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Russell Westbrook

Portland Trail Blazers

Blazers add Ben McLemore

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda

The Blazers have begun to piece together their bench, announcing their first signing of the year in guard/wing player Ben McLemore. This isn’t the big free agent signing the Blazers need to compete for a title, but with the crap cap management that Neil Olshey has done over recent years, this is about the best they can do.

McLemore should be slated to take the minutes that Carmelo Anthony had been occupying the last few years. Anthony is expected to sign with the Lakers and attempt to win a championship again with Russell Westbrook. We know how that went the last time.

Pauses for laughter.

McLemore has been a bit of a disappointment since coming into the league in 2013. It might not be totally his fault, he did spend his first few years in the league playing for the Sacramento Kings and that place has ruined a lot of careers over the last twenty years.

McLemore has averaged 8.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1 assist, and just over half a steal a game for his career.

Hoping this signing does not impede the development of guys like Nassir Little and potentially Greg Brown.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Beal & Westbrook snap Portland’s hot streak, 118-111

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda

The Portland Trail Blazers entered their Saturday night showdown with the Washington Wizards on a six-game win streak after wins over the Magic, 76ers, Cavs, Mavs, Thunder, and Pelicans.

Bradley Beal (37 points on 16/27 FG) and Russell Westbrook (27 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds) made sure that streak ended.

Game Recap

Washington’s talented backcourt duo of Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook were cutting through Portland’s defense early. The two combined for 38 points on 24 shots in the first half.

Beal kept up his scoring in the third quarter as he took advantage of some lazy transition defense from Portland.

Carmelo Anthony’s first shot of the night was a four-point play off a catch-and-shoot on the wing. He helped the Blazers to a huge 43-point first quarter, led by Enes Kanter’s 10.

Portland’s 12-point lead from the end of the first quarter was short-lived, as Washington blazed a 12-0 run early in the second and cut the lead to two. Anfernee Simons busted the run with a beautiful fading three, but the Wizards would take a 61-55 advantage into halftime.

Down five with five minutes to go, the struggling Blazers found some big plays from the Juniors: Gary Trent and Derrick Jones. The former hit a huge three and forced a turnover off of Westbrook’s foot, while the latter leapt for a monster block on Beal in the lane.

Unfortunately, Beal & Co. sparked a quick 7-0 run to take a nine-point lead with two minutes left.

A chaotic sequence ensued with under a minute remaining, including Dame getting a steal and running into Beal for a bizarre no-call.

MVP Watch

Lillard had an up-and-down night, emphasized by his tough offensive matchup against the 6’8” Rui Hachimura (when he wasn’t getting double-teamed).

After struggling to a 2/13 first-half start from the field, Damian Lillard made four of his first five shots to open up the second half.

La Heem went on to score 23 in the third quarter alone, capped off by a literal logo buzzer beater to end the period.

Dame Time may have come too early, though. His mere six points in the fourth came inside the last two minutes. He finished with 35 and 12 assists, but his performance was somewhat overshadowed by the frustrating physicality used against him and 20 missed shots.

Stats & Notes

Gary Trent Jr.’s third three of the night marked a milestone for the young guard. His 10 consecutive games with at least three made threes ties the Blazers’ franchise record.

With Jusuf Nurkic and Harry Giles inactive, Robert Covington and Melo were forced into minutes at center behind Kanter. RoCo made his presence felt on the defensive end with four blocks.

Davis Bertans entered Saturday’s game making 14 of his last 17 threes, but only managed 2/8 against the Blazers. Unfortunately, those two both came in crucial moments for the Wizards.

Next Up

The Blazers are back on the road for a big battle against the West’s fourth-place Phoenix Suns on Monday at 6pm.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Depleted Blazers outlast Wizards, 132-121

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda

On the back-end of consecutive road games, the Blazers and Damian Lillard faced a familiar foe: Russell Westbrook and the Washington Wizards. Down five guys, the laborious Blazers fended off endless Wizards comebacks to claim a much-needed 132-121 win.

Lineups

Portland: Damian Lillard, Gary Trent Jr., Rodney Hood, Robert Covington, Enes Kanter

Washington: Russell Westbrook, Bradley Beal, Deni Avdija, Rui Hachimura, Robin Lopez


dameisyourfather.jpeg

Game Recap

First Quarter

The Blazers came out absolutely on fire from three, jumping out to a 26-7 lead in the first six minutes. Robert Covington hit his first three shots (all threes) from each wing and the right corner, while Gary had two triples of his own.

Rodney Hood also had seven points. The most surprising part? Damian Lillard had zero.

A 40-point quarter (and, more importantly, 17-point lead) was exactly what Portland needed to get out a slump after being demolished by the Bucks the night before.

