Trail Blazers Owner Paul Allen Reportedly Investigating Team's Struggles

Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen is reportedly "getting antsy" and has "enlisted his team of advisors" to determine the root cause of the team's recent struggles.

"The lieutenants who work at owner Paul Allen's Vulcan, Inc. mothership have been analyzing data and asking important questions," the Oregonian's John Canzano wrote. "Two NBA front-office sources said they were contacted in the last 10 days by the Vulcans and asked whether they thought Trail Blazers struggles were due to a broken roster or poor coaching."

The Blazers, who are 17-16 overall, have lost seven of 11 games in December and are teetering on the edge of the Western Conference playoff picture as 2018 approaches.

Tactically speaking, Portland's offense hasn't been up to par.

While the Blazers finished last year 11th in offensive rating (107.8), they've plummeted to 25th (102.1) through the first 33 games of the season despite wielding dynamic playmakers in Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.

On the plus side, Portland ranks fifth overall in defensive rating and is allowing a stellar 101.7 points per 100 possessions. Only the Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder have been stingier in that regard this season.

Beyond the on-court issues, Allen has legitimate reason to be worried about the long-term picture.

While general manager Neil Olshey has stockpiled tons of depth across all five positions, the Blazers don't have much in the way of financial flexibility moving forward. According to Basketball Insiders, Portland already has $110 million in guaranteed contracts on its books for next season and $103 million in commitments for the 2019-20 campaign.

In other words, the Blazers won't be big players in free agency for the foreseeable future, barring several high-profile trades.

However, making a reactionary move at this point may not be in Allen's best interest since ownership has made big commitments to both decision-makers over the past two years.

Olshey had his contract extended through 2021 in August, according to ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski, while head coach Terry Stotts is inked to a deal that pays out roughly $5 million annually and is scheduled to run through 2020.