The Portland Trail Blazers' young core already provides them a promising future, but they are also well-equipped to upgrade their roster next summer. Portland is projected to have cap space next offseason, and new owner Tom Dundon has a proven track record of turning around the NHL Carolina Hurricanes. Expect him to do the same with the Blazers, making a splash in 2026 to return to playoff contention.
Although Jrue Holiday and Jerami Grant will both be overpaid in 2026-27 at $34.8 million and $34.2 million, respectively, that won't be as detrimental to a team in the Blazers' situation because they have several players still under rookie-scale and team-friendly deals.