Former Blazers Forward Looking to Rehab NBA Value With Team USA Stint

Ricardo Klein | Dec 1, 2024

Jan 9, 2022; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Robert Covington (33) shakes with a teammate before playing Sacramento Kings at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images / Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images

Former Portland Trail Blazers forward Robert Covington is looking to make an NBA comeback. The 33-year-old was a free agent this past summer, but he didn't sign with a team because he drew no interest. 

Instead, Covington was selected to represent Team USA at the 2024 AmeriCup Qualifiers and recently helped the USA claim its first win over Puerto Rico.

While he is out of the league at the moment, Covington wants another shot in the NBA. He spoke with Joe Vardon of The Athletic and said that playing in the AmeriCup Qualifiers is a perfect chance to show he is healthy and ready to go. 

“This is a great opportunity just to show people that I’m healthy,” Covington said. “I’ve got four or five years left of basketball in me.”

Covington has played 614 NBA games over 11 NBA seasons. He played just 29 between the Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers last year. He was traded to the Sixers as part of the deal that brought Harden to the Clippers but missed most of the season and the playoffs due to a bone bruise on his left knee and didn’t find an NBA opportunity that suited him last summer as a free agent while coming back from injury.

Covington has played for five teams in his career, including the 76ers, Clippers, Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Portland Trail Blazers. 

He spent two years in Portland, where he averaged 8.1 points per game, 6.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 39 percent from the field and 36 percent from three. 

Covington, a member of the 2017-18 All-Defensive team, feels he can be valuable to a team this season. He also mentioned that he had chances to play this season but didn’t specify where. 

Covington also spoke to HoopsHype and provided an update on his health, as he was dealing with a knee injury last season. 

"I wouldn’t say it was going into the offseason. I was pretty good. I was working out, doing things a lot. A lot of good things well enough to play, but just for whatever reason that didn’t happen. It’s all good. I went into the summer prepping for my next opportunity and I just was patient through everything. I just took my time and fully getting healthy, fully getting ready for everything and just maintaining my peace of mind, because a lot of things didn’t make sense to me, and I try to understand things, try to harp on certain things, but I was just at peace with everything and just moved on from all the stuff that happened.

"Like I said, once I got that peace of mind, it made me feel much better. I just was able to move on from the things that transpired." 

It's unclear if a trade would give him a shot this season, but Covington is out to prove that he is worthy of a roster spot. 

More Trail Blazers: Blazers Predicted to Land $179M Star in Blockbuster Trade Proposal