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Casey Holdahl

Greetings once again from the Oregon coast. The Exit Interview editions of The Brief Case come to a close with Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and general manager Joe Cronin...

Topics on this, the 94th edition, include...

• The 2024 NBA Playoffs and which teams might be due for a reset if they're bounced in the first round

• Which players a new mock draft from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers selecting with the fourth and 14th picks

• The last batch of Exit Interviews with Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and general manager Joe Cronin 

And with that, the Brief Case will likely go on a bit of a hiatus until we get a bit closer to the NBA Draft Lottery, which is scheduled for Sunday, May 12 in Chicago. We'll be sure to snap into action if any news does break before then, but otherwise, it's likely to be a bit quiet around these parts for the next few weeks.

And because of that, now is a great time to subscribe to The Brief Case so you're sure not to miss any new episodes. You can subscribe to the Brief Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube, IHeartRadio, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Pocket Casts, Deezer, PlayerFM.

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Billups, Cronin Wrap Up Exit Interviews On The Brief Case, Episode 94

The Exit Interview editions of The Brief Case continue with Toumani Camara and Dalano Banton, the last batch of players before we finish off the series with later this week with Chauncey Billups and Joe Cronin. Give it a listen if you haven't already...

Topics on this, the 93rd edition, include...

• The latest from the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs

• The recent breaking of ties as it pertains to the NBA Draft Lottery and what it could mean for the Trail Blazers

• Toumani Camara discussing his thoughts on his rookie season, having his season ended by a rib injury, which ended his goal of playing in all 82 games this season, part of his game he’s looking to improve this offseason, his offseason schedule, including whether he’s going to play at the Las Vegas Summer League, living in Portland, the competition or lack thereof amongst Portland’s forwards, making plays with effort and being one of the few players to make the NBA out of Belgium

• Dalano Banton discussing his first few months with the Trail Blazers, the culture the Trail Blazers are trying to instill, thoughts on Scoot Henderson and the importance of opportunity for young players

You can subscribe to the Brief Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube, IHeartRadio, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Pocket Casts, Deezer, PlayerFM.

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Draft Tiebreakers And More Exit Interviews On The Brief Case, Episode 93

Greetings from the Oregon coast. With half the league playing in the first weekend of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and the other half preparing for the Draft, it made sense to touch on both topics on the latest edition of The Brief Case podcast, which you can listen and subscribe to below...

As you might imagine, topics on this edition include...

• Recapping the first weekend of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and making some late predictions on how each first round series ends 

• Checking out who ESPN has the Trail Blazers selecting with the third, 14th, 33rd and 40th picks of 2024 NBA Draft

• Exit interviews with Anfernee Simons and Deandre Ayton

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Exit Interviews, Playoff Predictions And Mock Drafts On The Brief Case Podcast

Greetings from North Portland. The Trail Blazers' 2023-24 season might be over, but there's still plenty to get to as the NBA Playoffs start to ramp up. So with that in mind, please to enjoy the 91st edition of The Brief Case podcast, which you can listen and subscribe to below...

• The Golden State Warriors being eliminated from the postseason and what that means for the Portland Trail Blazers at the 2024 NBA Draft

• The remaining Play-In Tournament games

• Malcolm Brogdon's comments at Exit Interviews regarding his future in the NBA, thoughts on Scoot Henderson, Chauncey Billups, Portland’s locker room and being a mentor, his health and the culture the Trail Blazers are trying to instill

• Matisse Thybulle's comments at Exit Interviews regarding his thoughts on a “challenging” season that “didn’t go the way I wanted it to,” playing for the Australian national team at the upcoming summer Olympics in Paris, injuries, Chauncey as a teacher and having the opportunity to expand his game

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Malcolm And Matisse Exit Interviews On The Brief Case, Episode 91

Greetings from North Portland, where we recorded the last regular season/first offseason edition of The Blazers Balcony, which you can listen and subscribe to below...

Both Brooke Olzendam, she of Trail Blazers TV, and I, Casey Holdahl, are still coming down from Portland's 2023-24 season coming to a close, so this one might be a bit more off-topic than usual. But some of what we covered includes...

• The differences between where Brooke lives (SW Portland) and where I live (N Portland)

• The Trail Blazers finishing their 2023-24 season with a 21-61 record

• Live updates of Tuesday's Play-In Tournament games

• Matisse Thybulle's segment in Sacramento

• Working in Portland's locker room, now and then

• Scoot Henderson and finishing the season strong

• The 2023-24 Trail Blazers' locker room vibe

• Brooke's Saturday Night Live analysis and whether I look like Beavis

• The best and worst parts of Portland's 2023-24 seasons 

• Which teams and players we're rooting for in the 2024 NBA Playoffs

You can subscribe to the Blazers Balcony on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Youtube, Stitcher, TuneIn, Deezer, Spotify, I Heart Radio,  Pocket Casts and Pandora. Thanks for listening, talk soon!

