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On this edition of the Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The Trail Blazers returning from a five-game trip to play an all Moda Center back-to-back

• Losing to the Suns on Tuesday in the first game back from a long trip

• Rallying to take the lead only to lose to the Bulls on yet another buzzer-beating three in the second night of a back-to-back

• Portland down to 10 players, including three two-way players, Wednesday night

• Three-point defense and free throw shooting making it hard shorthanded

• Deni Avdija posts his third triple-double, all of which have come during his time with the Trail Blazers

• Jerami Grant shaking off an illness to post 33 points versus the Bulls

• Donovan Clingan posting a career high in rebounds and Portland's ridiculous rebounding numbers versus Chicago

• Needing a win on the upcoming three-game road trip

• The play of rookie center Yang Hansen since his return from an assignment with the Rip City Remix

• Hansen going through what all rookie centers go through

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses... 

• The Trail Blazers starting a five-game trip with a close loss to the Heat in Miami on Saturday

• Going scoreless at the worst possible time

• Both Jrue Holiday and Deni Avdija come close to triple-doubles in Miami

• Trail Blazers stick around in Orlando versus the Magic but end up getting beaten at the buzzer by a Desmond Bane three

• Portland overcoming a tough night on the boards and a lack of flow on offense for the first three quarters 

• The Blazers once again staying resilient long enough for the game to turn in their favor

• Did Tiago Splitter remember the alley-oop play that gave Portland the lead from when the Blazers ran it for a win versus Tiago when he was a rookie versus the Spurs? 

• The irony of the Magic shooting poorly from three all game only to finish with a buzzer-beating three and the Trail Blazers turning the ball over just three times in the first three quarters only to be undone by a late-game turnover

• Shaedon Sharpe having his best game of the season while looking like a go-to option in the fourth quarter 

• Finishing the trip with the Pelicans in New Orleans on Wednesday, the Rockets in Houston (in an NBA Cup Group C game) Friday in Houston and Sunday versus the Mavericks in Dallas (and on both KATU and KUNP)

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The disappointing loss to a shorthanded Los Angeles Lakers team on Monday

• Which team is the Trail Blazers: the team that beat the Nuggets or lost to the Lakers?

• Bouncing back from being down 21 points in the first quarter to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, the reigning NBA champs and a team that entered Wednesday's game unbeated

• The play of Deni Avdija, Jrue Holiday, Jerami Grant and Duop Reath in the win versus OKC

• Duop staying ready and delivering when called upon

• The gratification of breaking a 16-game losing streak and besting at team that thought they could rest rotation players and still win

• Matisse Thybulle and Blake Wesley each have surgery and reaching the five-week mark of Scoot Henderson's initial four to eight week rehabilitation

• A conversation with Rip City Remix head coach Jonah Herscu as they begin their season on Friday in Santa Cruz

• Yang Hansen being assigned to the Remix for practices and why that might be

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers beat reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The Portland Trail Blazers going 3-2 in the first week of the 2025-26 regular season

• The early season play of Jerami Grant, Deni Avdija and Jrue Holiday

• The Trail Blazers doing all the things in the first five games that they said they were going to do during training camp and preseason

• Enduring the highs and lows of a new style of play

• Portland finishing the first week first in steals, second in pace, third in shot attempts, fourth in three-point attempts, sixth in defensive rating and eighth in offensive rebounds

• Jerami Grant putting up historic early-season numbers off the bench

• Getting bested by the LA Clippers due to a difficult second half

• Bouncing back to defeat a shorthanded Lakers team going away

• Donovan Clingan having his best game of the season versus his "vet" Deandre Ayton

• Getting up big versus the Jazz before having to grind out a win in the fourth quarter (thanks in large part to Jrue Holiday)

• The NBA Cup group stage begins on Friday versus the Denver Nuggets at Moda Center

• Robert Williams III is upgraded to questionable 

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter and Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The report that both Shaedon Sharpe and Toumani Camara signed four-year contract extensions on Sunday

