October 20: Sharpe’s four-year extension is official, the Trail Blazers confirmed in a press release.
“Shaedon Sharpe is one of the most exciting young players in the NBA,” said general manager Joe Cronin. “With his ability to score the basketball, play make and be a great teammate, we are ecstatic that Shaedon will be an electric part of the Trail Blazers for years to come.”
October 19: The Trail Blazers have come to terms on a four-year, $90MM rookie scale extension with shooting guard Shaedon Sharpe, reports Shams Charania for ESPN (Twitter link).
Sharpe was originally selected with the No. 7 pick in the 2022 draft after reclassifying to spend a season with Kentucky, though he ultimately did not play a game for the Wildcats.
Sharpe, 22, has started 92 of 184 regular season games through his first three seasons. In 2024/25, he established a new career highs by averaging 18.5 points per game to go along with his 4.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per night.
However, Sharpe has struggled at times with his shooting efficiency and defense — his three-point percentage declined to a career-worst 31.1% in ’24/25, while head coach Chauncey Billups benched him at one point last season due to repeated defensive lapses.
Still, Portland remains high on Sharpe’s long-term upside and brought in veterans Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard this offseason to provide leadership and guidance for the young backcourt duo of Sharpe and Scoot Henderson.
The Blazers have built a team primarily focused on defensive-minded players, and Sharpe’s ability to score at volume figures to factor heavily into their offensive approach.
After agreeing to a four-year extension with Toumani Camara earlier today, and with Deni Avdija on a descending deal that runs through the end of the 2027/28 season, the Blazers have locked in a young, talented wing trio on deals that will each account for less than 15% of the cap moving forward, notes Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter).
Sharpe is the seventh player to agree to a rookie scale extension this offseason, joining Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams (Thunder), Paolo Banchero (Magic), Jabari Smith Jr. (Rockets), Nikola Jovic (Heat), and Keegan Murray (Kings). There are still 14 players eligible for rookie scale extensions ahead of Monday’s deadline.
Hate to say it, but Cronin with two great value contract extensions.
Good for these Blazers.
Sharpe is a good value at those numbers. Kuminga overpay confirmed.
Toumara, yes.
But, the Sharpe deal makes sense only for a rebuilding team like Portland with a lot of cap space and no pressure to win in the short term.
Sharpe is an absolutely harrendous defensive player. He’s a also a high volume 3 point shooter that can’t shoot.
I was going to say why would you pay $22.5mil/year to a guy you benched last season due to a lack of effectiveness (on either side of the ball)??
@aristotle ……. Yes, hence “good for these BLAZERS “.
Sharpe isn’t a winning-player, inefficient, no defense – but he can score, young and athletic to keep their crowd engaged in these rebuilding years.
BLAZERS will take their time, see who sticks and who goes the next few years.
@mike.honcho, we’re in agreement.
The Sharpe extension makes complete sense for Portland where it less sense for teams that can’t take their time or play the long game.
Can’t really stay healthy but the contract isn’t bad for someone that is suppose to be their best player at some point.
Their best player will be Avdija, he has the most talent from that group, and by quite a margin.
@Peter_Cantrope, Avidja is a winner. IMO, the Wizards made a catastrophic mistake trading him..
Ofc they did. Trading away Deni and drafting Kispert in 2021 with who was left on the board are two things that make me take a drink or two too many in the evening when I think about the team or watch their games.
You know what’s similar between Jokic, Doncic, Avdija, Sengun and Wemby? All were the best players in their Leagues at age 18. Jokic in the ABA league, Doncic in Spain and on the entire continent, Deni with Maccabi, Sengun at Besiktas, and Wemby in France. All of those leagues are full of seasoned no-nonsense pros, who you need to outcompete to earn a starting spot first, and then outcompete on the court when playing against them. And the 5 I listed were so good that they made debuts at 15-16, and became MVPs even before they were old enough to be eligible for the draft.
That trade is one of the reasons why I’m not as positive about this FO as some people out there. Folks are saying that the Wiz are finally being run great, that those people from OKC know what they are doing.
