The Trail Blazers are expected to compete for the best defense in the frontcourt, Henderson s high turnover rate may become a fatal shortcoming

ESPN famous reporter Zach Kram posted an article to analyze the prospects of the Trail Blazers for the new season.

After the 2024-25 season ended strongly and attracted Holiday and Lillard through operations in the offseason, the Trail Blazers have become a rising team in the league. With the frontcourt lineup composed of Avdia, Kamala and Klingen, the Trail Blazers are expected to be among the best defensive teams in the league.

But the question is, can the Trail Blazers' scoring ability support them to enter the playoffs? An underestimated hidden danger is the team's high turnover tendency: Last season, the Trail Blazers made 16 turnovers per 100 offensive rounds, ranking 29th in the league in the turnover rate (2nd to the end). For reference, the other four teams ranked in the bottom five in the league with turnover rate are the Jazz, Nets, Hornets and Wizards. It can be said that these four teams are the weakest teams in the league last season.

What's worse is that the Trail Blazers had traded away Anthony Simmons, who was the team's most stable pass last season. Lillard is likely to not be able to return this season, which means the Trail Blazers will have to rely on Scutter Henderson to dominate most of the team's offense. According to Stathead data, Henderson ranked 29th in turnover rate, only higher than Westbrook, among the 30 point guards who had "played at least 1,000 minutes and had a ball-use rate above the league average."