Portland Trail Blazers: 3 things to watch for in 2017-18 season opener

3. Who gets the 15th spot?

I was extremely disappointed when Portland Trail Blazers beat writer Casey Holdahl announced that the team had waived Anthony Morrow, Isaiah Briscoe and Archie Goodwin after Rip City’s win over the Maccabi Haifa. While it may just be my habit of seeing the good in players, I was genuinely impressed with each of them and thought they each had a solid chance to make the roster.

To be specific: I thought Morrow would be a great veteran shooter to have on reserve, and I thought both Briscoe and Goodwin would add solid backcourt depth. Choosing any one of them for the 15th spot would have been understandable.

The Blazers aren’t a title contender and need all the help they can get in the West. There’s really no reason to keep the spot open if they’re able to find an inexpensive player to add backcourt depth, and they had three pretty great options.

So with Morrow, Briscoe and Goodwin gone, how exactly will the Blazers fill that spot? If a vet like Morrow couldn’t even get the spot, then what kind of player will it take to earn that spot? For now, it remains to be seen.