Week 11

Capping a slightly sad week off with a win against Milwaukee was an exceptional way to end Saturday night. Maybe we get up more for Dame. Perhaps we are hitting a new stride in forcing closer games. Regardless of the answer, seeing this team look slightly cohesive is excellent. With the trade deadline 5ish weeks away, now is when we’ll see half this roster mentioned in packages across the league. I would love to see what we can get for someone like Anfernee or Ayton. Maybe Jodi will want to keep everyone and screw us like she has the last handful of years. Who knows. But one thing is sure: this team is becoming a joy to watch. And that is all we can ask for at this point.

Game #32 - 12/30 vs Philadelphia (125-103 L)

After Anfernee made a three 16 seconds into the game, that was about as good as it got. Philly is a really good team that houses three of the best players in the NBA: Embiid, George, and Maxey. This game wasn’t supposed to be close. And it wasn’t. Outside of PG13 getting into early foul trouble, they took advantage of the talent disparity between them and the Blazers. Ant is still tearing it up and seems to be in a groove, having scored 22+ in his last four games, shooting 46% from the field and 44% from 3-point. It’s great to see him trending up when the beginning of his season has been a roller coaster. Also, maybe let’s not turn the ball over 26 times? That might help us, too.

Game #33 - 1/2 @ LA Lakers (114-106 L)

A seemingly close game was out of reach from the jump. An Anthony Davis absence didn’t help this team succeed against a middling Lakers squad. The positives? Ant continued his hot streak, and Deni had a triple-double. Deni is QUICKLY becoming a foundational piece for this team (if he is still around in 3-4 seasons). His ability to make a difference is exceptional and necessary for this team lacking defensive prowess. Once Matisse returns, it will be nice to have at least two guys able to make an impact, unlike Ayton… I don’t know what is more frustrating: getting swindled into thinking he was actually good or knowing him coming to Portland wasn’t great and forcing ourselves to believe there was a chance it could work. Six points and six rebounds in 21 minutes is horrendous. I hope we can get something out of him in a trade.

Game #34 - 1/4 @ Milwaukee (105-102 W)

What a win! How the Blazers are 2-2 against Dame in a Bucks jersey is beyond me. This was one of our best complete performances. Ant torched the Bucks' defense in every which way. Deni did everything (once again) and even blazed through a Kris Middleton and slammed one down, kicking the back of the backboard. Although it might not show every night, this team has heart. I’ve said it a few times recently, but Deni and Ant will either make this franchise happy over the next few years or make another franchise really happy. Hopefully, we can get Jerami back into the rotation soon, as it would be great to see his influence on this new version of a Chauncey-led team.

Record: 1-2 (12-22)

Next Week’s Games: 1/6 @ Detroit, 1/8 @ New Orleans, 1/9 @ Dallas, 1/11 vs Miami

Week 10

What a week for the Blazers! Chauncey was 0-1, and Bjorkgren was 2-0. Maybe it’s time to consider changing the tides. Perhaps it’s time to accept the fact of Chauncey not being a good coach or being able actually to make adjustments. Or, maybe this team is ass, and it kinda doesn’t matter. Either way, it’s great to see a spark from a team beating both a lousy and a good team in back-to-back games. Hopefully, this energy will continue to ride the team into a positive wave at the beginning of 2025.

Game #29 - 12/23 @ Dallas (132-108 L)

A game that started with some hope of Luka not playing QUICKLY turned into a massacre. As everyone knows, Luka is one of the most dominant players in the NBA, let alone the world. His influence turns the tide of a game, even if he’s on the sideline, kinda like Tom Brady. It wasn’t even halftime before this game was over. The Blazers were outmatched, and Deni came off the bench to provide some spark it was a sad, sad game. This is about when the Blazers need to figure out if the tank is real or if they will be OKC from about four years ago. Do you want to compete knowing you’re a lesser team? Or do you want to suck for the latter half of every game intentionally? Either is fine at this point, but you kinda need to pick a lane.

Game #30 - 12/26 vs Utah (120-118 W)

Is Scoot Henderson the real deal? Is he better than Brandon Miller? Did we get the second-best player in the 2023 draft? It’s way too early to tell, but an assumed franchise pillar getting his first game-winner is tasty and sparks some joy into this tumultuous young team. Scoot talks here about the play and the game overall. Now that the Blazers have two last-second game-winning shots over their last four games, maybe that pull into a more positive direction that I was hoping for is happening. It has been great to see the core of Scoot, Ant, Jerami, Deni, and Shaedon playing consistently over the last few weeks. Maybe it was a mediocre game against the bottom-feeding Jazz. Perhaps it was Nate Bjorkgren subbing in for Chauncey, as he takes some time after losing his late grandmother. Either way, a win is a win in the NBA, and every team is looking to get them.

