Portland Trail Blazers are the third or fourth best team in the West
It was a fantastic season for the Portland Trail Blazers. They finished 54-28, returned to the postseason and even pulled a slight upset of the fourth-seeded Houston Rockets (who were also 54-28 but had home court advantage in their series) in the first round of the postseason before falling to the San Antonio Spurs. Now the question is whether or not the Blazers can take the next step.
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Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders believe the Blazers will be the third or fourth best team in the west if healthy and need their younger players to grow up if they want to be any better.
"I think the Blazers are roughly what they were… to be appreciably better they need more from their young guys – Thomas Robinson needs to contribute more, C.J. McCollum has to stay healthy and Will Barton has to be a force.I love the Blazers depth and I think they are in a really good situation to be the 3rd or 4th seed in the West if they stay healthy.As for Dorrell… ehh… I kind of view him as being who he is, and I am not sure those minutes are not better served with Will Barton or C.J. McCollum."
Of course, the Blazers are also counting on the continued development of star point guard Damian Lillard, who will be entering his third year in the league. Paired with big man LaMarcus Aldridge, they could turn into one of the best duos in basketball (if they aren’t already).
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