Blazers’ Micah Nori not sold on Damian Lillard-Ja Morant led starting lineup

When the Portland Trail Blazers traded for Ja Morant in the offseason, there was excitement that the guard would have a fresh start elsewhere in his career. There were also many questions raised about how a backcourt of him and Damian Lillard would look. Already in training camp, Lillard shared that he would expect both of them to be in the starting lineup, but head coach Micah Nori isn’t too sure about that.

Nori doesn’t know who will start as of now, but he doesn’t seem sold on the idea of Morant and Lillard starting, according to Jason Quick of The Athletic.

“Nori said that starting Morant and Lillard doesn’t make sense. Both are undersized, and both have never excelled on the defensive end,” Quick wrote. “The more analytically sound option would be to start Holiday — a bigger guard who is an exceptional defender — and have either Morant or Lillard come off the bench. But in a league with huge egos, asking an All-Star to come off the bench is a delicate and difficult task for any coach, let alone Nori, a first-year coach operating on a one-year contract.”

Both Morant and Lillard have been starting for their entire careers, so either one coming off the bench will be different. As Nori said, their size and the play styles may not fit on the court together all the time, which is why there should be a conversation on who starts, and it depends on what the head coach wants.

If he wants more shooting to start the game, Lillard would be the obvious option. If he wants someone who can put pressure on the rim and get the team out in transition, Morant is the choice. There is a world where both styles can work on the court together offensively, but defensively is another story.