The Trail Blazers’ unlikely rally during CJ McCollum’s absence is fueled by Damian Lillard’s stellar production and Portland’s cast of young contributors. Gary Trent Jr., a third-year guard out of Duke, has led the way for the Blazers’ surprisingly impactful supporting cast.
In The Athletic’s breakdown of promising young cores, Trent countered Zach Collins’ absence and kept the Blazers near their previous position in the rankings. The list from The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie moved the Blazers down one spot to No. 25 on the list.
Vecenie focused on both Trent and Collins in his analysis.