Jerami Grant is back in the playoffs for the first time since Sept. 26, 2020, and the Portland Trail Blazers are in as the Western Conference's seventh seed after beating the Phoenix Suns 114-110 in a play-in tournament game Tuesday. Grant last played a postseason game in the Denver Nuggets' 117-107 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, when he scored 20 points.
For Grant, the return carried more than just standings value. He said on April 10 that he missed the playoffs so much and was happy to have a chance to play when it matters most again, a feeling that fit a Portland team that had not reached the postseason since 2021. The Blazers finished 42-40, won seven of their last 10 regular-season games and clinched the eighth seed with a home win over the Los Angeles Clippers on April 10 before moving on.
Grant's season was steady even with a late setback. He averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 29.7 minutes per game, then missed the last seven games of the regular season with a right calf strain before returning to score 16 points in 19 minutes against Phoenix. He said his body was OK after getting treatment from Mike Davis, and he called the season solid.
Portland's run has unfolded in a far different place than where the franchise and Grant were expected to be when the season began. The Blazers entered without Damian Lillard, who missed the year with a ruptured Achilles tendon, and were widely viewed as a team headed toward the 2026 NBA draft rather than a postseason chase. Instead, Shaedon Sharpe came back in the regular-season finale after about two months out with a left calf strain that led to a stress reaction in the left fibula, and Grant returned against Phoenix during Portland's first fully healthy roster, excluding Lillard.
That is what makes the matchup harder to dismiss. Grant said Portland has a versatile group with plenty of players who can win games, defend and score, and he expects the series to turn on adjustments and matchups. The Blazers have already been labeled a surprise, but the real test now is whether that depth can survive the pressure that comes with a first postseason trip since 2021.
