As in previous years, the Portland Trail Blazers will be on a play-off course after halfway through the season. Nevertheless, the owner does not seem fully satisfied. Where can it go for Damian Lillard, C. J.? McCollum and Co. this season?
After their statement victories against San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, the Blazers had to admit defeat in Houston. This is curious in that Damian Lillard, presumably the best Blazers actor, returned after calf problems. The Blazers are currently still in fifth place in the west, but there is already a bigger hole with four wins behind the Minnesota Timberwolves.
It is more important to look towards the rearview mirror. With a record of 22-19, the chasing pack is not far behind the last play-off places. However, the claims in Portland are different, at least at the highest level. When Portland had a balanced record at the end of December, rumors were circulating that owner Paul Allen questioned head coach Terry Stotts and general manager Neil Olshey and had their work analysed with a group of experts. What came out of it is unclear.
Franchise player Lillard, on the other hand, was demonstratively confronted with the team, especially Coach Stotts:”The players are 100 percent behind him,”said Dame to NBC,”We play for a great man. Whatever problems we have, it’s not his fault:” You can’t be clearer than that and it’s understandable.
After Portland was written off by many after the departure of LaMarcus Aldridge in 2015, the Blazers turned into the season’s Cinderella story and rushed into the second round of playoffs, where they were only beaten by the Golden State Warriors. In the following Free Agency the management spent a lot of money. 4 years and 42 million dollars for Mo Harkless and even worse: 4 years and 70 million for Evan Turner.
Blazers still live on that. At least Mason Plumlee could be exchanged for Center Jusuf Nurkic in a brilliant deal (the Blazers even got a pick!), but the cap is still fully exhausted. Even in the 2019/20 season, the Oregon franchise pays 105 million dollars to just five players. The possible prolongation of Nurkic, who will become a Restricted Free Agent in the summer and wants to be paid for, is not included.
Of course, Microsoft co-founder Allen expects more from such a pay roll, although he emphasized that in Portland not every cent has to be turned over individually. But the roster lacks balance. Too much depends on the backcourt duo Lillard and C. J. McCollum, each of which will again have strong seasons. Nurkic also proves that he is a significant upgrade.
The problems, on the other hand, are located on the wing. This became particularly clear when Al-Farouq Aminu was forced to suspend several games. Chief, as the fans in the Rose Garden (or Moda Center) call him, is the only wing player who has his strengths in defense as well as being able to sink the threesome reliably. Harkless, Turner and also Noah Vonleh, who was barely considered last time, all have big gaps in their game. Above all, they are not marksmen who give their opponents scrambled knees.
At least the defense is working well, which is somewhat surprising as both Lillard and McCollum have no reputation as above-average defenders. Stotts relies on a very radical orientation. The drive into the zone is to be prevented with many switches, for this purpose the three-line drive will be delivered. This may seem odd at times, as in December against the Houston Rockets, when the wing players didn’t play Help Defense and the rockets (especially James Harden after Switches) got one basket after the other.
Nevertheless, the strategy is successful if it’s not against such an anomaly and trigger-happy troops like Mike D’ Antoni’s. But it’s not the end of the story. Portland is the fifth-best defender in the league (DefRtg: 103.2). Moreover, the Blazers only allow 9.3 countersunk threes per game (6th place). The permitted throwing rate of the opponent from downtown (36 percent) is also above the league average.
Page 1: Afterfights of 2016 and a strong defense
Page 2: Improved role-players and new possibilities