Second Quarter

Westbrook took advantage of CJ Elleby the second he stepped in the game, scoring on two consecutive possessions before Stotts took CJ out. Gary Trent ended the 9-0 Wizards run with back-to-back triples, and the Blazers passed the 50-point mark with over nine minutes left in the quarter.

Beal checked back in and helped cut the lead as low as seven. Kanter continued his regular routine on the offensive end, though, grinding out 12 points and seven boards in the first half.

Kanter picked up his third personal foul with a very questionable call on a jump ball in the second, much to Terry Stotts’ chagrin. Still, Blazers were able to close out the half strong, owning a 75-63 lead at the break. Gary led the way with 17 while Melo had 14.

Third Quarter

Portland jumped out to a 16-point lead to start the second half, fueled by a pair of threes from Dame and another from Gary. Westbrook and Washington pushed back, though, cutting the lead back down to seven once again with yet another 9-0 run.

Just over a minute later, though, and the Blazers had reclaimed a 16-point lead. Covington hit a pair of threes while Gary added a third. Melo added a confident triple in Hachimura’s face to pass Dominique Wilkins for 13th on the all-time scoring list.

Dame scored 12 points in the third quarter alone, and Portland took a 16-point advantage into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter

It was Rodney Hood’s turn to hit a pair of threes, but reading between the lines will tell you Blazers fans were far from safe with another 16-point lead, even with nine minutes left.

Rui Hachimura started heating up for the Wizards, and the rookie forward out of Gonzaga finished with 24 & 5 on the night.

Once again, the Wizards stormed back to cut the lead to seven. Washington scored on five straight possessions and whittled the lead down to four points with four minutes left before Stotts called time.

Gary’s career-high-tying-seventh three of the game (out of nine) was a huge help with three minutes to go, as was a fresh pair of Enes Kanter Offensive Rebounds™. Dame put it to good use—blowing by Westbrook along the baseline and throwing down a vicious dunk—before a solid team defensive stop on the other end.

Back up by double digits with just over a minute left, Dame checked his watch. (Hint: It was 10:30 Eastern, or bedtime for the Wizards.)

Final Thoughts

There were plenty of excuses for the Blazers to lose this game: it was the second night of a tough road back-to-back, missing five players out to injury (including an All-Star candidate and two more would-be starters), and facing the NBA’s leading scorer. Surrendering so many quick-response runs is still a concern, but Portland never stopped producing on offense for more than a few possessions at a time. As a team, the Blazers were 21/46 (45.5%) from three and made all 23 of their free throws.

Player(s) of the Game

Everyone?

The box score says Dame (32p/8a), but I think I’ll go with Carmelo. His 21 bench points were invaluable. RoCo (19p/9r), Gary (26p), Rodney (15p), and Enes (14p/10r) all deserve shouts too, though.

Next Up

The Blazers will continue their Eastern Conference road trip on Thursday in Philadelphia against the first-place 76ers at 5pm.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Blazers hold on against Rockets, 110-102

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda

In a game that I thought would be a huge blowout win for the Houston Rockets, the Portland Trail Blazers came out hot, played great team ball, and had big performances from both Gary Trent Jr. and Carmelo Anthony the Blazers gutted out a big 110-102 win.

The Blazers are now only 1.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for eighth place in the west.

First Quarter Thoughts

We all knew coming into the game that the Rockets were going to put up a ton of three pointers. That they did. They put up 12 in the quarter and only made four of them. Nine of those twelve shots were open shots. Houston was not able to capitalize on the Blazers wanting to pack the paint.

Speaking of packing the paint, the Blazers left eight points in the paint after both Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins failed on four different chances when either of them were guarded by James Harden or Russell Westbrook. These are chances that the Blazers can’t afford to miss. All these shots came within three feet of the basket. With a team like the Rockets you can’t leave any of the points on the floor. They are one of the few teams in the league that can go on a 28-4 run.

Carmelo Anthony and CJ McCollum carried the Blazers in the quarter. Each scoring seven points each and had some smooth moves out on the floor.

I honestly expected the Blazers to be down by at least 14 to end the quarter. They gave up a ton of open threes (as I expected) but the Rockets were not able to knock them down. Really liked how the Blazers trapped both Harden and Westbrook as soon as they came over half court. I think that has slowed down the Rockets offense.

Blazers were up 29-24 at the end of one.

Second Quarter Thoughts

Gary Trent Jr. is the real deal and I want to see him start picking up more and more minutes. I love his intensity on defense and his outside shot is getting better and better. I am starting to think that he’s the future at the shooting guard spot in Portland. The Blazers need a solid wing defender and Trent is not a guy who is going to back down.

He and Melo also work really well off each other. There is a little magic brewing there. And as Charlie said on Twitter, would love to see how CJ handles defense once Rodney Hood and Trevor Ariza comes back, but I think Trent is going to be the next big star in Portland.

