On July 2nd, the Portland Trail Blazers signed Ed Davis to a three-year, $20 million deal. Davis opted out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, splashing a new deal worth a lot more. Portland signed the ex-Laker big man as insurance if LaMarcus Aldridge were to leave, and that’s exactly what happened.

Davis has bounced around the NBA a lot during his five-year career, playing for his fourth team now. He was drafted 13th overall by the Toronto Raptors, whom he spent the first two and half seasons with. Midway through the 2012-2013 season, Davis was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies as part of the Rudy Gay deal and finished the year with them, along with one more. His next stop was Los Angeles, but that run ended quickly. Splitting time with Jordan Hill and being part of a miserable Lakers team was enough for Davis to desire an exit from Kobeville. The Blazers jumped on the opportunity to sign him, adding depth to their frontcourt now without Robin Lopez and LaMarcus Aldridge.

As of right now, it appears Davis might be a part of Portland’s starting five. He has big shoes to fill at the power forward position, and if Coach Terry Stotts doesn’t adjust the offense after their torrential offseason, Davis could unfortunately see a major role in it. Last season we saw a two-dimensional offense run by the Blazer starters. Either Lillard, Matthews or Batum would shoot a three, or the ball would be passed down low to LA for an isolation play. Ed Davis isn’t the most prolific scorer, so a new game plan may be in store for Stotts.

In his career, Ed Davis has averaged five to ten points a game. His lack of starts, but more primarily lack of minutes, could be the culprit behind this. Davis is very efficient offensively when on the floor though. He shot a career-high 60 percent from the field last season, ranking up there with players like DeAndre Jordan and Tyson Chandler.

He doesn’t have a jump shot, an attribute teams normally fancy. The Blazers, however, could do with one less shooter. Last season they ranked 26th for points in the paint, scoring just 38 per game. Adding Ed Davis to the roster will undoubtedly raise Portland’s points in the paint, even if he’s slightly undersized for the four and five positions.

The main question is, will he and Mason Plumlee complement each other in Portland’s starting lineup? Plumlee is also a down low scorer, so on offense their play styles may cross over. On defense, however, these two could be a dynamic duo. Davis can defend players at the power forward position, but not the center due to his size. Plumlee, on the other hand, matches up well with opposing big men. In his limited minutes last season, Plumlee tallied at least a steal and a block in almost every game. If he can effectively cover opposing centers, then Davis won’t be relied on to defend bigger, stronger players who can bully him in the paint. Portland ranked 21st in the league for points in the paint allowed, but Davis and Plumlee could prove to be better frontcourt defenders than Lopez and Aldridge.

Despite all the positives with signing Ed Davis and coupling him with Mason Plumlee, the Blazers need more scorers. Neither of these big men can consistently put the ball in the net each time down the floor. Portland relied heavily on Aldridge isolation, but none of their acquisitions can replace his role. Also, they lost Matthews and Batum, both great three-point shooters. Gerald Henderson is well known for his inability to shoot from beyond the arc, and C.J. McCollum is unproven playing big minutes alongside the first team. Although he did finish the playoffs strong, can he do so for an entire season?

In order to help the Blazers offensively, Davis needs to improve his scoring abilities in the paint. Looking at his heat map, a majority of his successful field goal attempts are from directly under the rim (probably put-backs). He needs to develop his short range shooting from other parts of the paint, helping spread the floor for shooters like McCollum and Lillard to find open shots. This does not mean expand his range to jumper distance; the Blazers need as many bodies down low as possible this year. The new acquisitions and lack of team chemistry will undoubtedly lead to a more than normal amount of missed shots, and both Davis and Plumlee need to be there to grab the offensive rebounds.

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About the author
Nate Mann
Portland Trail Blazers writer.