Trail Blazers' Rebuild Hinges on Finding Their Anthony Edwards

The Blazers found themselves on the receiving end of a superstar performance in Tuesday's loss to Minnesota

📸: David Berding, Getty Images

📍 PORTLAND, Ore. — Tuesday was another night where you could see the outline of what the Trail Blazers are trying to build.

Another strong game in a string of them from Deandre Ayton. Another encouraging performance in a string of them from Scoot Henderson. Consistent effort and hustle plays from the likes of Toumani Camara, Jabari Walker and newcomer Dalano Banton. It got away from them in the fourth quarter as Nickeil Alexander-Walker made a few tough shots, but for most of the game, they hung around against the top-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves and burnished the “young, rebuilding team that better teams are annoyed to play” reputation they’ve taken pride in.

But Tuesday night also provided an illustration of exactly what the long-term success of Portland’s rebuild hinges on: finding their Anthony Edwards.

Everyone knows what that guy looks like. Every up-and-coming playoff threat has one—Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Oklahoma City, Tyrese Haliburton in Indiana, Paolo Banchero in Orlando. One of those guys.

The Timberwolves have theirs, and it was evident from the opening tip Tuesday. Edwards scored 18 of his 41 points in the first quarter and never stopped. He cooked the Blazers’ defense in a variety of ways—getting to the rim, from the midrange, behind the three-point line. He only needed to get to the foul line five times and still managed to score his 41 points on only 27 shots.

“He’s a special talent,” Chauncey Billups said after the game. “I love how he competes. People don’t give him the credit, but he can really guard. His offense is so good that people don’t talk about that. He’s mean out there, which is beautiful. He’s one of the tougher guys to guard in the league.”

Once upon a time in Portland, that ascendant star was Damian Lillard. Every team that doesn’t have one is trying to get one.

In an ideal world, that could be Henderson, but he has a long way to go. Shaedon Sharpe’s progression is halted by the core muscle surgery that will keep him out the next several weeks. Anfernee Simons isn’t consistent enough. Nobody else has the high-end upside. In all likelihood, whoever that guy will be for the post-Lillard Blazers isn’t on the roster now. That means unless Henderson or Sharpe takes a massive jump in the next year or two (entirely possible), they’ll have to either find him in one of the next couple of drafts, or somehow trade for him.

For being in year one of a rebuild, the Blazers have a lot of the other stuff. Quality veterans in Simons, Ayton and Jerami Grant. Solid younger role players in Walker, Camara and Duop Reath, who know what they are and mostly do positive things when they’re on the floor. Prospects with serious upside like Henderson and Sharpe.

All of the ingredients are there of a team that can be good within the next few years. Whether or not they can be great will depend on if they can find the most important ingredient. Minnesota has theirs.