Portland Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin has signed a multi-year extension, the team announced Monday. Cronin became the team’s interim GM when they fired Neil Olshey in December 2021, and the Blazers took away the interim tag the following offseason. During his tenure, Portland has traded away Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum and began rebuilding the team around younger players like Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara.
“Joe has demonstrated leadership and vision during his time as general manager, and I’m excited to see him continue building the foundation for a long-term, winning team,” team owner Jody Allen said in a statement. “We are all thrilled with the team’s forward momentum and excited for the future of Trail Blazers basketball.”
In the same press release, Cronin said: “My vision is to have a competitive roster with the potential for sustained success, while creating a culture that helps all our players, coaches and staff thrive. I couldn’t be more excited for what’s to come.”
The Blazers were officially eliminated from postseason contention on Sunday, but, at 35-44, they have been more competitive than many observers expected. Since Jan. 19, they’ve gone 22-16, with the league’s No. 4 defense (and No. 2 halfcourt defense, per Cleaning The Glass) in that span.
For a team that won’t make the playoffs and won’t have particularly strong odds in the draft lottery, Portland has a lot of interesting things going on. Avdija has been on an absolute tear, Henderson has improved significantly and Camara could make All-Defense. Heading into the offseason, Cronin’s front office faces familiar questions: How do Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, Deandre Ayton, Matisse Thybulle and Robert Williams III fit into the plan? What’s the timeline for making a playoff push?
A more pressing question: Is an extension for coach Chauncey Billups coming soon? One would seem to be warranted, based on the team’s in-season improvement, and Billups is already in the final guaranteed season of the five-year deal he signed in 2021. (The Blazers have a team option on 2025-26.) At the beginning of the season, it was widely assumed that this would be his last in Portland, but “the tenor of that chatter has changed,” The Stein Line’s Marc Stein wrote last month.
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