I’ve been impressed with Carmelo Anthony tonight. He’s been ballin’ smooth all night. There is a swagger in his step and there is a confidence that I’m seeing tonight that wasn’t there against Boston. He had a decent game against Boston and made some really clutch shots to help keep the Blazers in the game. Tonight, there is something different about him.

The Rockets started making threes in the quarter. The Blazers got up by 14 and Houston hit three of their next five wide open threes. Those threes were on consecutive possessions too. This was my biggest fear of the night. There was no way that the Rockets were going to miss a ton of threes and there was no way they were going to stay cold all night. They kept chipping away at the lead.

Lots of missed layups for the Blazers. These are going to come back to bite them in the ass.

Piss poor defense by Lillard and CJ in the final 2.1 seconds of the half that allowed the Rockets to score at the buzzer.

Blazers led 61-56 at the half.

Third Quarter Thoughts

Damian Lillard has been basically non-existent so far in the game. He has only four points at the beginning of the third quarter. Nurkic finally started making layups in the third and that has really helped keep the Blazers up early in the quarter.

James Harden has four offensive rebounds to start the quarter and somehow Houston is out rebounding the Blazers overall to start the third. The Rockets are just out hustling the Blazers on both sides of the floor right now.

CJ and Lillard have both been playing sloppy this quarter. CJ has been scoring points tonight, but both he and Lillard seem off tonight. Lillard hits a three off a pick and roll as soon as I finished typing the previous sentence. Then hits a fade away out of bounds the next trip down.

Harden picked up his fifth foul about half way through the quarter and the Blazers could not capitalize at all. They allowed more threes by Austin Rivers and PJ Tucker. This was a great chance for the Blazers to put some distance between them and the Rockets, but they kept failing to make shots in the paint.

Blazers up six, 86-80.

Fourth Quarter Thoughts

Portland started the quarter by not attacking likey were before. Lots of standing around and not doing much of anything. Meanwhile, the Rockets attacked the basket and ended up tying the game up at 88 three minutes in.

This has also been a Portland trademark this season. They get a lead and relax against the bench, give up the lead, the starters come back in and the Blazers proceed in getting blown out.

Somehow that did not happen tonight. The fourth quarter was pretty sloppy, but when the game got close Gary Trent Jr. and Carmelo Anthony hit two big threes. Damian Lillard iced the game with two free throws.

Next Up

Blazers play a banged up Denver Nuggets Thursday at 5:00 PM.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Looking at the Blazers’ schedule

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda
Damian-Lillard-scores-61-against-the-Warriors-scaled.jpeg

The All-Star break is almost at an end and the Blazers have 26 games left the rest of the way and some ground to make up to make the playoffs. Portland is 25-31 and five games back of the Memphis Grizzlies in the loss column and only a couple of games up on both the San Antonio Spurs and the New Orleans Pelicans.

A quick couple of highlights:
Back-To-Backs: 3x
Home Games: 15x
Road Games: 11x
Home Games vs. .500+ teams: 8x
Home Games vs. sub .500 teams: 7x
Road Games vs. .500+ teams: 3x
Road Games vs. sub .500 teams: 8x

Portland will spend more time at home than they will on the road the rest of the way. This works out to their advantage obviously because jet lag sucks. They are used to it, but they do have a few tough road games against both Boston and Philadelphia on the horizon and the Pacers are a tough team as well.

Looking at the back-to-backs the Blazers managed to somehow draw the Sacramento Kings (at home), Detroit Pistons (road), and the Brooklyn Nets (road). The Kings have played the Blazers tough once this year, but they’re at the point of the season where they are about to quit and who knows what you are going to get with the Pistons or the Nets. There’s a good chance Kyrie Irving and Blake Griffin don’t play in those games.

And speaking of playing, we don’t exactly don’t know when Damian Lillard is going to return. Terry Stotts is holding him out of practice on Wednesday. Will he play against the Pelicans on Friday night or is he going to miss a few games? Dame is tough and he knows what’s on the line. Sadly, we probably won’t know until a couple of hours before game time on Friday.

And will the Blazers get Jusuf Nurkic or Zach Collins back before the end of the year?

Let’s take a look at the schedule the rest of the way:

vs. Pelicans – 2/21

The Pelicans always play the Blazers tough, especially Jrue Holiday, and if there isn’t a Lillard to carry the scoring load then this game could get ugly again. There also isn’t anyone to stop Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram will be back.

Prediction: Blazers lose (25-32)

vs. Pistons – 2/23

The Pistons are a mess and even without Dame, this should be a win.

Prediction: Blazers win (26-32)

vs. Celtics – 2/25

Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown are going to hold no mercy.