• Why it makes sense to settle business before the start of the regular season

• The Trail Blazers now having a wing rotation of Shaedon Sharpe, Toumani Camara and Deni Avdija under contract for the next three seasons

• Portland now having 18 players (15 on NBA contracts and three on two-way contracts), the maximum number of players under contract

• Why Shaedon Sharpe's contract, reportedly worth $90 million over four seasons, is a good deal for both the player and the team

• Toumani Camara going from a late second-round pick to one of Portland's most important players over the course of two seasons

• Both Sharpe and Camara being rewarded for what they've already done and getting paid for what they could be

• The Trail Blazers signing Javonte Cooke to their third and final two-way contract

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• Finishing up training camp with the season opener scheduled for Wednesday

• Recapping losses to the Warriors and Jazz in the last two games of preseason play

• Both Jerami Grant and Jrue Holiday having their best offensive games of preseason versus Utah

• What, if anything, to make of statistics during the preseason

• Shaedon Sharpe extension eligible until Monday afternoon

• Trail Blazers waive Javonte Cooke through he could come back on a two-way

• Rounding up all of Portland's current injuries 

• The Trail Blazers starting their 2025-26 regular season Wednesday night versus the Timberwolves at Moda Center

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On the latest edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers reporter and Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The Trail Blazers getting to 1-1 for the preseason by beating the Kings Friday night at Moda Center

• Portland doing Friday night versus the Kings what they couldn't do Wednesday night versus the Warriors in San Francisco

• Deni Avdija gets the start versus the Kings after coming off the bench versus the Warriors

• Jerami Grant coming off the bench versus the Kings in the first half and the starting in the second half

• Trail Blazers rookie center Yang Hansen putting on an absolute show during a six-minute stretch of the third quarter versus the Kings

• Hansen's confidence seemingly growing every time he does something right

• Hansen bouncing back from a lackluster debut versus the Warriors and a so-so first half versus the Kings, which will serve him well throughout his rookie season

• Understanding the comparisons between Yang Hansen and Nikola Jokic

• The upcoming games versus the Warriors on Tuesday and the Jazz on Wednesday

• Making wild guesses about what lineups Chauncey Billups might try in the final two preseason games 

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers beat reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• The Trail Blazers losing to to the Warriors in the first of their four-game preseason schedule

• The game goes down as a loss, but it was really a win for the Trail Blazers

• Chauncey Billups following through on his promise to "tinker" with the starting lineup by starting Shaedon and Jerami and bringing Deni off the bench

• The play of Jrue Holiday, Toumani Camara, Donovan Clingan and Deni Avdija in Wednesday's loss to the Warriors

• Everything that we've heard from Shaedon Sharpe 's performance in training camp being reflected in the game versus Golden State

• Yang Hansen's first preseason game

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers beat reporter/Insider Casey Holdahl discusses...

• Portland having, by all accounts, a great first week of their 2025 training camp

• Building off what they've already done on defense and installing a retooled offense

• New assistant coaches, efficiency and intensity 

• The play of Shaedon Sharpe and Yang Hansen at training camp

• The 2025 Toyota Fan Fest that saw Shaedon Sharpe win MVP (again)

• Jrue Holiday, Yang Hansen, Donovan Clingan and Deni Avdija stand out at Fan Fest

• Trail Blazers begin their four-game preseason schedule Wednesday versus the Warriors in San Francisco 

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On this edition of The Brief Case, presented by Spirit Mountain Casino, Trail Blazers beat reporter/Insider discusses...

• Trail Blazers' executives having discussions with Tom Dundon, who is heading up a group that has agreed to purchase the franchise

• Injuries to Scoot Henderson and Robert Williams III and how those might effect the start of the season

• Both Shaedon Sharpe and Toumani Camara being up for contract extensions

• Everyone loves Yang Hansen

• Who starts on Opening Night with four of the five spots seemingly secured

• Comments from Chauncey Billups and numerous players about Portland's defensive potential 

• Fan Fest is Saturday at Moda Center