It was such a forgone conclusion that the Portland Trail Blazers would defeat Maccabi Ra’anana Thursday night in a preseason game at the Moda Center, they rested their six best players.
That left the most intriguing storyline during the 138-85 victory to revolve around rookie Shaedon Sharpe.
The No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft struggled during his first two preseason outings. But on Thursday, he displayed the skills that Portland GM Joe Cronin and coach Chauncey Billups fell in love with.
“I thought it was excellent,” Billups said of Sharpe’s performance. “He took his time. He wasn’t rushed.”
Granted, the competition paled in comparison to NBA teams, but Sharpe took full advantage of the situation. He entered the game with 3:56 remaining in the first quarter and proceeded to score 17 points in his first 10 minutes. By night’s end, Sharpe had finished with 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting and left pleased with his performance.
“It did feel pretty good knowing that I hadn’t played a lot during the year,” said Sharpe, who redshirted last season at Kentucky and played only five minutes during summer league because of a shoulder injury.
Sharpe, who scored just seven points on 2-of-11 shooting in the first two games, understandably appeared to be far more comfortable in a matchup against a professional team from Israel. So, maybe that contributed to his shooting accuracy. But what’s undeniable is Sharpe’s explosiveness.
That trait shined on two impressive alley-oop dunks facilitated by Nassir Little and Keon Johnson.
Sharpe could still find it difficult to crack the regular lineup this season, given the depth at shooting guard and small forward. But, at least for one night, Sharpe gave Rip City a taste of his potential.
KEON JOHNSON
The Blazers on Thursday picked up the third-year option (worth $2.8 million) on Johnson’s contract. So far this preseason, the 2021 first-round pick to the LA Clippers appears to have worked his way into Portland’s rotation.
Johnson responded with an impressive performance, recording 18 points and 11 assists. He made 7 of 13 shots, including 4 of 5 three-pointers.
“Keon has been so good,” Billups said. “He’s taken his game and has been very intentional about all of the work that he’s put in this summer. Since camp has started, Keon has been a bright spot for us.”
TRENDON WATFORD RETURNS
Trendon Watford saw his first action of the preseason after missing the first two games with a hip flexor injury. Watford started, played 20 minutes, and recorded 10 points, three assists and two rebounds, while making all four of his shots from the field.
NIGHT OFF
Damian Lillard, Anfernee Simons, Jerami Grant, Jusuf Nurkic, Josh Hart and Justise Winslow all rested Thursday night. The Blazers started Brandon Williams, Johnson, Little, Watford and Drew Eubanks.
Billups said a game like Thursday’s has its benefits for the younger players while providing some rest for the starters.
“It’s cool to have a game where you can just play all the young guys and let them do their thing and just kind of watching them and see if there’s carryover from the things we’ve been talking about,” Billups said.
JEFFERSON HIGH’S TERRENCE JONES
Former Jefferson High School star Terrence Jones, who played seven seasons in the NBA, played 17 minutes for Maccabi Ra’anana, finishing with four points and nine rebounds.
NEXT UP
The Blazers play at 6 p.m. Sunday at Sacramento before concluding their preseason with a 7 p.m. matchup at the Golden State on Oct. 11. The game against the Kings will not be televised locally. The Warriors game, however, will air on Root Sports.
-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook).
Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories
Ad Choices