TUALATIN, Ore. — At the heart of the new Portland Trail Blazers is a backcourt that will not be held back.
In the preseason, Damian Lillard (21) and CJ McCollum (16.9) were in the top-four in field goal attempts per game.
While the NBA has become a more perimeter oriented league — look no further than the backcourt of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson winning a championship — having two guards who get up 15 shots per game for a season hasn’t been as common as one would think.
Aside from the Splash Brothers the last two seasons, other times it has happened in the last five years were: John Wall and Bradley Beal in 2013-14, Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings in Milwaukee 2012-13 and DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry in Toronto last season, according to Basketball-Reference.
Other starting back courts (Chicago, Miami, Phoenix) could have that type of volume this season.
Portland figures to rely on their backcourt to score as much as anybody in the league.
In terms of size, Lillard and McCollum compare more with the Suns’ current tandem of Brandon Knight and Eric Bledsoe or the combo of Ellis and Jennings in Milwaukee.
So in terms of high-usage backcourt duos, where will they be in the pecking order after this season? This season?EUR”among a host of other things?EUR”will be about finding out how good they can be with Lillard and McCollum carrying offense at the same time.
“There’s not a lot of backcourts that can play the way we can in terms of two guards that can come off ball screens,” McCollum said. “I think that’s why they labeled me a combo guard because I can bring the ball up, initiate the offense and I can handle in a pick and roll. Most two guards shoot first and they don’t really know how to dribble or just not comfortable with it.”
“I think it’s really tough,” Lillard said. “Because you got two guys that can take over a game. Two guys that can beat you on a good night. It’s just tough to deal with because CJ can shoot the ball, make plays, get to the rim and so can I.”
Their head coach sees it as both a symptom of an evolving league and a weapon.
“They both have a great knack for scoring the ball,” Stotts said. “The league has become more perimeter oriented as far as scoring goes.”
McCollum and Lillard are close off the court as well, which they say contributes to their ability to play with each other.
“You get dinner with them, movies, you do stuff together so you have a different type of bond,” McCollum said. “That will help and understanding where he likes the ball at, sets he likes, I can tell when he’s going to turn the corner around a ball screen, you can just tell.”
“They both trust each other and either one can initiate the offense,” Stotts said.
The Blazers’ success will likely depend on high-usage efforts from Lillard and McCollum on a nightly basis. Stotts thinks it’s too early to predict that high of a shot volume, but they’ll clearly have the chances.
“I think it’s early for that,” Stotts said. “The ball is going to be in their hands a lot. They’re going to have a lot of opportunities to score and we’re going to need them to score.”
There have been recent examples of success but other high-usage backcourts that lasted only to be a fun memory.
This season will tell us a lot about what type of backcourt this one can or can’t be.