But honestly, the trades they are making are just like most other teams – some good, some bad. Beal trade was good, Smart trade with Memphis was good. Deni trade was very bad, also considering that the team took on Brogdon and didn’t convert him into anything.
So some good, some bad, just like everyone else. None of the moves they made are accelerating the turnaround, honestly. What will matter in the end is what becomes of the first round picks. Getting 6th this year was a brutal blow. A gigantic blow. I expect 3 more years of tanking, but it doesn’t guarantee anything. I think there’s a very high chance that people will not be so complementary about this FO in a couple of years, and the org will be seen as Detroit were before last year.
@Peter_Cantrope, you make so many interestin points, wish I could reply to all but here are a couple of immediate impressions:
First, the positive: acquiring Cam Whitmore for so little was huge.
Second, and you seem prepared to hear this: mostly because of the awful luck they’ve had in the draft, the situation looks really grim. Agree that they need 3 more years of tanking, in the best case.
The Wizards’ FO is in an impossible situation. The Wizards’ young core is substantially worse than Utah’s…by far the worst of all the currently rebuilding teams in the league. Outside of Whitmore, (in my completely non-expert opinion), there isn’t a single player that looks like they could develop into an over-average NBA starter.
Prediction: the FO will be blamed before that 3 years of tanking is up.
Yeap, I agree. The young core is by far the worst.
My breakdown would be:
Whitmore I’m not as positive about as you are. When players drop in the draft process, it’s usually for a reason. So I don’t see him as a top-5 talent or whatever, I think he got picked a accordingly to his projection. He’s 6’5.5 PF. That’s his real height without shoes, despite what he’s listed at.
Bilal might become decent, but players like him don’t shine on tanking teams, so it will be hard to get a grip of what he really is. He might become an important player for a competing team, but his value will not be very high while in DC.
2024 draft was so weak, and I adjusted my expectations accordingly.
Sarr is not a top-2 pick, he’d be picked in the teens or even 20s in normal years. I don’t anything will become of him. Not even an average player. But he’s the most destructive player in basketball and ensures a top pick, so that’s his role.
Carrington sort of the same, I think he’ll be out of the league quite soon, like within 5 years.
Kyshawn George is actually the best player we drafted in 2024. And he’s not just a good defender, he could develop in to Jalen Johnson-type player – size, handle, and a bit of everything else. You probably didn’t watch the Wiz and don’t know much about him, but he’s good.
Tre Johnson was picked at 6th. The team’s plan to somehow draft Bailey didn’t work. Some scouts were really bullish on him and said he could have gone 3rd. I’m not so much, don’t like the profile. But I’ll be open minded about him.
AJ Johnson (from Milwaukee) will probably not get his 2nd contract.
Riley, who was drafted 21st this year, I don’t know, he’s just another late bloomer with a 3% chance to develop into something and 97% to be out of the league in 2-5 years.
Older players CJ, Middleton, Kispert, Bagley I don’t think we will get much out of, at most some 2nds in trades. Justin Champagnie is actually a little gem of a player, he’s our Jay Huff, of sorts, maybe even better. Happy to have him, but he won’t be the reason this team makes a turnaround, ofc.
So not too much. Kyshawn, and maybe Tre.
The lottery odds are worse than ever for bottom teams. I doesn’t look good.
It was one of the reasons I wanted the team to try to get Kuminga. At least he has talent and projects.
And yeap, the FO will start getting the blame very soon. Even from people who were calling to blow it up. The same people will start saying that if the rebuild is taking more than 3 tanking years, it’s a failure on FO’s part. Even though it was out of FO’s hands that the 2024 class was so poor, and this year they got 6th.
We both see the same picture
Yeah. I saw some people try to promote the team from a purgatory to a young fun team, from a mediocre disaster to a competent up-and-comer, trying to place the team high in “best young core rankings” and whatnot.
I don’t see it.
