Deni Avdija's All-Star-level play, Shaedon Sharpe's slow start, the fallout from Chauncey Billups' arrest and more.
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Through 10 games each of the last two years, the Trail Blazers were 3-7. That was about what people expected, given they went into both of those seasons explicitly in rebuild mode.
Things are different now. After a strong finish to last season, Joe Cronin made win-now moves this summer and the organizational goal isn't to chase lottery odds anymore. They want to be in contention for the postseason, either the play-in or an outright playoff spot.
At 5-5 through 10 games, they're exactly in that range. They're currently ninth in the Western Conference, a game and a half ahead of 10th-place Memphis. Their strengths and weaknesses are pretty much what people expected: the defense is legit and the offense is shaky. They've dropped some winnable games against the shorthanded Lakers and Heat but have also beaten two title contenders in Oklahoma City and Denver.
Overall, they're right about where I thought they'd be. Here's a closer look at some things I've seen through the first 10 games, from Deni Avdija's continued ascendance to the crippling lack of backcourt depth to the fallout from the Chauncey Billups arrest.
1. The stats driving the Blazers' wins...and their losses
Looking at the numbers, there are clear trends and things the Blazers, as a team, are good at and bad at.
