Back in late June, Mario Hezonja surprised many when he opted to come to the Portland Trail Blazers on a minimum deal instead of seeking out more money on a short-term deal with a tanking team. It should have been obvious then that Hezonja was serious about improving his game, but he was still a huge question mark.
So far in his very short stint with the Blazers, ‘Super Mario’ has looked like a man on a mission. While everyone has had their eyes tuned in on Zach Collins and Anfernee Simons to be the x-factor in the upcoming season, so far it’s actually been Hezonja who had the biggest on-court impact.