Category: Portland Trail Blazers Blog

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Minor injury scare for Damian Lillard

Here’s the Oregonian reporting on Damian Lillard, the heart and sole of the Portland Trail Blazers. Lillard has managed to play all 82 games in each of his three regular seasons, and to keep things that way may want to cut down on his preseason minutes:

Minor injury scare for Damian Lillard

It was the one sight no Trail Blazers fan wanted to see Thursday: Damian Lillard limping off the court.

But there was the Blazers’ star at the end of the third quarter, hobbling off the court with a wince because of a re-aggravated left ankle sprain.

Although Lillard called the injury “minor” it was enough of a scare to cause him to reverse his thinking about his play moving forward this preseason.

“I need to stay off the floor,” Lillard conceded after Thursday’s 118-101 exhibition victory over Golden State.

Allen Crabbe steps up in Blazers preseason win

The Trail Blazers beat the Warriors 118-101 yesterday. It’s just preseason, but for a rebuilding squad like Portland any sign of positivity is welcome. Here’s the Oregonian reporting:

Allen Crabbe steps up in Blazers preseason win

Allen Crabbe played his best game with the Blazers, Damian Lillard powered through a tough shooting night and the Blazers saw a wide range of contributions from virtually everyone who played. Eleven players scored and nine recorded an assist as the Blazers leaned on their entire roster.

But none was better than Crabbe, who finished with 25 points and four assists on 9-for-12 shooting, including 5-of-6 from three-point range. He swished threes, buried pull-up jumpers in transition and nailed midrange shots from all over the court. Crabbe was such a factor, he recorded a ridiculous plus-minus of plus-42. It was the first time he’s scored 20 or more points in any pre-or-regular season game with the Blazers.

As he scored from everywhere, his teammates followed suit. Lillard recorded 22 points, six rebounds and three assists, shaking off a 3-for-18 shooting night by making 15 free throws. CJ McCollum had 19 points and five assists, Al-Farouq Aminu had 11 points and eight rebounds and Pat Connaughton added 10 points. Every Blazer played less than 29 minutes as Stotts opted to limited minutes.

Blazers exercise options on CJ McCollom, Mason Plumlee, Noah Vonleh

Blazers exercise options on CJ McCollom, Mason Plumlee, Noah Vonleh

The Portland Trail Blazers have exercised team options on guard CJ McCollum (fourth year), center Mason Plumlee (fourth year) and forward Noah Vonleh (third year), it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey.

McCollum, the 10th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, holds averages of 6.3 points, 1.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 14.5 minutes in 100 career games in his first two seasons with Portland.

Plumlee, the 22nd overall selection in the 2013 NBA Draft by Brooklyn, has averaged 8.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.77 blocks and 19.9 minutes in 152 games during his first two NBA seasons. Portland acquired Plumlee and the draft rights to guard Pat Connaughton from Brooklyn for guard Steve Blake and the draft rights to forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.

Vonleh, the ninth overall pick by Charlotte in the 2014 NBA Draft, appeared in 25 games for the Hornets during his rookie season, averaging 3.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.2 assists in 10.4 minutes. Portland acquired Vonleh and guard Gerald Henderson from Charlotte in exchange for forward Nicolas Batum.

Blazers promote Jim Moran to assistant coach

The Portland Trail Blazers have promoted Jim Moran to assistant coach on Head Coach Terry Stotts’ staff, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey.

“I am excited to add Jim to our coaching staff,” said Stotts. “He is a young coach with a bright future. He has a terrific work ethic coupled with a refreshing personality. He has already demonstrated a unique ability to work with our players and he will add a new perspective for us.”

Moran joins a staff that includes fellow assistant coaches Jay Triano, David Vanterpool, Nate Tibbetts and Dale Osbourne.

Moran begins his first year on the Trail Blazers bench in 2015-16 after spending last season in Portland as an associate video coordinator. A player development coach for the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League in 2013, Moran played his entire professional career for CB Gran Canaria in the Spanish ACB League from 2001-11.

He is the only player in team history to have his number retired by Gran Canaria, finishing his career with 2,060 points, 802 rebounds and 321 assists. Moran played collegiately at William & Mary, where he was twice named to the All-Colonial Athletic Association Team his junior and senior seasons. A native of Syosset, New York, Moran played for the Irish Men’s National Team from 2001-06.

Al-Farouq Aminu steps up for Nigeria at AfroBasket

This summer, basketball teams around the world are trying to lock down spots in the 2016 Olympics. Here’s the Oregonian reporting on a new member of the Portland Trail Blazers:

Al-Farouq Aminu steps up for Nigeria at AfroBasket

Trail Blazers forward Al-Farouq Aminu helped Nigeria get one step close to qualifying for the 2016 Olympics on Wednesday. Aminu led his home country to an 88-63 win over the Central African Republic at the AfroBasket, a FIBA tournament held in Tunisia in which the winner earns an automatic bid to the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Brazil.

Aminu scored a team-high 15 points to go with eight rebounds and three assists in just over 20 minutes of playing time. He hit 6 of 8 shots and added an impressive dunk in the opening minutes of the game when he finished a half court alley-oop lob from teammate Olaseni Lawal.

Trail Blazers waive Brendan Haywood

Trail Blazers waive Brendan Haywood

The Portland Trail Blazers have waived center Brendan Haywood, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey.

Portland acquired Haywood, guard Mike Miller and two future second round draft picks from the Cleveland Cavaliers on July 27 in exchange for cash considerations.

According to the Oregonian, “the Blazers acquired Haywood on Monday, along with sharpshooter Mike Miller, in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland moved Haywood to shed his $10.5 million salary and gain luxury tax relief, and the Blazers — who acquired two second round draft picks in the deal — never planned to keep him on their roster.”

Cavaliers trade Mike Miller, Brendan Haywood to Blazers

Cavs trade Mike Miller, Brendan Haywood to Blazers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have traded center Brendan Haywood, guard/forward Mike Miller and two future second round draft picks to Portland, General Manager David Griffin announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

As a result of the trade, the Cavs will receive two trade exceptions of approximately $10.5 million and $2.8 million, respectively. The two draft picks that Cleveland is sending to Portland in the deal are the Cavaliers’ own 2020 second round draft pick, and the more favorable of Minnesota’s own 2019 second round draft pick and the Los Angeles Lakers’ own 2019 second round draft pick.

Haywood, a 13-year veteran, has played in 816 games (549 starts) with Washington, Dallas, Charlotte and Cleveland, averaging 6.8 points on .528 shooting from the field, 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 22.9 minutes per game. This past season with the Cavs, he played in 22 games (one start) and averaged 1.6 points and 1.3 rebounds in 5.4 minutes per game.

Miller, a 15-year veteran, owns career averages of 11.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 28.3 minutes over 965 games (568 starts) with Orlando, Memphis, Washington, Miami and Cleveland. During the 2014-15 regular season, he played in 52 games (15 starts) with Cleveland and averaged 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in 13.5 minutes per game.

Mike Miller and Brendan Haywood being sent to Blazers

Here’s ESPN.com reporting on an agreed trade that should be official soon:

Mike Miller and Brendan Haywood being sent to Blazers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to trade Mike Miller and Brendan Haywood to the Portland Trail Blazers in a deal aimed to create future options and save luxury-tax money, sources told ESPN.com.

The Blazers will likely cut Haywood and could eventually work a buyout with Miller and will receive two future second-round picks from the Cavs for facilitating the deal with their cap space.

The Cavs will create two trade exceptions with the move, one for $10.5 million, which will be the largest active trade exception in the league, and the other for $2.94 million. The Cavs will also receive cash in the deal, sources said.