At its core, the NBA is a copycat league. One team discovers something that works, so everyone else rushes to try and replicate their success.
One trend I have been monitoring is something I am calling the “adults in the room” phenomenon. This refers to situations where young teams bring in proven veteran talent to help their group go from feisty and volatile to consistent and respectable.
In 2023-24, the Houston Rockets brought in Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green, which helped them improve their record by 19 wins from the season before (22 to 41 wins). Last year, the Detroit Pistons added Tobias Harris, Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr. to complement their growing bunch and went from 14 wins to 42 wins.
While it is still early, the Portland Trail Blazers appear primed to follow those footsteps in 2025-26. As it stands, the Blazers are 5-5, despite playing the fourth-hardest schedule in the NBA to this point (per Dunks & Threes) — making it likely they build on their 36-46 record from the season prior.
Franchise pillars Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara and Shaedon Sharpe have played big roles in this improvement but Portland’s old guys also deserve some credit for creating an ecosystem in which the young guys can thrive.
Jrue Holiday
Last postseason, after Jayson Tatum suffered a torn Achilles, I pled with Jrue Holiday to come up from under the supercharged three-and-D rock he had been living under since joining the Boston Celtics and rekindle the ball-dominant version we saw with the New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks.
When that didn’t really happen, I figured the 35-year-old no longer had his fastball and he wouldn’t be more than a complementary piece for the Blazers.
It turns out Holiday just needed to knock some rust off and he could still handle a pretty high usage. Through 10 games, he is averaging his highest points per game (17.1) and usage percentage (21.5) since 2023, as well tracking toward a new career-high in assists per game (8.1).
Last season, once they hit their stride after the calendar flipped to 2025, the Blazers were the NBA’s sixth-ranked defense. What set them back was their offense (20th in offensive rating). Portland had athletic attackers (Scoot Henderson, Avdija and Sharpe) but needed someone who could operate pick-and-rolls and space the floor off the ball.
Holiday is hitting 35.2 percent of his threes on high volume (73rd percentile in attempts per 75 possessions) and looks as decisive as ever with the ball in his hands.
Look at this clip, where Holiday throws a left-handed skip pass — one of the hardest throws for a right-hander to make:
Or, right here, when Holiday forces the big to commit before dropping this slick dime to his teammate for a layup:
Overall, the Blazers are 6.9 points better per 100 possessions offensively (77th percentile) when Holiday is on the floor (per Cleaning the Glass). Their offensive rating in those minutes is above the league average (117.4, 58th percentile), too.
Best of all, Holiday is still an absolute pest on defense. The Blazers’ defense is six points stouter per 100 possession when he’s on the floor, so they don’t need to sacrifice their identity to improve on offense.
Jerami Grant
There are few things harder for an NBA player than to go from a full-time starter to coming off the bench. I imagine its akin to the process of saying goodbye to your hair. It shows you are aging and your best days are behind you.
If this were hair loss, Jerami Grant would be absolutely rocking his bald fade. After starting every game he’s played for the last half-decade, Grant has fully embraced his new job as a sixth man and been blessed with a career resurgence as a result.
The 2024-25 campaign was a rough one for Grant. Not only did injuries relegate him to 47 games, but when he did play, he was incredibly ineffective. Grant experienced his worst scoring season (14.4 points per game) since 2019-20 and his least efficient (52.3 percent true shooting) one since 2015-16. To make matters worse, the Blazers were way better when he was off the floor than when he was on it (minus-13.9 on-off net rating swing).
Now, as the team’s sixth man, Grant is healthy and able to focus on what he does best. His defensive impact has always been overstated but he does boast a tantalizing blend of size and skill.
Grant is a very good shooter (39 percent from three since joining Portland in 2022-23). Over the years, he’s also developed some nice off-the-dribble chops. When you couple that with his length (7-foot-3 wingspan), it makes for a good driver and free-throw generator (6.9 attempts per game).
Grant’s size serves him well defensively, too, where he can play the four in traditional lineups and occupy the center spot in small-ball units. By coming off the bench, he can focus on these elements of his game rather than worrying about being the Blazers’ primary perimeter stopper. It also helps he’s finally finishing around the rim again (65.4 percent) after converting just 43.8 percent of his attempts in that area last season.
Jerami Grant this season:
– 20.0 PPG
– 50.5 FG%
– 41.7 3P%
– 86.2% FT% (7.2 FTA)
– 3.2 RPG
– 2.2 APG
– 2.0 TOPG6MOTY candidate – proving last year was just a down year pic.twitter.com/IeP57UPBLD
— Blazers Lead (@BlazersLead) November 9, 2025
Speaking of small ball, the sample is tiny, but Grant at the five has been Portland’s best pitch this year. During the 81 non-garbage time possessions he’s shared the floor with Avdija, Holiday, Sharpe and Camara, the Blazers’ net rating is plus-26.6.
Grant gives Portland’s Rugrats a release valve offensively when the lane gets too congested, a shoulder to lean on when they need some additional creation and the ability to play multiple styles. He and Holiday may not be part of the long-term nucleus but they are necessary building blocks for Portland to get to its final destination.
