To say Week 3 ended on a sour note is an understatement. The team looked horrible. Billups called out the team for being dreadful. And nothing is exciting to look forward to this week as we get Minnesota twice and a feisty Atlanta team. But who would’ve thunk we’d not only win our first NBA Cup game but smack the crap out of the TWolves, who just thumped us TWICE IN A ROW!? And these wins without Ayton or Simons. I’ve been saying it since the beginning, and I still believe it to be accurate, that we need to ditch Ayton and let ClingKong cook in the paint. He still has a lot to learn, but he loves defense. What more could you ask for, not just growth from this young team but an undefeated week featuring our bright future Blazers?
Game 12 - vs. Minnesota 11/12 (122-108 W) NBA Cup Group Play Game 1
The NBA Cup just means more. That is the most apparent thing after tonight’s game that featured the first start for Clingan, a monster night from Robert “Time Lord” Williams III, and an early exit for Simons. Not only did we play wonderfully as a team, but we shot *checks notes* 15/23 through the 3rd quarter from three before finishing 18/32 for the game. This is coming from the team who just shot 4/42 on Sunday. What a turnaround! I don’t know what exactly was the spark: Williams III finally looking like his old self, Billups reaming the team for their piss-poor performance, or maybe it was just The Emarites NBA Cup and the NBA’s best alternate court.
Game 13 - vs Minnesota 11/13 (106-98 W)
We’re back and beating Minnesota on back-to-back nights. Maybe we could have guessed an exceptional performance from Clingan during his second start, or perhaps it was because it was Donovan Clingan's limited-edition pint glass night. We’ll never know, but 8 blocks is why we picked him #7 in the 2024 NBA Draft. He’s on quite the tear right now with 13 straight games with a block to start a career and is joining some elite company. Clingan was the big story of the evening, but there is nothing better than seeing Shaedon Sharpe back from injury and looking elite. He took the lead with Simons still injured and had almost double the next highest-scoring Blazer with 33 points, also logging the most minutes in the game. He is a difference-maker, and his intangibles are starting to show.
Game 14 - vs Atlanta 11/17 (114-110 W)
Is this the Shaedon Sharpe everyone was talking about? This man is rude in the best ways possible for Rip City. He doesn’t give up on a play. He’ll thrash your face under the rim on a dunk. He even has a step-back reminiscent of the letter O. It’s clear he’s a stud; it’s just taken some time for him to be healthy enough to show it to The League. Although each W we collect puts us further from “Capturing the Flagg,” Shaedon, paired with Clingan and Scoot, is the future of this franchise. He balls, man, and it’s such a nice breath of fresh air to see someone who was a question mark of a prospect turn into a foundational piece for a young, rebuilding team. There are many things to figure out with the Blazer roster, but Shaedon is quickly becoming an unquestioned pillar.
Record: 3-0 (6-8)
Next Week’s Games: 11/20 @ Oklahoma City, 11/22 @ Houston (NBA Cup), 11/23 @ Houston