Portland Trail Blazers Preseason Preview: Lillard's Return, Avdija's Role
Translated & summarized from Mako by baba
The Portland Trail Blazers, featuring Deni Avdija, will start their preseason on Thursday against the Golden State Warriors, potentially marking Damian Lillard's return. Coach the coach plans to manage minutes and experiment with lineups, possibly starting Lillard and Ja Morant together. Avdija aims to play extensively while managing his workload for the upcoming season. The Warriors will rest key players including Stephen Curry after a recent game.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Damian Lillard and Ja Morant are expected to play in the Portland Trail Blazers' preseason opener against the Warriors.
- Deni Avdija wants to play as much as possible in the preseason to prepare for the 82-game season.
- Coach the coach will experiment with starting lineups, including a potential Lillard-Morant backcourt.
- Stephen Curry and other key Warriors players will not play in the preseason game due to a back-to-back schedule.
- The Trail Blazers face questions about their starting five, with Jrue Holiday suggested as a defensive alternative.
- Lillard believes he, Morant, and Avdija will start, while Morant is open to coming off the bench.
The Portland Trail Blazers are set to begin their preseason on Thursday at 5:00 AM, hosting the Golden State Warriors. This game may mark the return of Damian Lillard to the court for the first time since March 22, 2023, and his first game since tearing his Achilles on April 27, 2025. Lillard, the Trail Blazers' all-time leading scorer, is expected to play, as is newcomer Ja Morant, though official confirmation for both is pending.
Coach the coach will be making his unofficial debut and plans to manage player minutes carefully, potentially resting stars in some games. The coach is considering various starting lineups throughout the four preseason games, but indicated he might start both Lillard and Morant against the Warriors to see how they perform together, despite analytical suggestions that Jrue Holiday might be a better fit defensively in the starting five.
Deni Avdija expressed his desire to play as much as possible in the preseason to prepare for the long 82-game season, but acknowledged the need for smart minute management. "We'll be smart about managing minutes," Avdija stated, adding, "We want to get back into shape and not go crazy."
Golden State, coming off a decisive 124-98 victory over the Lakers where Stephen Curry scored 16 points in 14 minutes, will be without Curry, Draymond Green, Al Horford, and Jalen Suggs for the Portland game. The Warriors are resting these players due to the back-to-back nature of their games.
Key questions surrounding the Trail Blazers for the upcoming 2026-27 season include their starting lineup. The coach has noted that starting both Lillard and Morant, who are smaller guards and have not historically been defensive standouts, might not be ideal, suggesting Holiday as a potentially better defensive option to start. Morant, however, stated he has no issue coming off the bench, while Lillard believes he, Morant, and Avdija will start. The coach acknowledged Morant's potential reaction to a bench role, stating, "If Ja comes off the bench, externally, I think he'll handle it great. Internally... I don't know."
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