Jerami Grant Injury Could Be Final Nail in Blazers Coffin

The Portland Trail Blazers are doing everything in their power to try and get one of the final two spots in the Western Conference playoffs for the season.

With just six games left to go for the play-in tournament, the Blazers are trying to win as many games as possible to get the eighth spot, which would give them two chances to clinch as opposed to one. However, Jerami Grant's calf strain that he suffered against the Dallas Mavericks is going to put the team in a rough spot for the last couple of games of the season.

Grant still has to undergo some tests, but there is a real possibility he could be out for the rest of the season, which would significantly hurt Portland's chances of making it to the playoffs.

Jerami Grant Injury Hurts Blazers Tremendously

Portland Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant looks to the basket against Brooklyn Nets guard Nolan Traore. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Grant is averaging 18.6 points per game while shooting 38.9 percent from beyond the 3-point line, which makes him one of the better distance shooters on the team. For a squad that doesn't make a ton of threes, losing Grant only makes things harder for them moving forward.

When Grant is on the court, the Blazers have a 117.5 offensive rating, but when he's off the court, it takes a significant dip. The team only has a 110.9 offensive rating when Grant is off the court. On top of that, they turn the ball over more frequently, so it is definitely something that will hurt the Blazers tremendously.

The Blazers also don't have a lot of players with postseason experience, but Grant is one of them. He has been in the playoffs three times with the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2017 to 19, and he had a long run all the way to the Western Conference Finals when he was a member of the Denver Nuggets in 2020.

It's been a while since Grant has sniffed the postseason because he has been playing for rebuilding teams like the Detroit Pistons and Blazers, but this is an opportunity to see where the Blazers are without him.

Grant is a key part of the team, but he isn't exactly viewed as part of their future. He turned 32 years old earlier this month and has one year remaining on his deal before a player option kicks in for the 2027-28 campaign.

What's Next For Blazers?

Portland Trail Blazers guard Sidy Cissoko greets fans as he walks toward the court | Soobum Im-Imagn Images

The Blazers have to figure out who will replace Grant in the starting lineup. There's a good chance that could be point guard Steve Henderson, and the team goes a little smaller, but other options include Kris Murray, Matisse Thybulle, Sidy Cissoko and Blake Wesley.

The Blazers are fortunate to have a variety of lineups that could work for them, so it will be something the team can work on through the next six games. Acting head coach Tiago Splitter can experiment with a couple of different lineups and see which one works best so that when the play-in tournament comes, they will be ready for it as much as possible.