The Portland Trail Blazers have struggled a bit thus far in the 2021-22 NBA season. They are currently 11-13 and without their star point guard, Damian Lillard, for a few days as he rests and tries to recover from an abdominal issue.
The last few days have been very hectic for the Trail Blazers. General manager and president of basketball operations, Neil Olshey, has been fired for his role in creating a toxic work environment. That change in the front office could be what opens up some changes with the roster.
Olshey thought he had built a contending team around Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Alas, that was not the case, as part of the reason that Terry Stotts was removed as head coach was the team’s inability to get over the hump in the postseason. Portland had lost in the first round four out of the last five years.
While they didn’t experience the success they had hoped for in the playoffs, they would certainly sign up for that over what they are currently going through. Chauncey Billups was tabbed as Stotts’ replacement with the hope that he would help turn things around defensively.
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The Portland Trail Blazers had the second-worst defensive rating in the NBA last season under Stotts. While their defensive rating has improved slightly under Billups, according to Basketball-Reference, they are now in last place in the league in defensive rating.
The team isn’t winning and things are coming to a head. According to Shams Charania and Sam Amick of The Athletic, there is already tension rising involving the head coach.
“In recent weeks, sources say Lillard has grown frustrated with the team’s play and tension appears to be on the rise between the players and Billups.”
This would certainly be a bad look for Billups, who is a head coach for the first time in his career. We have seen what comes of power struggles in the NBA and it is almost always that the player wins out.
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It is fair to question what has happened, as Damian Lillard had spoken highly of Billups earlier in the season. The two seemed to be on the same page at the time, but The Athletic is not reporting that things have gone a bit off the rails.
If Billups has indeed lost the locker room already, he will be gone sooner than later. With the team struggling to win games, the organization could see this as an out to have a clean slate with a new general manager and head coach tandem leading the team.
