Portland Trail Blazers: 5 keys to making the playoffs in 2017-18

Here is a list of five things the Portland Trail Blazers need to do in 2017-18 in order to make the playoffs.

The Portland Trail Blazers failed to make any significant moves over the summer, and now they’ll be heading into the 2017-18 season against a much tougher Western Conference. The Oklahoma City Thunder added Paul George; the Minnesota Timberwolves added Jimmy Butler; and the Houston Rockets added Chris Paul.

However, that’s not to say that the Blazers aren’t capable of improving on last year’s season. While it’s certainly true that Portland didn’t add any big names, they were still able to retain their core, and their supporting cast may surprise a couple teams right out of the gate.

Additionally, the biggest change to Rip City going into the 2017-18 season will likely be centered around the long-term status of Jusuf Nurkic, who will hopefully stay healthy enough throughout the year to make a significant impact in Portland’s postseason efforts.

Along with that, here are five other things that the Portland Trail Blazers need to do in order to secure their place among the Western Conference’s elite and make the NBA Playoffs for the fifth consecutive season.