There are seven players that Chauncey Billups could start for the Portland Trail Blazers this season. Two have to be the odd ones out, and it very well could be Portland's rising stars, Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe.
To be clear, nothing is set in stone, and plenty can change between now and the Blazers' first regular-season game on October 22. But Billups has a tendency to lean on his veterans, and we expect him to do the same this time around.
Blazers' pressure to win now could force Henderson and Sharpe to the bench
The three players that should be considered near-locks in Portland's starting five are frontcourt pieces Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara, and Donovan Clingan.