Blazers fill two-way contract spot with familiar face
The Portland Trail Blazers are fully immersed in a rebuild with intriguing young players in Scoot Henderson, Deandre Ayton, Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe, among others. Part of a rebuild is hitting on the margins and finding quality two-way contract talent to develop. The Blazers added to their roster on Friday with the signing of Taze Moore to a two-way contract as per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Taze Moore fills the Blazers final two-way roster contract spot alongside Bryce McGowens and Justin Minaya. Two-way contract do not count against a team's salary cap and teams often rotate players throughout the season. It's possible these three players might not be the final players occupying these spots by the end of the season.
The Blazers are familiar with Moore as he was signed to a 10-day contract back in January. He was released following the end of his 10-day, but was brought back by the Blazers towards the end of the season. Moore appeared in a total of four games for the Blazers with averages of 4.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists.
In his Blazers debut, he put up two points and one steal in four minutes of playing time.
Taze Moore hopes to stick with Blazers
Since finishing college, Taze Moore has been skirting on the edges of the NBA. He went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft and joined the Brooklyn Nets for NBA Summer League. Moore ended up playing the G League for the Texas Legends for the 2022-23 season.
Ahead of the 2023-24 season, Moore signed with the Dallas Mavericks during training camp but was cut before the start of the regular season. He went back to play for the Legends and ultimately was traded to the Rip City Remix, the Blazers G League affiliate.
It was there that Moore caught the attention of the Blazers. When they signed him to a 10-day deal, he was the first player in Rip City's history to be called-up to the NBA.
In college, Moore was the college Slam Dunk contest champion following his final year of NCAA eligibility at Houston. Moore played five years at Cal State Bakersfield before entering the transfer portal and transferring to Houston.
In addition to his NBA and G League experience, Moore has also played in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) and represented Team Washington D.C. in 3×3 competition during the 2023 FIBA World Tour.
Moore is an athletic guard who can handle the ball and be a playmaker. He will need to continue to improve his shooting.