Game #31 - 12/28 vs Dallas (126-122 W)

Well, slap my face and call me an idiot. That’s a phrase, right? Apparently Luka on the sideline doesn’t have the same effect as being on the court. And Kyrie putting up 46 points won’t do the trick against this young Blazer team led by Shaedon, Ayton, Deni, Scoot, and Ant, all scoring 19+ points. It was a weirdly balanced effort from *checks notes* Nate Bjorkgren, again? Is this man the reason we can succeed? Is the Billups era over? There are a lot of questions to ask about this team that just beat a much better Mavs team coming off a Finals appearance last season. The hype train is real for Bjorkgren, and maybe we need to start a petition for him to succeed Chauncey. Regardless of how it happened or why it happened, it still happened.

Record: 2-1 (11-20)

Next Week’s Games: 12/30 vs Philadelphia, 1/2 @ LA Lakers, 1/4 @ Milwaukee

Week 8-9

With the NBA Cup bracket portion of the tournament concluding during Week 8, I combined this post with Week 9 since there wasn’t much happening. Discussing two games would’ve been a bit sad. Right? Well, how about four games that resulted in just one win? The one win was pretty sick, though, especially coming against the Nuggets. Lots to think about when it comes to this roster, with the trade deadline roughly 7 weeks away. Hopefully, we can keep the young core and get more youth + draft picks from any trades. Who knows what Jody Allen will do, hopefully, sell the team to give us some actual direction. (That’s a topic for a new day).

Game #25 - 12/13 @ San Antonio (118-116 L)

What an utter disappointment. A substantial Q4 lead of 105-88 with 8:18 left, only for the Spurs to go on an 11-0 run spanning 3 minutes. We scored a whopping 11 points in the final 5:10 to lose by two measly points. This team is… something. I would love to believe they can hold their own in the 4th Quarter (because we’ve seen it happen), but they disappoint at new levels with this one. Unsure what it was this time, but the loss to a solid San Antonio team is a bummer. Yeah, it helps the tanking odds, but winning this game would’ve felt nice. Jerami was COOKING from deep, though, which was terrific. And a Jabari start to give the young guy some confidence (as a CU Buff fan) had to be a boost.

Game #26 - 12/15 @ Phoenix (116-109 L)

An above-average Q3 gave us hope for a brief moment. Otherwise, the Suns constantly controlled this game. Nothing truly stood out for the Blazers during this game besides being outmatched by a team that should’ve won by 15+. Somehow, we only lost by 7. Jerami must think, “Get me out of here and on a contender.” He’s putting up solid numbers and looking the part, but he must just be “going through the motions.” He, Anfernee, and Time Lord are the most likely candidates to be moved during the trade deadline. If this team doesn’t look wildly different at the end of the season, then it’s a loss. At this point, the roster/coaching staff/ownership/really everything needs to change. Bottom of the barrel for the third straight year is frustrating, but I guess the lack of expectation is better than failing to meet a standard.

Game #27 - 12/19 vs Denver (126-124 W)

WELCOME TO THE ANFERNO!! What a performance Ant made on the floater to sink the Nuggets. After a handful of underwhelming performances from this squad, it was refreshing to see them beat a declining team like Denver. I don’t know exactly what’s happening with them, but they are NOT the same team that won the NBA Finals in 2023. Jokic is doing everything possible to win games, but you can’t have someone like him do 120% of things and expect to win. The Blazers have some grit when they want to instill it and have good enough players to win some of these games. It’s being able to put it all together to win. And it was clear that happened tonight. I would love to see this as a launching-off point for the team as they progress into the middle of the season. But sadly, we know what will happen: many more losses than wins.

Game #28 - 12/21 @ San Antonio (114-94 L)

Whomp whomp… What a bummer of a loss (again) to the Spurs. Nothing really to report from this game other than it being a letdown of a game after a thrilling game-winner from Anfernee. Wemby had 30 points and 10 rebounds to cap off a dominant performance. Shaedon is continuing to look exceptional, so that’s good. But this Blazer roster is so hot and cold. It’s insane to believe they can win games consistently when they have good performances and follow it up as if they had nothing really in the tank. This wasn’t even the case of a back-to-back. It was just another game. There's not a lot to think about after this loss than just moving on to the next one.

Record: 1-3 (9-19)

Next Week’s Games: 12/23 @ Dallas, 12/26 vs Utah, 12/28 vs Dallas

Week 7

Hello losses, my old friend. The right-hand column is quickly filling up, compared to the left, and it’s not as fun to watch this team accumulate just porous losses. With the New Year around the corner, trade rumors are happening, and you’d assume just about anyone on the Blazers is up for grabs, except for Scoot, Shaedon, and Clingan. That being said, time will tell when this roster looks nothing like its current state. Maybe we’ll get some wins in December. Perhaps we won’t. Either way, we’re headed for the lottery in 2025, and it’s time to embrace that reality 24 games into the season.

Game #22 - 12/3 @ LA Clippers (127-105 L) NBA Cup Group Play

Welp, that was fun while it lasted. It's definitely a bummer not to advance to the Quarterfinals of the NBA Cup, but it was a long shot from the jump, anyway. James Harden and Norman Powell came to play in a game that really only mattered for the Blazers. The Clippers had no shot of making it to the knockout round, but with a Portland win and some luck from a couple of other games, they would’ve moved on. As much as the two aforementioned players balled out, you can’t give up 51% from 3-point and expect to win any game. Pretty disappointing to see a squad that isn’t great defensively give up that kind of success in a game that was essentially do-or-die. Maybe we can rebound with a home trip against an equally pitiful Jazz team.