Maybe it will change with a good pick in 2026, but those odds are brutal. The worst team in the league has only a 52% chance for its pick to not fall outside the top-4. What happened to Utah and Washington is not some unbelievable rarity; it’s rather normal. Detroit finished 3rd worst in 21-22 and got 5th, finished dead last in 22-23 and got 5th, finished dead last again in 23-24 and got 5th again. It can easily happen to the Wizards for a couple of years in a row, too.
If you finish dead last or second to last, you have a higher chance of getting 5th or 6th than a top-3 pick. That’s scary for a tanking team.
Portland doing it right in doing a youth movement and locking up the young players. One of those teams other teams in teh west better not sleep on because they can play.
Portland has no idea what they are doing. They are stuck in no man’s land. They are not good enough to even sniff the playoffs and they’re not bad enough to actually get real talent or get a top pick. They have a bunch of 4/5 options. It started by not trading dame 2 years before they did. Or just letting him know that they were doing a rebuilt. Then like the bulls they tried to rebuild but do this soft rebuild. Sharpe is a decent player. The reason why he doesn’t look that good is because he’s a third or fourth option playing with more third and fourth options. Scoot can’t stay healthy and is a 3rd/4th option. That is why the blazers are in a lot of games and they don’t get blown out and they don’t blow out anybody because they’re just good enough to stay in the game and either when at the end or lose at the end.
Umm.. they are pretty obviously building a defensive identity. Outside of that, I think you are speaking too soon here. They have a bunch of really young guys who will improve this year… the question is how much. Then, if none of these guys make it, they still have a path to maybe pick up a #1 from another team… lot’s of guys want the ball to score… that’s what this team needs.
Did you not read my post. We’re saying the same thing except they are not good and they are not bad. So we’re is the path to a better player. They have no vision of a team but seel tickets. I know because my summer house is in Portland and the city is a mess (no speaking politics) they need to do a proper tair down. Moves off some of these young guys to accumulate more assets. Why do they have Dani and holiday? Chances are a contending team is going to want them if there’s a trade and so that will be another high first round pick
Did you read my post? We aren’t saying the same thing at all. But, ok. Vision = best defense in the league. Holiday = Defense.
Why move off young guys for a rebuild. That doesn’t even make sense as a concept.
The path to a better player, if needed, is to consolidate some of these young guys if they become 2nd or 3rd options, with future draft picks. Also, those big contracts for Holday and Grant can be used, too.
Dani? Someone has to score and he can play in several different schemes.
arc89 is the only one who makes sense
Trade Holiday and Grant for Rozier, Nurkic and other expiring contracts then waive them. Waive Murray too.
Sign Bates, a young(21-22) PF on two way contract, James Johnson or Taj Gibson and Alec Burks or Josh Richardson. Veterans are important
Or Whitehead to a two way contract*
“Veterans are important”, but Jrue isn’t?
IMO he’s key to them leveling up.
Jrue should be starting for a winning team. I understand what you are saying. I’m just always thinking ahead
Keep Holiday he still playing at above average level. Is sac sening over 3 1st rounders?
Houston should
Sharpe got a late start in basketball. He didn’t even play much in college. Blazers took a big gamble on his potential in draft. If you read all the scouting reports. And you watch him. He is considered to be an elite athlete. He just had his best yr so far. It’s a good sign he is starting to get it. Got plenty of talent. If he has the drive and commitment. He can be major.
He has positional size at SG. Has toughness work on his handle and shooting. His D will get. Etter as he learns the L.
i love how so many people think Sharpe is a bum…he’s 22 yrs old. chill.
So called basketball fans here. Love to hate on 19-24 yr olds.
There is a difference between bum and ceiling. We’re I agree he can grow his ceiling is 3rd option. He floor is a decent starter or 6th man. Problem is all there players are the same. Leaving them in no man’s land. If you’re keeping sharp trade scoot. With holiday and Grant and di. Your either a play in team on one spot out with not players that can develop into a star. Same with the big man from UConn. This team has not direction because it been all Dame for years.