What are your (reasonable) lofty hopes for the Portland Trail Blazers entering the 2026-27 NBA season? What are your (reasonable) fears about how low they could fall in the Western Conference standings?
The latest episode of the We Like the Blazers podcast dives into those questions, the most likely outcome between the two sides of the spectrum, and much more as 2026 Trail Blazers Media Day looms on the horizon!
First, hosts Conor Bergin and Brandon Mullen — plus producer Terence Stilin-Rooney — discuss
the fallout from the NBA’s severe sanctions against the Los Angeles Clippers, as well as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s latest comments about the Blazers/local government Moda Center negotiation saga.
Then, in the second half, Conor pulls out his physical copy of the 2026-27 Athlon Sports NBA Preview Magazine (find it at your local Fred Meyer soon!). Conor wrote the preview section for the Trail Blazers in this year’s edition, laying out roster analysis, preseason storylines and a prediction for how the season will go. On the podcast, Conor reads out select passages from the article, while Brandon and Terrence react and tell him what he got right or wrong.
That section gets into a lot: how this roster is the “X-Men: Days of Future Past” of NBA teams, what a Year 3 leap from Donovan Clingan looks like, expectations for Deni Avdija, the potential of Scoot Henderson and more. It’s also when the discussion concerning this roster’s floor and ceiling — and what those terms truly mean — kicks into full gear.
Conor: Most likely outcome: six or seven seed, first-round loss. Ceiling: Fifth seed, they upset the fourth seed, they lose in the second round.
Brandon: And their floor is that injuries happen and stuff doesn’t work and they don’t make the play-in.
Conor: I guess, a very low floor is they get the 11 seed. I think a more realistic floor is they still make the play-in but they don’t advance.
Brandon: That’s fair, I mostly agree with that … I think their ceiling, as I talked about last week, is the third seed.
Terrence: Hooooomer!
The Clippers talk opens the show. The Silver/Moda talk 7:00 mark. The Athlon Blazers preview talk begins at the 24:40 mark, with the more specific ceiling/floor conversation starting at the 56:00 mark. Listen to the episode and then comment what you think the Blazers’ floor/ceiling is this season below!
You can find We Like the Blazerson YouTube and wherever you find podcasts!
