Damian Lillard is returning to an unrecognizable Trail Blazers lineup

The new lineup will mask Damian Lillard’s weaknesses & highlight his talent.

There is an argument to be made that this Portland lineup is as deep as any that Lillard has played with since LaMarcus Aldridge left town in 2015. The projected starting five of Lillard, Anfernee Simons, Hart, Grant, and Jusef Nurkic offers pristine spacing, providing the star point guard with room to get buckets or parlay the attention he draws into high-quality shots for teammates. He’ll be surrounded by players who can capitalize on those looks unlike in years past, when he and McCollum served as the primary shooting threats for their group.

It will also help push Lillard off the ball more with three other starters capable of handling the basketball in some capacity. Entering his age 32 season, Damian Lillard, who has been known for being an iron man in years past, came face to face with his career mortality for the first time. If he wants to play deep into his 30s and compete for championships, he’ll need to let others take over for spurts—ultimately giving him more opportunities to knock down jumpers without having to do the work to create them. One of the game’s most remarkable 3-point marksmen, Lillard could follow a Stephen Curry-esque mold by using off-ball motion and designed sets to queue up his signature deep bombs.

From a defensive standpoint, the Portland Trail Blazers have a more cohesive lineup and flexibility in their depth to ensure there are quick, lengthy, and reactive defenders on the court at all times. Although one more defensive-minded center off the bench could make a big difference, the team is still benefitting from legitimate improvements on the perimeter.

Portland’s defensive rating has been below league-average in each of the last four seasons, making it nearly impossible to reach true contender status. Although none of these additions are going to transform this team alone, they have a shot to make a lasting impact when put together.

Ultimately, the Portland Trail Blazers front office needed to prove its commitment to building a winning product around Damian Lillard. It’s clear based on their decisions and the available players that the franchise wasn’t willing to overpay via draft picks or massive salary commitments. However, they succeeded in making upgrades on the margins while setting themselves up for a flexible and prosperous future.

How far will Damian Lillard and this new iteration of the Blazers go? Time will tell, but at least GM Joe Cronin can say he made a genuine effort to reshape the franchise around its star. That’s more than most others in his situation can say for themselves.