The Portland Trail Blazers lost their season opener to the Minnesota Timberwolves with a final score of 118-114. As the lights on recent extended players Toumani Camara and Shaedon Sharpe were perhaps the brightest on opening night, an unexpected wellspring of hope came from a very unexpected place: Jerami Grant.
Many Blazers fans expected Grant to start this season, but that was not the reality at the Blazers’ first home game. Instead, he checked in for Shaedon Sharpe after just four minutes. His impact on both ends was immediately felt as he sank six of his eight shots of the half, scoring 16 points in just 14 minutes, finishing with 29 points on just 14 shots.