The Most Important Task for Blazers Coach Micah Nori in Training Camp

The Portland Trail Blazers are dealing with a lot of change this season as they welcome Micah Nori to the organization as their head coach.

Nori replaces Tiago Splitter, who served as the interim head coach last season while Chauncey Billups was away from the team following his arrest by the FBI. Nori spent the last five seasons as Chris Finch's top assistant with the Minnesota Timberwolves, which has prepared him well for the opportunity that is now in front of him with the Blazers.

“Small in the fact that they are not unimportant, but small in the fact that they are often overlooked,” Finch said via The Athletic insider Jason Quick. “He is elite with lineup combinations. Elite with rotations. Elite with special situations, whether it’s ATOs (after timeouts), or the end of the game, or just understanding how to maximize possessions … he’s all of that. He’s been huge for us here in that regard.”

Finch has missed games over the years due to illness and injury, which has pushed Nori into the spotlight. This past January, Finch was ill, forcing Nori to coach the Wolves against the San Antonio Spurs. Despite trailing by 19 points, the Wolves were able to come back and win, large in part due to Nori's in-game changes.

Micah Nori Must Establish Expectations Quickly

Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori against the Phoenix Suns. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The Blazers are in a very precarious position as a team that was in the middle of the pack in the Western Conference standings. They finished in seventh place with a 42-40 record, but most teams in that position don't usually change their head coaches. It's a unique position for Portland to be in, but they have the potential to rise up in the standings or fall, depending on how they respond to Nori's changes.

Nori has been building his plan for the Blazers over the past several months. Training camp will give them the opportunity to put those changes into action. He has a good idea of what he has in his team, but training camp will offer the chance to truly dig into the smaller details and how to best maximize their potential.

Based on his previous work in Minnesota, among other places, Nori is all about making the most out of every possession. He's going to have a lot to work with as Damian Lillard returns from his Achilles injury and Ja Morant comes over in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies. On top of that, Deni Avdija is coming off of an All-Star campaign, which is something he will want to capitalize off of.

There are a lot of question marks surrounding the Blazers in terms of what they are going to do on offense and defense. Training camp will give Nori a chance to figure out how to streamline all of these new developments with the roster. The hope for Portland is that it will result in becoming one of the Western Conference's top teams.

The Blazers need to find their identity during training camp. The sooner they have that figured out, the likelier they are to make their way up the standings.

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