Trail Blazers' latest moves signal playoff push

The Portland Trail Blazers aren’t supposed to be in a hurry. They’ve spent the past two years rebuilding from the Damian Lillard era by drafting high-ceiling lottery picks. Good luck selling patience to a fanbase that’s heard it all before. For almost 20 years. But, when Shaedon Sharpe and Toumani Camara inked their respective four-year extensions over the weekend, $90 million for Sharpe, $82 million for Camara — the message shifted.

Patience is still part of the plan. But so is progress. 

The deals locked up the future of their two cornerstone wings. The Blazers are no longer building through the draft. This season is about making the playoffs.

Trail Blazers are building culture through development

The two players barely celebrated becoming rich. No champagne. No shopping spree. Just gratitude and a burning urge to get back in the gym.

“I was ready to get in the gym yesterday,” Camara told reporters. “It makes me more hungry.”

That hunger is exactly why Portland made these commitments now. Both players embody the values head coach Chauncey Billups has been preaching since his first day on the job — toughness, accountability, selflessness. For a franchise rebuilding its identity from the inside out, those values matter as much as talent.

Toumani Camara is the defensive dawg

Camara has become the foundation of Portland’s defensive identity. Last season, he became one of the league’s premier perimeter defenders, capable of guarding every position and frustrating stars nightly.

He led the NBA in offensive fouls drawn (91) and ranked top-10 in steals and loose-ball recoveries. Those are culture stats — the kind that come in handy in the playoffs.

The improvement on offense was real, too. A near 38% shooter from deep and a willing cutter, Camara has evolved into a true two-way switchblade. At 6-foot-7 and 229 pounds, he’s a modern forward built for switching ball-screens. Basically, he's the dude every contender needs. For the first time in a while, that prototype is Portland's to claim. 

Shaedon Sharpe is the star gamble

Sharpe’s game is the opposite of his demeanor — quiet personality, thrashing, heavy metal rim attacks. At 22, he’s a dunk mixtape. But the Blazers’ faith in him goes beyond the windmills.

Last season, Sharpe averaged 18.5 points on 45% shooting while showing flashes of on-ball creativity and shot-making that hint at three-level stardom. To secure a starting job, the next step is consistency on defense and growing as a playmaker, His jump in particular would transform Portland from “promising” to “a real problem."

The front office believes that leap is coming soon. “The job’s not done,” Sharpe said after signing. “We’ve still got work to do.”

Trail Blazers are rebuilding to rise

The Blazers’ roster feels cohesive, one through five. Alongside Camara and Sharpe are Deni Avdija, Donovan Clingan and Scoot Henderson — a young nucleus bouyed by vets Jrue Holiday, Robert Williams, and wouldn't you know it, Lillard returning. For the first time since the start of Dame Time, Portland is on track.

General manager Joe Cronin didn’t break the bank to secure his cornerstones. He got value as the market begins to course correct from the seismic extension for Rudy Gobert, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum a few seasons back. Portland should see more winning this season. And it started in the margins.