Blazers Star Shaedon Sharpe Reveals Major Summer Goal

Sharpe, still just 21, had issues with defensive consistency, which prompted his move to a reserve role. The hyper-athletic pro made a concerted effort to change on that end of the hardwood, and ultimately recaptured his starting gig before the end of the year.

“I think he handled it well,” said starting point guard Anfernee Simons (who last year had been Portland's starting shooting guard) of Sharpe's reaction to the mid-January bench move.

“We just needed Shaedon to be healthy for a long period of time, and for everybody to see how talented he is, how good he is,” Simons said. “And I expect next year to be even better coming in next year. He got a full year of playing underneath his belt.”

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Billups, who recently agreed to a long-term extension to stay with the Trail Blazers well beyond 2025-26, reiterated how he felt about Sharpe's growth and upside, per Fentress.

“I’ve spoken a ton about how happy I am with Shaedon,” Billups said. “He had some ups and downs, too, but mostly up. I thought he took a step this year. I thought defensively, he was really good. When he’s locked in, he’s alert. Offensively, when he’s aggressive, he’s just really tough to guard. I think he figured some things out there.”

Health also proved to be helpful for Sharpe. The 6-foot-5 guard suited up for just 32 games in 2023-24. His year was concluded early by a core muscle surgery.

“Yeah, my whole goal just coming into the season was just trying to stay healthy,” Sharpe said.

Sharpe acknowledged that he has one major facet of his game that he intends to develop this offseason, ahead of his fourth year in the league.

“I’d say my three-point shot,” he said. “Just being consistent with it.”

Sharpe's 3-point shooting has declined every year so far. He connected on 36 percent of his triple tries during his 2022-23 rookie stint, 33.3 percent of his trey attempts last year, and just 31.1 percent of his 3-pointers this season.

Where Sharpe has thrived already is at the rim. He has emerged as one of the league's more fun in-game dunkers, with a real sense of style.

Next year, he'll look to return with a more rounded offensive game.

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