The Portland Trail Blazers Futures Odds (BetDSI Sportsbook)
Portland Trail Blazers to win the Northwest Division: +1000
Portland Trail Blazers to win the Western Conference: +10000
Portland Trail Blazers to win the NBA Championship: +20000
Portland Trail Blazers Total Win Prediction: Total 40.5 (Over -140, Under +110)
The Portland Trail Blazers managed to qualify for the playoffs in 2016/17 with only one win ahead of the Denver Nuggets, but the champions Golden State Warriors swept them in four games in the opening round. Portland recorded 41 victories and ended in the 3rd place in the Northwest Division behind the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder, but now the situation is a bit different in the division as the teams like Minnesota and Denver looks stronger.
The Blazers are virtually unchanged ahead of the 2017/18, and while their rivals strengthened their respective teams, Portland will have a lot to do to reach the playoffs again. Their chances are not high, but we can expect them to fight for the 8th place until the very end of the regular season, as it was the case last year.
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum will be the team leaders once again, and the Blazers’ record will heavily depend on their form and displays, so that’s why Portland is a bit vulnerable. They don’t have other high-quality players on the roster, but Jusuf Nurkic could be the one to help the duo, after his impressive showing since his arrival from the Denver Nuggets.
Read on to find out more about the Portland Trail Blazers offseason moves and the 2017/2018 futures and props brought to you by BetDSI Sportsbook. Also, don’t forget to visit our Get More Sports website for more NBA teams season previews.
The 2017/2018 Portland Trail Blazers Roster
Arrivals: Caleb Swanigan, Zach Collins.
Departures: Festus Ezeli, Allen Crabbe.
The Portland Trail Blazers selected Justin Jackson with the No. 15th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, but they traded him to the Sacramento Kings right away. The North Carolina product won the NCAA Championship in 2017 and was also the ACC Player of the Year. The small forward is a quite talented player, and he could find the place on the Blazers’ roster, but Portland decided to send him away, in a decision that surprised many. Portland also traded Harry Giles to the Kings after selected him with the 20th pick overall, and the 19-year-old power forward will begin his NBA career in Sacramento. Luckily, the Blazers kept Caleb Swanigan, and he will serve as the No. 3 power forward behind Al-Farouq Aminu and Ed Davis, but ahead of Noah Vonleh on the depth chart. The 20-year-old had an impressive last year with the Purdue Boilermakers, averaging 18.5 ppg, 12.5 rpg, and 3.0 apg in 32.5 mpg, winning the Pete Newell Big Man Award, Lute Olson Award, and Big Ten Player of the Year in the process. Swanigan was also named to the Consensus first-team All-American and First-team All-Big Ten and will represent a quality option for the future. I expect him to receive 10-15 minutes per game in his rookie season, and if Aminu or Davis suffer an injury, Swanigan could have a chance to make his mark.
Andrew Nicholson came to Portland in a trade that saw Allen Crabbe going to the Brooklyn Nets. The Blazers waived Nicholson to save money after they decided that the former Orlando Magic doesn’t have enough quality to help them in 2017/18. Portland also waived the center Festus Ezeli, who missed the entire 2016/17 season with a left knee injury, and he left the Rip City without playing a single game for the Blazers. With Jusuf Nurkic, Meyers Leonard, and the rookie Zach Collins, who joined in a trade with the Sacramento Kings, Ezeli is deemed surplus to requirements. The Kings selected Collins with the 10th pick overall, and the 19-year-old spent the last year with the Gonzaga Bulldogs, averaging 10.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg, and 1.8 bpg in 17.3 mpg. Considering his limited minutes and the fact that he didn’t record a single start in 39 matches for Gonzaga, Collins’ stats are rather impressive, and he will take the No. 3 place at center behind Nurkic and Leonard.
