Blazers Seek Defensive-Minded Coach to Improve Flawed Roster
The significant roster overhaul the Trail Blazers need to legitimately compete for a championship during Damian Lillard's prime may not be coming after all.
Not only does Portland have limited capacities of draft capital and financial flexibility, but general manager Neil Olshey believes his team's porous season-long defense and resulting first-round loss to the Denver Nuggets "was not a product" of the Blazers' on-court personnel. Obviously, a growing number of fans in Rip City vehemently disagree with that assessment.
At least Portland's general manager knows what type of coach it will take to get the most defensively out of an objectively flawed roster, right? Olshey reiterated over and over during his Monday media session that the Blazers' next coach will be one who makes their biggest mark on defense.
"The mission is clear: If we're gonna take the next step, they're gonna have to make an impact on the defensive end of the floor," he said. "So that will be a criteria, whether they have benchmarks they've hit in the past or whether we just have a belief they can make an impact on the defensive performance that we've been looking at."
Clearly, crafting a worthwhile defense around Lillard and C.J. McCollum has proven difficult for Portland. Norman Powell – who cash-strapped Portland must re-sign in free agency, price be damned – can be a solid defender at times, but is hardly the type of wing stopper the Blazers need to compete at the top of the Western Conference.
It was Lillard, remember, who took the task of guarding Michael Porter Jr. from Powell in Game 6 of the first round after the Nuggets forward dropped 22 points in the first quarter. He scored just over four points over the game's remainder, a damning indicator of Powell's ability to check the opposition's top threat when the games matter most.
Robert Covington is one of the most disruptive help defenders in basketball, but struggles contain the ball at the point of attack. Jusuf Nurkic's size, hands and understanding of space and angles make him an intimidating presence in the paint. Like Covington, though, his physical limitations weaken Nurkic's scheme versatility on that side of the ball.
Olshey, not one for much self-reflection let alone criticism, did cop to realizing that Portland needed more from its bench than supporting offensive firepower. Both Carmelo Anthony and Enes Kanter are free agents, too.
But the Blazers' defensive issues are more foundational than simply moving on from two of the league's worst individual defenders. Olshey understands that to a certain extent, but not enough to know that even a more defensive-oriented coach will struggle turning a team with Portland's core players into an above-average defense.
"At least they know what they're dealing with for the most part in terms of how do they get this group to get to another level on the defensive end of the floor," Olshey said. "And that will clearly be critical in anybody advancing in the process, is they're gonna have to prove they're gonna have the ability to do that – in much the same way some of the coaching hires from last summer were able to do it – without a lot of personnel changes."
Tom Thibodeau inherited a more talented defensive roster than Portland's, then the New York Knicks added Nerlens Noel and Taj Gibson before 2020-21 tippied off. The Philadelphia 76ers actually had more quality defenders last season, but it's not exactly shocking that Doc Rivers led a team featuring Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Matisse Thybulle to a top-two defensive rating.
A coaching change, it bears repeating, isn't enough for the Blazers in general, but especially if they want to take major strides defensively. The longer it takes Olshey to come to grips with that reality, the longer it will be that Portland remains a second-rung contender at best – and the shorter Lillard's remaining time in Rip City could be.