Prediction: Blazers lose (26-33)

at Pacers – 2/27

The Pacers are well coached, Victor Oladipo is starting to get his legs back under him, and they are a tough team.

Prediction: Blazers lose (26-34)

at Hawks – 2/29

Thankfully this isn’t a back-to-back. Trae Young will score a lot of points and try to outshoot Dame, but the Hawks are terrible.

Prediction: Blazers win (27-34)

at Magic – 3/2

The Magic are trying, they aren’t very good and seem to be perennially stuck in this position. They have beaten a few good teams and they won’t be a pushover.

Prediction: Blazers win (28-34)

vs. Wizards -3/4

Bradley Beal is pissed off for a lot of reasons, but he’s not leaving Portland with a W.

Prediction: Blazers win (29-34)

at Suns – 3/6

The Blazers owe the Suns and Kelly Oubre a beating.

Prediction: Blazers win (30-34)

vs. Kings – 3/7

The first back-to-back, but it’s a Kings team that isn’t very good and they seem to be getting worse as the year is going along.

Prediction: Blazers win (31-34)

vs. Suns – 3/10

The Blazers get a few days off before they get another shot at the Suns. Devin Booker will have a good game, but not good enough.

Prediction: Blazers win (32-34)

vs. Grizzlies – 3/12

Ja Morant is a video game and he hasn’t hit his rookie wall yet. Does he now or is he a freak of nature? I think Blazers eek this one out.

Prediction: Blazers win (33-34)

vs. Rockets – 3/15

Russell Westbrook always tries to beat Damian Lillard on his own and this usually leads to his team going off the rails and losing. Blazers back to .500.

Prediction: Blazers win (34-34)

I have the Blazers going on an eight-game win streak to get back to an even record. This will have them right on the verge of a playoff spot. Things, however, are about to get a little bit tougher after the next game.

vs. Timberwolves – 3/17

The Blazers are one of the few wins the Wolves have this year. I don’t think Karl-Anthony Towns gets another.

Prediction: Blazers win (35-34)

vs. Mavericks – 3/19

Luka Doncic has been a bit snakebit this year and he tends to miss stretches of games. I think he’s back and he hurts Portland. Can’t keep winning forever.

Prediction: Blazers lose (35-35)

at Timberwolves – 3/22

This will be a good night.

Prediction: Blazers win (36-35)

at Hornets – 3/24

The Hornets are not a good basketball team and they have very few good players.

Prediction: Blazers win (37-35)

at Pistons – 3/25

I think the Pistons will be in full tank mode and not even Derrick Rose can save them even as the Blazers flew a quarter way across the country the morning of.

Prediction: Blazers win (38-35)

at Celtics – 3/27

I don’t think the Blazers get this one either.

Prediction: Blazers lose (39-36)

at 76ers – 3/29

The Blazers and Sixers played a classic early in the season, but the Sixers are terrible on the road and almost unbeatable at home. Joel Embiid will be a beast.

Prediction: Blazers lose (38-37)

at Nets – 3/30

I think the Nets are going to put Kyrie on the shelf with some sort of injury to prep for Kevin Durant‘s return the next season and work on getting a higher pick.

Prediction: Blazers win (39-36)

vs. Jazz – 4/2

We enter the final month of the season against Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. This is going to feel like a playoff game, one that Portland is not ready for.

Prediction: Blazers lose (39-38)

vs. Grizzlies – 4/5

Morant and company are back and this time the teams are going to be within a game or two of one another. I think once again Portland pulls it out.

Prediction: Blazers win (40-38)

vs. Cavaliers – 4/7

The Cavs are a mess and will be in full tank mode and will help the Blazers clinch another winning season.

Prediction: Blazers win (41-38)

vs Nuggets – 4/9

Another tough playoff-type game for the Blazers and this is turning into a great rivalry. Sadly…

Prediction: Blazers lose (41-39)

at Warriors – 4/13

There is a chance that Stephen Curry is back for this game, but I don’t think he’ll log many minutes and the Warriors really want that first overall pick.

Prediction: Blazers win (42-39)

vs. Clippers – 4/15

My guess is the Clippers have secured their seed in the playoffs and we’ll see more Reggie Jackson over Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

Prediction: Blazers win (43-39)

Looking at other schedules. I think 43-45 wins are going to be what is needed to get into the playoffs. The Blazers are obviously on the low end of this, the Pelicans I have going to 45 wins and Memphis being right around there. I think the Blazers are on the outside looking in this year.

