Portland Trail Blazers: 3 players facing the most pressure in 2018-19

2. CJ McCollum

CJ McCollum has been a very good player over his past three seasons, averaging 21.7 points per game and shooting 41.2 percent from beyond the arc over that span. However, in 2018-19, the pressure is on him to raise his game to an even higher level.

For one, he will have to step up as more than just the team’s secondary scorer; McCollum has shown he is more than capable of handling that job. Instead, he needs to improve as the secondary playmaker.

Damian Lillard is going to be the first player targeted on a nightly basis, which was evident during the last year’s playoff series. When opponents shut down Lillard in those instances, McCollum has to make sure he isn’t just picking up the scoring slack, but also making sure the offense is still moving. There are a number of ways to accomplish this, be it with more assists or by getting it to other Blazers that can create their own shot.

McCollum has already proven himself as one of the league’s better players. However, as the conference has gotten tougher, he has to unlock new parts of his game in order to individually succeed and help his team do the same.