The Portland Trail Blazers plan to get the most out of Evan Turner this season by making him the lead play-maker on the second unit, a role he excelled in while with the Boston Celtics. Turner is confident in his ability to create, he tells Jason Quick of The Athletic (subscription required):

“I understand we have a lot of great guys, a lot of great talent and everything, but if you legit don’t read whatever (negative press is out there), the best playmaker on the team is me,” Turner said. “It’s the truth.”

Teammate CJ McCollum thinks Turner will recreate his earlier success with the new role in Portland:

“He’ll have the ball in his hands a lot more,” McCollum said. “He’ll be able to make decisions and reads similar to how he made in Boston three years ago. I think that will be beneficial for him.”

You can read more from Quick here (subscription required).