The Portland Trail Blazers opened the free agency negotiating period with a trio of deals with NBA veterans. In this episode of The Church of Roy podcast, Brian Wilcox and Steve Dewald move line-by-line through Portland’s early-offseason moves.
Before they jump into the signings, Brian and Steve return to draft night to discuss Texas forward Greg Brown III. They agree that Brown’s athleticism made him a prospect worth targeting. Along with discussing Brown, Steve discussed that he was bummed that the Blazers passed on Pepperdine forward Kessler Edwards.
Following a brief recap of the Blazers’ draft night, Brian and Steve discussed Portland’s re-tooled bench unit. Cody Zeller is a fine backup center and he is on a great deal. But can he stay healthy? Ben McLemore and Tony Snell fit the mold of hypothetical 3-and-D wings, but they have underwhelmed in previous stops. Also, what is the deal with Neil Olshey’s clear pivot to the 2013 NBA Draft? Thanks for the memories class of 2010.
In the main segment of the episode, Brian and Steve detail their thoughts on Norman Powell’s return to the Blazers on a five-year deal. Does Powell’s decision to sign up for an extended stay temper the concerns surrounding Damian Lillard’s rumored unhappiness?
Finally, it wouldn’t be an offseason episode without the Las Vegas Summer League. Steve explained that the stage is set for Little to showcase his development.
You can download this episode via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