Though do not count this team out and if you feel like trying to make a lot of money in a hurry, in some outlets, Portland is at +21000 to win the Championship. We’ve seen the Blazers overcome bigger odds and getting a little healthier toward the end of the year could be big. The Blazers have zero reliable depth, yes, Anfernee Simons and Gary Trent Jr. are stepping up, but it won’t be enough.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Dame, Blazers blast past Rockets 125-112

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda
hassan-scaled.jpeg

The Portland Trail Blazers (20-27, 10th in West) hosted the Houston Rockets (29-17, 5th in West) at the Moda Center Wednesday night. The Blazers defeated the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night behind another stunning performance from Damian Lillard. Portland’s eight-year point guard earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors last week for his insane performances against the Warriors, Mavericks, and Pacers.

Date Points FGs 3s FTs Assists Rebounds Result vs. Opponent
Mon. 1/20/20 61 17/37 11/20 16/16 7 10 W 129-124 vs GSW
Thurs. 1/23/20 47 16/28 8/15 7/7 8 6 L 125-133 vs DAL
Sun. 1/26/20 50 14/23 8/12 14/16 13 6 W 139-129 vs IND
Averages: 52.7 15.7/29.3 9.0/15.7 12.3/13 9.3 7.3 –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZKTqbCzlSM

Dame has one of the highest ceilings in the league, and it would be especially exciting to see him have another gargantuan night against his greatest nemesis, Russell Westbrook.

The last time Russ played in Portland, he posted a solid night of 29pts, 14ast, and 11reb. He was as braggadocios as ever and, ironically, it took a 50-point performance and a bad shot by Dame to shut him up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDRD56H2qRY

But it’s a new season now. Westbrook is on a new team, and that team’s been doing pretty well. The Rockets are currently fifth in the Western Conference and have won three of their last four, with the only blemish coming to the Nuggets on the road. They had a big win against the Utah Jazz last night—without Russ, MVP candidate James Harden, or starting center Clint Capela—in which Eric Gordon (of all people) scored 50 points.

I’m excited for this matchup. The Rockets have become one of Portland’s biggest rivals in the past few years. Adding Westbrook to that mix only strengthens mutual hate. Both teams are at an odd crossroads in their seasons, with Dame looking to turn things around for the Blazers and Houston trying to regain their footing in the Playoff standings.

Injury Report

Harden has been inactive for the past two games with a left thigh contusion, and he is still questionable tonight. So is Capela. Nene and Gerald Green are both out for the Rockets.

Westbrook’s absence from the Jazz game was due to rest, so he’ll be fully available tonight.

In case you needed a painful reminder—Rodney Hood, Zach Collins, Skal Labissiere, and Jusuf Nurkic are all out for Portland.

Starting Lineups

First Quarter

Well, I heard Dave Pasch’s voice and was hoping for Bill Walton to be on the call, but I guess I’ll settle for the second-most over-hated announcer in basketball—Doris Burke.

Whiteside had a pair of disappointingly low-effort plays, letting an Eric Gordon brick bounce in front of him and allowing the ball to be stripped from behind on a simple screen on the other end, gifting Houston four points.

Portland’s offense was depressing in the early going. The Blazers had more turnovers than points in the first few minutes.

Westbrook is pissed tonight. He made one shot on Lillard, rocked the baby, and got a couple big blocks early. The jaw-ing continued as he mounted a couple assists and Dame heaved a rare bricked thirty-footer. Lillard came down the court and scored a hard-earned and-one two possessions later, muttering what we can assume were some choice words for Westbrook as he flexed.

Harden and Lillard swapped signature splashes, but Ben McLemore led all scorers near the end of the first, with 12 points from four buckets. Then Dame hit two straight threes, lifting his total to 16.

Portland fought hard in the first quarter, but Houston’s 60% from three gave them a six-point advantage at the end of the first.

Second Quarter

The quarter began with Portland milking the Melo-on-Gordon matchup in the post, earning five points from it on three possessions. A couple possessions later, Carmelo moved up to 17th on the all-time scoring list, passing Kevin Garnett.

https://twitter.com/SLAMonline/status/1222733307953070080?s=20

Westbrook was working Nassir Little while CJ upped his usage on the other end. The Blazers cut the lead to 2 at the 7:06 mark, but Ariza committed an odd technical almost immediately after.

Dame checked back in as the Rockets started to cool off. Gary Trent Jr. hit his second three to give Portland a four-point lead with 5:23 remaining.

It would be great if Trent can continue to stretch the floor going forward this season, because he gets a ton of open looks with any combination of Dame, Melo, and CJ on the court. Dare I say, the Blazers look like a team to be reckoned with when they can hold their own on defense, and the return of three injured big men can’t be overlooked as we stretch for the playoffs.

Dame took over on offense. As Burke noted, he had two great assists sandwiching a trailing three after a steal from Trent on Harden. Blazers 60, Rockets 51 at the 4-minute mark in the 2nd. Lillard with 21 on 7/9.

Westbrook had a notable push-off against Gary Trent that was called a defensive foul, but Stotts’ challenge overturned this to make it an offensive foul against Russ.