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Wrapping It Up On The Blazers Balcony, Episode 121

Greetings from North Portland. With the Trail Blazers' 2023-24 season officially in the books, wasted no time turning out the 90th edition of The Brief Case podcast since we've got quite a bit to get to this offseason. Give it a listen...

In this second Exit Interview edition, topics include...

• The Trail Blazers ending their 2023-24 season with a loss to the Kings in Sacramento Sunday afternoon

• Portland finishing in a tie with Charlotte for the third-worst record and what that means in terms of their odds at the 2024 Draft Lottery

• What we learned and didn't learn about some of the Trail Blazers' players this season

• A final tally on the Trail Blazers' offensive rating, defensive rating, net rating and their record versus the spread

• Exit interviews with Robert Williams III and Shaedon Sharpe

You can subscribe to the Brief Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube, IHeartRadio, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Pocket Casts, Deezer, PlayerFM. Thanks for listening this season, and now is a great time to subscribe so you don't miss any offseason editions!

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The Season Comes To A Close And More Exit Interviews On The Brief Case

Greetings from North Portland. With the 2023-24 season coming to a close, it's time to start turning out the exit interviews, in which players take a few questions from the local media before beginning their respective offseasons. And even though the is one more game left, the team got a jumpstart by making three players available after the last home game of the season, a 116-107 loss to the Rockets Friday night.

So first up, we hear from rookie guard Scoot Henderson, whose exit interview you can listen to below...

Topics, other than Scoot's comments, on this edition include...

• The final three games of the Trail Blazers' 2023-24 home schedule

• Toumani Camara winning the Maurice Lucas Award

• Where the Blazers stand in terms of draft lottery odds with one game to play

• Portland's record versus the spread in the last 10 days of the season

• Scoot Henderson's comments during his exit interview Friday night

You can subscribe to the Brief Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube, IHeartRadio, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Pocket Casts, Deezer, PlayerFM. More exit interviews on Monday!

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Scoot's Exit Interview On The Brief Case, Episode 89

PORTLAND -- Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson has made no excuses over the course of his first season in Portland. When he struggles, he’s honest about those issues. When he plays well but the team loses, he makes a point of emphasizing the collective result rather than his individual performance. He could blame his age, injuries and a number of other factors for what has been an up and down rookie season, but time and time again, he has refused to make excuses.

And now, he’s making considerable progress.

The 6-3 guard in his first season out of the G League Ignite is first among rookies in assists at 5.3 per game and fourth in scoring at 13.7 points per game. And since the All-Star break, Henderson is averaging 6.8 assists, first among rookies, 15.7 points, fourth among rookies, and 1.2 steals, fifth among rookies.

He’s posted seven games this season with at least 10 assists, the most among first-year players, and is the only player in this class to put up 20 points and 10 assists in a game this season, something he’s done four times.

More recently, Henderson became the first rookie since Lonzo Ball in 2017 to post 10 points and 10 assists in a half, as he did in Tuesday night’s loss to the Pelicans at Moda Center. He’s also the first Blazers rookie to hand out 10 assists in a half since Damian Lillard a few seasons back.

Henderson finished Tuesday’s game with 15 assists, passing Kelvin Ransey and Bill Walton by setting a new franchise mark for assists in a game by a rookie. The effort also made him the only rookie this season to log a game with 15 assists.

“My performance was solid, just trying to get guys the ball and they hit shots, simple as that,” said Henderson about his record-breaking performance. “Just trying to get our passes up as a team, we want a lot of passes as a team, so taking part in that.”

While much of Henderson’s improvement can be attributed to increased playing time, his budding partnership with center Deandre Ayton, who also had a bit of a slow start to his tenure as a Trail Blazer, has benefitted both players. Henderson has assisted on 54 of Ayton’s field goals this season with well over half of those coming since the All-Star break.

“From where it started to where it is now…” said Ayton of his chemistry with his rookie point guard. “We’re seeing glimpses of it right now. Scoot is being extremely poised in certain situations in the game, no matter the momentum. He’s just really taking over.”

One could argue no rookie has improved more this season than Henderson, though there’s still plenty of room for growth, which is the case for any 20 year old. His finishing at the rim needs to improve, his three-point shot, already better than when he entered the league in October, is still a work-in-progress and he has to cut down on turnovers, another statistic in which he leads all rookies.

But while he might take a bit of a break after Portland’s season ends on Sunday in Sacramento, he’ll be right back to work soon after.

“I think it’s just all a process,” said Henderson. “It don’t stop here, it starts in the next couple of days. It starts in the summer, that’s when the work starts. Just try to come back next season better for my team.”

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Scoot Makes Progress, Not Excuses, As Rookie Season Comes To A Close

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