Joe Freeman: Pat Connaughton said he takes pride in playing in every single game this season and the next step in his development is improving his “consistency.” … “I got a taste of it and I look forward to building upon it this summer,” he said.
Pat Connaughton Rumors
All NBA Players
Position: G
Born: 01/06/93
Height: 6-5 / 1.96
Weight:206 lbs. / 93.4 kg.
Salary: $1,471,382
Born: 01/06/93
Height: 6-5 / 1.96
Weight:206 lbs. / 93.4 kg.
Salary: $1,471,382
Joe Freeman: Pat Connaughton said he remains committed to basketball (over baseball): “After this season, I’m really hungry to make it even better. At the same time, I hear Portland is getting a baseball team, so you never know.”
After the win over Brooklyn, Terry Stotts said he made the change to add outside shooting to the starting lineup, but Pat Connaughton has provided much more. “I think he’s done well,” Stotts said Monday. “He plays with a lot of confidence and he’s a very smart player. I think, offensively, it goes beyond making shots. He makes hard cuts, he makes team plays. … His role is to be a role player. He complements the players he’s out there with. He did that when he was coming off the bench and he’s doing that as a starter. He doesn’t make many mistakes. So, to me, it’s a perfect role for him right now.”
If one ever wondered what an example of fight, a picture of determination or a testament to the virtue of hard work looked like, people on the Trail Blazers will point you to the locker of point guard Shabazz Napier. “I don’t know how you would put it, or what the politically correct way to phrase it is, but … Shabazz is a dog,’’ guard Pat Connaughton said. “He fights. All the time.’’ Added captain Damian Lillard: “He’s an every-day guy. That’s 100 percent a fact.’’
This summer offered an opportunity for former Orioles draft pick Pat Connaughton to revisit his professional baseball career after spending the past two seasons as a reserve guard in the NBA. But on Thursday afternoon, the Portland Trail Blazers guaranteed the third year on the contract Connaughton signed after being drafted out of Notre Dame in 2015.