Whiteside had a pair of great blocks on Westbrook, but Houston finally hit a three after going nearly four minutes without a field goal. Portland continued to leave the far corner open on defense to double Harden, but Lillard continued to drive past Harden on defense.

A pair of dunks put the Blazers up to 71 points with an 11-point lead at the half. Portland entered the break shooting 55.6% from the field and 14/18 from the free throw line, compared to Houston’s 48% and 1/3 from the line.

Westbrook accumulated a quiet 19pts/4ast/5reb and Lillard had a loud 25/5/5. Both teams had eight turnovers.

Third Quarter

The second half admitted itself in an odd fashion. Both teams committed multiple bonehead turnovers and missed point-blank shots. PJ Tucker got called for a technical foul, Dame missed the free throw, and Capela lost a shoe. The Rockets were the first to recover, but Ariza struck back to preserve the 11-point cushion.

Whiteside made great plays on both ends, swatting his sixth and seventh blocks and picking up a loose ball to score two more. Dame’s skip pass into a CJ three extended the lead to 83-67 with 5:49 left in the quarter.

HUSTLE PLAY ALERT: Dame crossed up his defender and himself, losing the ball. Carmelo got dirty and dug it out to Ariza, who buried the open three.

The Blazers made more high-effort plays, but the Rockets were also blowing layups and taking poor shots.

All this was largely without Lillard’s scoring, as he didn’t earn his first points of the 3rd until there were less than two minutes left. He then followed that fadeaway with a pull-up closer to half-court than the three-point arc. Fittingly, Westbrook bricked his own pull-up as the quarter expired. Blazers 97, Rockets 82.

https://twitter.com/espn/status/1222746262664966146?s=20

That being said, Houston’s supporting cast hit a few big shots to keep them within shouting distance. If the Rockets succeed in the playoffs, it’ll be because of guys like Austin Rivers, Danuel House Jr., or Ben McLemore stepping up.

Fourth Quarter

The game got pretty chippy to open up the 4th, but the Blazers nurtured their lead to 20.

Westbrook got angry after a foul request was ignored. Sometimes that’s a good thing for the opponent, but in this case he broke free for a swift transition layup and a neat assist to Rivers.

Dame put the game away from the logo with six minutes left. He also assisted Whiteside for a pair of and-ones. Harden, Westbrook, and Mike D’Antoni were still fighting for fouls and points, but all it did was keep me up even later into the Eastern time zone night.

https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsNBA/status/1222751629134270465?s=20

Notable Lines

  • Lillard: 36p/11a/10r/6to (first career triple-double!) on 11/21 FG, 6/12 3s, 8/10 FTs
  • McCollum: 22p on 9/19 FG, 3/7 FTs
  • Whiteside: 28min/15p/10r/5b on 6/9 FG
  • Ariza: 21p on 9/14 FG
  • Melo: 6p/5a/13r on 2/11 FG
  • Nassir Little: 10p/2orb on 4/5 FG

Houston

  • Harden: 18p/4a/5r/6to on 5/18 FG
  • Russ: 39p/6a/10r/6to on 16/29 FG
  • Ben McLemore: 17p on 6/10 FG, 5/9 3s
  • Austin Rivers: 17p on 6/11 FG, 5/8 3s

Final Thoughts

The Blazers look legit, at least on offense. Dame’s “off” scoring night came with some great decision-making when faced with double-teams. This team is far from playoff-ready, but they’re definitely speeding up with Dame doing his best at the wheel.

Harden looked a bit rusty (he even air-balled a layup in the final minute), but he’s still always a threat. Terry Stotts orchestrated another defensive masterclass against The Beard, with the Blazers mixing up looks and recovering well from double-teams.

With two leaders like Lillard and Stotts, pieces just fit together better. Perfect example: earlier today, Melo talked about how he’d “love to stay” in Portland for the rest of his career. I’m not ready to give this team a playoff spot yet (especially with the way Memphis is playing) but they certainly aren’t ready to give up, and the cavalry is still yet to come.

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Portland Trail Blazers

Blazers defense defeats Houston Rockets, 117-107

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda
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The Portland Trail Blazers are back on the road tonight as they take on the Houston Rockets. The Blazers are currently 10th in the West, but incredibly close to a playoff spot. There are only four games separating the eight through 14th seeds in the West. None of those teams have a winning record. The winner of the 8th seed will get to be swept by the Lakers or the Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs.

I think I’d rather take a higher pick in a really, really bad draft.

Instead the Blazers used their defense to propel themselves to a 117-107 win and held James Harden to 13 points tonight.

Carmelo Anthony is back in Houston where they ran him out on a rail a couple years ago. I expect a big game from Carmelo Anthony tonight.

Ferda.

