The Portland Trail Blazers went 3-1 this week to make their way back to .500 on the season. After opening with a blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Blazers scored wins over the Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings to end the week.
Portland was playing without Deni Avdija for the first three games of the week, and as a result were relying on others to pick up the slack in his absence. One of those players, who also earned this week’s Blazer of the Week, was Shaedon Sharpe.
Sharpe averaged 23.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this week while shooting 50.7% from the field and 37.0% from the field. Sharpe’s scoring abilities were on full display as the Blazers turned to him time and time again to be the lead scorer without Deni on the court.
This season Sharpe has seen an increase in his efficiency as a scorer as he grows into a true three-level threat. He has always been an incredibly gifted athlete who just needed a bit more consistency in his scoring, and this season he has shown he is able to be an effective scorer from anywhere on the court.
Without Avdija, the Blazers lacked a true first-option scorer. However, Sharpe was able to step into that role for three games and excel as an efficient scorer tasked with leading the offense. When Avdija returned against the Kings, Sharpe slipped right back into his role as the perfect complement and put up 27 points in the win.
This week’s honorable mention is Toumani Camara.
Camara averaged 10.8 points and 3.3 rebounds this week while shooting 48.6% from the field and 30.0% from three. He has been consistently good on defense this season, but he has struggled with efficiency on offense. That was shown in his 5/15 shooting from the field and 1/9 shooting from three against the Hawks. However, he was very efficient outside of that game and still provided elite defense. Despite struggling from the field against Atlanta, he held Jalen Johnson to just 12 points on 9 shots, then followed that up by holding LeBron James to 20 points on 6/16 from the field.
Which Blazer impressed you the most this week? Let us know in the comments below!
