Portland Trail Blazers: Biggest strengths and weaknesses for 2017-18

Weakness: Power Forward Pileup

Last season, according to Basketball-Reference, the four-man combo of Lillard, McCollum, Harkless and Nurkic was one of Portland’s most productive lineups. This set produced 60 net points, tied with two other combos that featured Mason Plumlee.

That strong production indicates that those four will likely be opening night starters. However, the fifth spot, the power forward position, in still in flux. The Blazers possess several players that can fill the role adequately. However, none of them stick out from the pack at the moment.

Portland has seven players that could play power forward: Aminu, Ed Davis, Collins (who will more likely play center), Leonard, Nicholson (who arrived in the Crabbe trade and will be waived), Swanigan and Vonleh.

Noah Vonleh started 41 games last year, the most of any of the potential power forwards. He definitely made strides in his development last season. However, he finished the season with only a 10.8 Player Efficiency Rating and 1.8 win shares. His starting spot is not guaranteed heading into training camp.

Coach Stotts has many strategic options. If he prefers a bruiser in the paint that can grab rebounds, he could start Davis, Swanigan or Vonleh. If he prefers a stretch-4, he can go with Aminu, Collins, Leonard or Swanigan.

Next: Ranking NBA teams by tiers for the 2017-18 season

The starting power forward position will be heavily fought for in training camp and the newly-shortened preseason. Solidifying that position will go a long way towards helping the Portland Trail Blazers compete in a much tougher Western Conference.