Neither team looked great in the first quarter. Portland was 1-9 from three and both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum both had flat starts. You know, that seems to be a theme this year. Either Dame is hot or both are off. It’s rare that either of these guys starts off a game hot.

Russell Westbrook has decided he’s going to run Lillard into submission tonight. At this rate Westbrook is going to have 30 points but on 70 shots.

Thankfully, both Carmelo Anthony and Hassan Whiteside decided to show up tonight to get the Blazers a 28-26 lead going into the second quarter. The first ended on a nice drive by Anfernee Simons.

The 2nd started with Anthony Tolliver knocking down a couple buckets and lo and behold he had outscored the whole Houston bench by himself for about a minute, then Eric Gordon knocked down a three-pointer. Carmelo abused whoever the unlucky soul was that decided to guard him in the post to get a few more points.

CJ decided to take James Harden to school in the mid-ranged and a three-pointer by Dame got the Blazers up by 14 with about three minutes to go in the half.

The Blazers have been actually playing the three-point line well tonight. The Rockets and especially James Harden have gotten few looks at a clean three. The Blazers are really on top of their rotations. I’ve only seen two where they completely blew the rotations and that led to threes by both Gordon and Ben McLemore.

Houston was held to 33% from the field in the first half as the Blazers took a 60-47 lead into the half. I’ve seen a few of the Rockets last few games and there seems to be something off about the team. The starters are looking a little gassed and D’Antoni has only been playing eight-man lineups. Twice in the last week, Houston has been held under 50 points for a half and it’s been three times total for the year. The legs might not be there right now.

Kent Bazemore starts the 2nd half off with an easy bucket. There wasn’t a single Rocket on that half of the court. He could have done a monster dunk but decided to have a super soft dunk.

The Rockets are making the Blazers pay to start the third with Clint Capela lobs. They are double teaming Russell Westbrook or James Harden (whoever is bringing the ball up) and they will drive and get a lob to Capela in the paint. On the other end, Melo is getting some easy post-ups and Dame has abused both Westbrook and Harden and got six quick ones.

Lillard has shown up in a bit way in the third quarter. He has 12 straight points for the Blazers. Then we see back-to-back threes by Nassir Little and Kent Bazemore and the Blazers get their lead back up to 16. LIttle has been pretty active tonight. I’d like to see him on either James Harden or Russell Westbrook to give CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard a little break.

Damian Lillard at 16 in the quarter and the Blazers hold on to their 13 point lead as they head into the fourth, 90-77.

A three by Eric Gordon and a drive by Russell Westbrook got the Rockets within nine points. Then Gary Trent Jr. and Anthony Tolliver hit back to back threes to get the Blazers back up by 14.

Russell Westbrook has been a menace tonight. The Blazers have zero answers for him in the second half. He’s getting into the paint and scoring or passing to the right guy. He looks like the old Westbrook and not the Westbrook that has had to carry a franchise and a city on his back for half a decade.

The Blazers went cold in the middle of the fourth and Houston cut the lead down to four points. Then threes by Carmelo Anthony and CJ McCollum pushed the lead back to 11 with four minutes to go. And that is as close as they would get.

Damian Lillard had 25, CJ McCollum had 24, Hassan Whiteside had 18 and 17, Carmelo Anthony also had 18, and Kent Bazemore had 12.

The Blazers take on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

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Uncategorized

Ranking the 2019-20 NBA Point Guards

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda
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This has become the most dynamic position in all of the league. Gone are the days of a true pass-first point guard and today we have guys who can score literally from anywhere on the floor (Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard).

30. Ish Smith – Washington Wizards

Another one of the Wizards members ends up on the bottom of the list. Smith is a great backup option for most teams in the league, but he’s a bottom end starter. He’s keeping the seat warm until John Wall comes back or Scott Brooks gives the job to Isaiah Thomas.

29. Tomas Satoransky – Chicago Bulls

He’s a good player, I view him as more of a sixth man or first guard off the bench. He’s not a starter on a playoff team.

28. Terry Rozier – Charlotte Hornets

After a great 2018 (including playoffs) he fell off the boat last season. Let’s see if he gets back to where he needs to be.

27. Quinn Cook – Los Angeles Lakers

He and Rajon Rondo are going to go back and forth here a lot.

26. Lonzo Ball – New Orleans Pelicans

He has the tools and a readjusted jumper to be a very good player in the league, he just needs to stay healthy. I think he’s in a good spot in NoLa.

25. D.J. Augustin – Orlando Magic

I’m shocked he’s still in the league and that’s not a knock. He’s a decent player, but gets talked into the ground by most “analysts” out there. Ultimately he is keeping the seat warm for Markelle Fultz.

24. Ja Morant – Memphis Grizzlies

He’s going to be an exciting young player in this league.

23. Justise Winslow – Miami Heat

This has been a long time coming. He may just succeed at this position.

