Trail Blazers’ Odds to Win NBA Cup Revealed

Can Portland shock the world?

Nov 10, 2024; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) huddles with teammates before the Trail Blazers play Memphis Grizzlies at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images / Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images

Can the Portland Trail Blazers shock the world and win the newly rebranded Emirates NBA Cup this year?

The tanking club has stumbled to a 3-8 start to its season, which in fairness is clearly according to general manager Joe Cronin's plan for Portland: embrace youth development and pray to luck into the No. 1 pick and the opportunity to draft freshman Duke forward Cooper Flagg.

According to FanDuel, the Trail Blazers have been given the worst odds to win the 2024 NBA Cup, +25000, tied with the 2-7 Washington Wizards, the 2-7 Utah Jazz, and the surprisingly chippy 5-6 Brooklyn Nets.

The Trail Blazers are currently in a fairly open NBA Cup group, West A. Aside from the mighty 6-4 Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland's other competition comprises several play-in caliber pieces or worse, in the 6-5 Los Angeles Clippers, 6-5 Sacramento Kings, and the surprisingly robust 7-4 Houston Rockets.

Portland's first game of its NBA Cup slate is scheduled for Tuesday night against Minnesota. Per the league's latest injury report, two-time All-Defensive Team shooting guard/small forward Matisse Thybulle will have to wait another game to make his 2024-25 season debut, as he continues to recuperate from his lingering right knee injury.

On the Minnesota side, however, the Timberwolves will be without two-way players Jaylen Clark, Jesse Edwards, and Daishen Nix. Leonard Miller is on assignment with the club's NBAGL affiliate, the Iowa Wolves.

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According to sportsbook aggregator The Action Network, Portland is a 7.5-point underdog against Minnesota.

It sure seems like the Trail Blazers are headed for their fourth straight season of lottery-bound misery under head coach Chauncey Billups, a Hall of Famer as a player who has yet to prove himself as a Hall of Fame coach. The club is ranked 29th in offensive rating (104.9) and 21st in defensive rating (116.0).

Veteran 3-and-D power forward Jerami Grant, perhaps the club's top trade chip this year, continues to prove his mettle on the tanking Trail Blazers. The 6-foot-7 wing is averaging 18.1 points on .399/.333/.776 shooting splits, 3.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.3 blocks and 0.8 steals a night through his first 11 games this year.

Newly minted starting point guard Anfernee Simons, another top trade candidate for Portland to float, is averaging 17.5 points while slashing .381/.302/917, along with 4.6 dimes, 2.1 rebounds and 0.8 swipes a night. The Trail Blazers' highest-priced player, center Deandre Ayton, may be tough to deal. He's averaging 13.3 points on 51.9 percent shooting from the field and 62.5 percent foul line shooting, 10.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.5 blocks a night.

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