of basketball's more unique shot attempts for years. It started off as simply a way to pass the time, but as he became more and more comfortable with the hook, he figured why not try it out in front of the masses.

“I get caught for like 30 minutes just playing around, messing around, shooting hook shots,” said Simons. “I just started shooting ‘em and found good touch in doing it, so I just started doing it in the game.”

The benefits of a hook shot for a player like Simons are fairly straight forward. He’s already got the vertical necessary to shoot over most players, but when he really wants to be sure to get an attempt off, the hook serves as a near-guarantee that a shot is going up, regardless of if it ultimately finds the mark.

“It’s hard to block,” said Simons. “Usually I jump pretty high when I shoot it, I can get up pretty high on one leg and it’s overextended, so it’s a pretty hard shot to block. I’ve found success with it, haven’t got blocked on it yet.”

So when he absolutely, positively had to get a good look with 7.2 seconds to play in overtime and the game tied at 111-111 in the home opener versus the Suns, he looked to the hook. And considering he was being checked by Mikal Bridges, not only one of the best defenders in the NBA but a close friend and offseason workout compatriot of Simons, the choice to utilize a nearly unblockable shot seemed wise.

“I think I’ve had (the hook) for a while now, I bring it out once in a while,” said Simons. “That one was just instincts. I got my good rhythm going into the hook, just shot it and shot it with confidence.”

Simons’ hook found the mark in what would be the game-winning attempt of a 113-111 victory in front of a soldout crowd of 19,393 Friday night at Moda Center. But the attempt not only showed the confidence Simons has in his hook, but also the confidence that the rest of the team, and especially Damian Lillard, has in Simons.

Typically, when the game has been on the line in the last decade in Rip City, Lillard is the first and second option to take the shot. But as he’s gotten older, he’s looked to share that load, which can be both a blessing and a curse, with others. So rather than looking for his own shot in the waining moments of overtime, he turned the ball over to Simons, even though his young ward had struggled from the field for most of the evening.

“I told Ant over and over again what it’s going to look like sometimes,” said Lillard, who finished Friday’s win with 41 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a block in 42 minutes. “Sometimes you’re not going to have it going, you’re not going to feel good about your game but you’ve still got to look at yourself and know ‘I’ve got to find those moments. I’ve still got to be able to come up big regardless of what else happened for the rest of the game.’ I just think I’ve been in that situation a lot of times, I’ve made big shots a lot of times and I’ve missed a lot of times. But I think it’s going to be big for him to see that I’m willing to trust him in those moments. I made a conscious decision to do that.”

Granted, the Suns made Lillard’s decision to defer to Simons easy by making him the focus of their defensive effort in what would be Portland’s last offensive possession, but he’s managed to get clean looks off in similar situations. But in a new season and with what, in many ways, is a new team, Lillard’s decision was a clear message that he’s willing to try to win in new ways.

“First and foremost, it says a lot about Dame,” said head coach Chauncey Billups. “To be having a night like he was having after having struggled from the field in the first game, it says a lot about him, that he’s just a team guy. We knew that they were going to blitz him or fire at Dame and I said ‘Everybody has to be ready. I don’t know who is going to get this last shot, I don’t know who’ll get the opportunity, but I know who won’t. They gonna blitz Dame.’ He was patient, he took the fire, got off of it and it just speaks to the confidence that he has, obviously, in Ant but in all of these guys. That’s what we’re trying to continue to build.”

The instinct to call for the last shot is strong for a player like Lillard, who has created some of the most indelible moments in recent NBA history by his willingness to take and ability to make last-second shots. But in the end, he realized what was best for the team, both in the short and long term, was to give his new backcourt partner the last look.

“They doubled me, I passed it to him and for a split second I was like ‘I’m going to wait for a little bit them I’m going to flash back to the ball,’” said Lillard. “But then I was just like, it happened two or three times where they ran two at me and then the next possession he had it and they didn’t run two at him, so I was just like, it’s a perfect opportunity for me to take a step back and trust him to make the right play or make a big play. And also knowing that he’ll probably get a cleaner opportunity than I will knowing that they’ve been running two guys at me any time I had some space at the top. That’s the way it’s got to be. It has to be balance, it has to come from different angles.”

“If people know it’s going to be me every time it makes it easier to guard me and they’re able to lean on the fact that we’re now showing that we truly trust each other. So I think it was a moment to do that, I chose to do that and he came through and made me look good, I guess.”

Portland’s victory came down to something the team talked a lot about during the run up to the regular season: trust. Dame trusted Ant, Ant trusted his hook and Billups trusted that his guards would make the right decision. And in the end, they were all rewarded with an impressive win against one of the best teams in the Western Conference.

“They doubled Dame at the end, he gave me the ball, had trust in me to go make a play,” said Simons. “That’s just the believe he’s got in me. Like I’ve been saying from the beginning, he knew this day would come and so he’s been telling me throughout the whole game, even when I wasn’t making shots, he just said ‘Keep going, keep going.’

“He trust me in that situation to go make a play, for myself or anybody else. It proved right this time.”

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Dame Trusts Ant, And Ant Trusts His Hook

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