When ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Trevor Ariza would not be joining the Portland Trail Blazers in Orlando, it was a completely understandable decision. The risks involved in putting 22 teams in this pseudo-bubble are numerous, and as we’ve seen these past couple weeks or so, there could be additional players who decide to opt out of the NBA restart. But from purely a basketball standpoint, there’s a hole at the forward position that the Blazers now need to fill.
Enter Gary Trent Jr., the breakout rotation player who has been a pleasant surprise for Portland this season.