| PG | SG | SF | PF | C |
| Damian Lillard | CJ McCollum | Maurice Harkless | Al-Farouq Aminu | Jusuf Nurkic |
| Shabazz Napier | Pat Connaughton | Evan Turner | Ed Davis | Meyers Leonard |
| Jake Layman | Caleb Swanigan | Zach Collins | ||
| Noah Vonleh |
The Blazers sent Allen Crabbe to the Brooklyn Nets in order to save more cap space and their luxury tax bill dropped from $48.3M to $4.4M, thanks to the move. The Nets had enough cap room to take Crabbe, while Portland have to pay $26M to Lillard in 2017/18, $24M to McCollum, and $17M to Evan Turner, so this decision to part ways with Crabbe looks like the right one. However, the Blazers will be without a reliable shooting guard who averaged 10.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg, and 1.2 apg in 28.5 mpg. Crabbe spent the previous four years with the Blazers, and it seems that he will have a breakthrough season with the Nets in 2017/18. Portland failed to find a suitable replacement for him and their second unit will be weaker as a result.
Portland’s starting five will be identical as in the 2016/17: Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, Maurice Harkless, Al-Farouq Aminu, and Jusuf Nurkic. One of the best backcourt duos in the NBA, Lillard-McCollum combined for 50.0 ppg, 9.5 apg, and 8.5 rpg, scoring almost 50% of Portland’s points per game. Both of them are quite consistent; McCollum played 160 out of 164 matches in last two seasons, while Lillard missed only 14 games in that span, after appearing in all games in his first three years in the NBA. Having both of the healthy throughout the campaign is an imperative for the Blazers, and in case one suffers an injury, Portland will be in all kinds of trouble.
Al-Farouq Aminu had a problematic 2016/17 season as he missed 21 games due to an injury, averaging 8.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg, and 1.6 apg in just 25 starts. The 26-year-old small forward who is listed as the starting power forward ahead of the new campaign will likely return to his double digits in points, as it was the case in 2015-16 when he averaged 10.2 ppg, but he appeared in all 82 matches.
Maurice Harkless had the best season of his five-year NBA career, averaging 10.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.1 apg, and 0.9 bpg in 28.9 mpg (all career highs). The 24-year-old is still improving, and I think his numbers will increase in 2017/18, even though he has to compete with Evan Turner for minutes.
Turner will serve as the sixth man but will take starting SG or SF place if needed. The former Philadelphia 76er averaged 9.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, and 3.2 apg in 25.5 mpg, the lowest numbers since his 2010/11 rookie season. However, Turner is a versatile player and still has a lot to offer to this team, and I believe he will have a significant role in 2017/18.
Finally, Jusuf Nurkic exploded after his move from the Denver Nuggets in the 2016/17 mid-season. The Bosnian center struggled for playing time in Denver, and the move to Portland proved to be exactly what he needs. In 20 matches for the Blazers, Nurkic averaged 15.2 ppg, 10.4 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.9 bpg, and 1.3 spg in 29.2 mpg (all career highs). The 23-year-old has the potential to become one of the leading big guys in the NBA, and with such a backcourt to play with, I don’t see any reason why Nurkic shouldn’t average a double-double per game this time around.
All in all, the Blazers have a solid starting lineup, but it appears that their second unit is not so good, with the exception of Evan Turner, so it’s going to be a long battle for them to reach the playoffs for the fifth consecutive time.
The Bottom Line and Total Win Prediction
The competition in the Northwest Division is quite fierce as the Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Denver Nuggets all have stronger squads than in 2016/17, so it’s going to be hard for the Blazers to enter the postseason. They are predicted to have around .500 record, but whether will that be enough for the playoffs, remains to be seen. The last year’s 41 victories proved to be just enough for them to finish in the 8th position, and the BetDSI Sportsbook set the number of season wins at 40.5, so the Blazers are expected to have a similar season as it was in 2016/17. However, I personally think they can win 38-40 matches, not more than that, so I suggest you go with under.
Season total wins: Under 40.5 wins (+110)
