Portland must make their first attack count

Portland know how to recover a missed shot. Now they must learn to depend less on that second chance. After their return to the playoffs, the franchise hands Micah Nori a group in which Ja Morant joins Damian Lillard, back on court, and Deni Avdija. Spreading the ball between them without weakening the defence will be the first job of the 2026–2027 season.

With 42 wins and 40 losses in the 2025–2026 regular season, the Trail Blazers finished with a winning record and returned to the playoffs after four seasons away. Their run ended in the first round. That gives the new staff a foundation, but it does not erase the struggle to produce a consistent offence.

Portland scored 115.5 points and conceded 115.8 per game last season. Their offensive efficiency, measured per possession, ranked only 21st. A points total also depends on pace and extra shooting opportunities. The Blazers lived heavily off offensive rebounds; they must become more reliable on their first attempt.

Nori takes charge after serving as an assistant, notably in Minnesota. His job is first to organise responsibilities that could overlap. Giving every playmaker a place does not mean reserving the same possessions for each of them every night. The combinations capable of starting, restarting and finishing a game can differ.

Ja Morant arrived from Memphis in a trade that sent out Jerami Grant and Kris Murray. He brings an extra playmaker able to put the defence under pressure with his acceleration. Branden Carlson and Micah Potter bolster the frontcourt options. Jeremy Sochan had joined the group over the summer, but he was cut on 17 October.

Lillard's case is different: he returned to Portland in the summer of 2025, but did not play in 2025–2026, a season devoted to rehabilitating his Achilles tendon. He has now resumed playing in the preseason, notably against Golden State and Sacramento. That return to competition opens a new chapter in his second spell in Portland; his rhythm over a full season remains to be rebuilt.

Jrue Holiday was also already on the roster last season. His presence gives Nori another option to run the offence and defend on the perimeter. By contrast, the absence of Shaedon Sharpe narrows the possibilities: injured in his right knee meniscus in August, he remains unavailable, with no return date confirmed.

Our projected starting lineup pairs Lillard, Morant, Camara, Avdija and Donovan Clingan. It is conditional and does not amount to an official lineup for the opener. It gives two perimeter playmakers, two forwards able to fill several roles and a centre tasked with protecting the rim and chasing missed shots.

Holiday and Scoot Henderson are the first backcourt reliefs envisaged. Their usefulness will depend on how Nori divides possessions between starters and bench. Vít Krejčí and Sidy Cissoko can offer other combinations on the wings. Robert Williams III provides an interior solution, while Yang Hansen, Carlson and Potter widen the options at centre.

The closing five may follow a different logic from the opening one. Nori will then have to choose between more creation, more size or more defence on the ball handler. Portland will not settle that question by adding up the best-known names: the spacing between players and their ability to defend together will matter too.

The Blazers scored 18.4 points per game on second chances in 2025–2026. Clingan and Robert Williams III grabbed 14.9% and 13.3% respectively of the available offensive rebounds when they were on the floor. They ranked second and seventh among the 305 players who appeared in at least 40 games averaging 15 minutes or more. That percentage describes how often they secure rebounds, not shooting accuracy.

This resource made up for some of the first-attempt offence's difficulties, but the 16.9 turnovers per 100 possessions, the highest total in the league, also held Portland back. Morant and Lillard must help create cleaner looks. Their presence will, however, need to reduce wasted possessions rather than simply add more dribbling options.

The mechanism to watch is simple: a first drive must produce a good shot or a pass that keeps the advantage. If it ends in a turnover, Clingan has no rebound to chase. If too many players stay near the rim, access to the basket and passing lanes become harder. Perimeter shooting and defensive transition will have to go hand in hand with offensive rebounding.

Portland host Phoenix on Wednesday 21 October at 22:00 Eastern time, which is 3:00 am on Thursday 22 October in Brazzaville. This first regular-season game will show how responsibilities are initially divided against the Suns.

Find the Phoenix–Portland match page, the Trail Blazers' roster and schedule and the NBA calendar on SNA. The projections in this guide remain to be checked against availability and the choices announced before each game.