22. Delon Wright – Dallas Mavericks

The Mavs are probably going to run Luka at this spot a lot, but Wright is the starter by default.

21. Dennis Smith Jr. – New York Knicks

There’s a chance he loses out to Elfrid Payton. That’s all you need to know about Smith and the Knicks.

20. Reggie Jackson – Detroit Pistons

Bet he wishes he was backing up Russell Westbrook in OKC again.

19. Jeff Teague – Minnesota Timberwolves

I like Teague. He’s such a solid point guard. Not a great point guard, but he’s pretty good.

18. Dejounte Murray – San Antonio Spurs

I think Murray has a big year and moves up further in the rankings for next year.

17. Collin Sexton – Cleveland Cavaliers

Sophomore slump or does he go crazy with Garland next to him?

16. Ricky Rubio – Phoenix Suns

Ricky is so inconsistent. Some nights you might think he’s the best guard in the league (rarely happens) and others you wonder if he cares to play basketball on most nights.

15. Malcolm Brogdon – Indiana Pacers

He is going to thrive under Nate McMillan.

14. De’Aaron Fox – Sacramento Kings

The fastest guard in the NBA. Once he develops a consistent jump shot he’s going to be deadly.

13. Eric Bledsoe – Milwaukee Bucks

He’s always good during the regular season and then takes the playoffs off. Must be an after effect of spending so much time in Phoenix.

12. Trae Young – Atlanta Hawks

The heir apparent to Steph Curry.

11. Patrick Beverley – Los Angeles Clippers

The best on the ball defender in the league at the guard position. The guy you want on your team and hate when he’s not.

10. Jamal Murray – Denver Nuggets

He got the top 10 money and now he needs to play like it.

9. Kyle Lowry – Toronto Raptors

This is probably the last year we’ll see Lowry in the top 10. His age has to catch up to him at some point.

8. Mike Conley – Utah Jazz

He might be the missing piece in Utah. If he can find his offensive game the Jazz might be the deepest and most dangerous team in all the NBA.

7. Chris Paul – Oklahoma City Thunder

He’s keeping this spot warm until he’s traded and SGA takes over.

6. Russell Westbrook – Houston Rockets

He and Harden are going to have a lot of fun together. Not sure how many championships they are going to win together though.

5. Kemba Walker – Boston Celtics

Brad Stevens is going to make him a winner.

4. Ben Simmons – Philadelphia 76ers

Once he has a consistent jump shot he’s going to be #1 and it might be a decade before he gives it up.

3. Kyrie Irving – Brooklyn Nets

There is no denying what Kyrie can do. He’s had some issues the last couple of seasons, let’s see how he has grown this summer.

2. Damian Lillard – Portland Trail Blazers

Dame destroyed a franchise last summer. He has a legit claim at the number one spot.

1. Steph Curry – Golden State Warriors

There is no better point guard in all the league. He’s the best shooter, a good defender, and a good leader.

Other posts in this series:

Ranking the 2019-20 coaches
Ranking the starting centers
Ranking the starting power forwards
Ranking the starting small forwards
Ranking the starting shooting guards

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Portland Trail Blazers

Clippers land Kawhi Leonard and Paul George

by Kevin Nesgoda
written by Kevin Nesgoda
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Apparently the 7.1 earthquake in Southern California was just a pre-shock to what the Los Angeles Clippers pulled off on this Friday night. The Clippers signed Kawhi Leonard to a four year and $142 million max contract. The action did not stop there!

The Clippers went ahead and traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Danillo Gallinari along with seven total draft picks to the Oklahoma City for Paul George.

Free agent forward Kawhi Leonard will sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) July 6, 2019

Sources: As expected, Kawhi Leonard: four-year, $142M maximum contract.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 6, 2019

Sources: Oklahoma City is getting a massive package of future picks, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Danilo Galllinari, to deliver Kawhi Leonard who he wanted to partner with: Paul George. https://t.co/4bGpMNat8K— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 6, 2019

The Clippers have jumped Utah as the Blazers biggest challenge in the Western Conference this season.

According to both Woj and Shams, there is a deep story on getting George to the Clippers. It sounds like there was some heat between Russell Westbrook and George, Kawhi got wind of this and started recruiting George to the Clippers. Sam Presti and the Thunder were completely blindsided.

Rival NBA teams have been aware of the discontent of OKC’s two stars: Paul George — and Russell Westbrook, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Leonard pushed the Clippers in recent days to deliver him a second star, and they did.— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 6, 2019

The Thunder are expected to trade both Westbrook and Steven Adams and enter full rebuild mode. Will Portland now go all in on trying to land Kevin Love? What does the rest of the West do now?

What do you all think of what just happened? The NBA will not let another league (or mother nature) get a word in edgewise.

What a night.

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