Game #23 - 12/6 vs Utah (144-99 L)

LOL, maybe not. What a tremendously lousy showing by the Portland Trail Blazers. (Yes, they deserve to be referred to their full name). I get that we aren’t a great team, but there is no way we’re outscored by 7+ points in each quarter by a team like the Utah freaking Jazz?!? We didn’t score 10 points until 4:27 left in Q1. How does that even happen? I have so many questions about this game, but the team should be embarrassed by this performance. There is only one positive to this game: Shaedon throws down the highest recorded vert on a dunk since tracking started last season. This is definitely a “forget it and move on” type of game for the Blazers. And let’s hope that’s what happens.

Game #24 - 12/8 @ LA Lakers (107-98 L)

It was another loss, but this time against a LeBron-less Lakers team. AD, Rui Hachimura, and D’Angelo Russell wanted to ensure this wasn’t a trap game for the Lakers as they hosted Portland. Yeah, the first half was competitive, but once the second half started, it was nothing but purple and gold – they took the lead midway through Q2 and never relinquished it. Once again, the Blazers are bad on defense, which seems to be this team's personality. We have quality players that have quality offensive abilities, but we can’t seem to figure out the defense. Unsure if that’s a tactical thing or if we are just bad individually. Who knows. But we ended the week on a low note, having given up our 4th loss of four games in December. Hopefully, we can crawl out of this hole and become more competitive soon.

Record: 0-3 (8-16)

Next Week’s Games: 12/13 @ San Antonio, 12/15 @ Phoenix, 12/19 vs Denver, 21/21 @ San Antonio

Week 6

Another week, another win coming from NBA Cup Group Play. This Blazers team is clearly better than last season. Although it might not seem like it, they are doing more with less star power. Clingan (when healthy) is proving his worth as the #7 overall pick, Anfernee and Shaedon are back making plays, and our role players are playing their roles to a T. One can only assume we won’t have this squad come the All-Star Break, but seeing them compete and contend for a spot in the NBA Cup Quarterfinals is fun.

Game 18 - 11/25 @ Memphis (123-98 L)

Ja was back for the Grizzlies, and that showed in a dominant outing. A poor shooting performance (34/102) isn’t gonna get it done. With Clingan and Ayton both out, we had to resort to Time Lord down low, and it didn’t prove to be too threatening. Essentially, playing small-ball the whole game is tough when you’re going against JJJ and the ferocity of Ja Morant. This game was a bit of a taste of how we’d stack up against the more elite Western Conference teams, and it clearly went as we’d expect – a spanking. Definitely a “move onto the next one” kind of mentality.

Game 19 - 11/27 @ Indiana (121-114 L)

Another close loss is in the books. This team is clearly better than last season. This time last year, we were competitive, but there seemed to be games where there was nothing but crying and a massive performance gap. But this season is different. Is it the rag-tag-ness of this team? Is it the fact we aren’t in the shadow of the Dame trade? Maybe we are just playing basketball, and the guys are having… fun? At this point, the reason doesn’t matter. All that matters is we’re showing genuine progress. This Pacers team hopes to defend their Eastern Conference Finals appearance from last season, so staying within firing distance throughout the game is excellent.

Game 20 - 11/29 @ Sacramento (1115-106 W) NBA Cup

We ain’t done yet! How we keep winning these NBA Cup games befuddles me, but I’m not complaining. Dominayton was back in Sac-Town and gave us 26/9 on our way to a 2-1 record in West Group A. Sadly, we need some help to make it into bracket play because of the tie-breaker. The long and short of it is that we need to beat the Clippers and then hope OKC and Dallas lose so that we can get in based on a 3-1 record and not lose the tie-breaker. Or, we beat the pants off the Clippers and win by about 50 to secure a spot. It would be a massive W for this young squad if we could get into the quarterfinals and feel competitive. Like the Summer League Championship from two years ago, it might not be the most significant trophy, but it is a trophy.

Game 21 - 12/1 @ Dallas (137-131 L)

Sadly, Luka is too much to contain for the Blazers and the whole NBA. The League is always better when their stars are healthy, and it took an insurmountable effort from Anfernee only to lose by 6. The Mavericks got Luka back but were without Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and a few others in their win. As painful as it is to watch a team lose to another down all their stars, we did get this season’s first Anferno. With 24 of his 27 points in the 3rd quarter, watching him set the court ablaze is always a pleasure. One of these days, we’ll get a complete performance out of this team. Even though we saw 6 players score over 14 points, we didn’t have much production outside of that. It was encouraging to see Deni come through late on both sides of the ball, but overall, our defense is still trash, and any progress we see will only come if we step it up on that side of the ball.

Record: 1-3 (8-13)

Next Week’s Games: 12/3 @ LA Clippers (NBA Cup), 12/6 vs Utah, 12/8 @ LA Lakers