The Portland Trail Blazers did not play the perfect game against the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. Sometimes it looks slow, tired and just thin against one of the NBA’s offensive power stations. But the Blazers played a team game for all moments, but it made up for all evils. On the second night of a rugby game, Portland put six players in doubles, four of them scoring 19 or more and picking the Wizards 132-121.
Game Flow
First term
The Wizards is not a premium NBA franchise. Playing bad teams makes everything look better. Nevertheless, the Wizards can TEL and the Blazers refrained from doing so in the first quarter. Portland’s defense was active and effective. The attack centered around the wings. Gary Trent, Jr. and Robert Covington made the game difficult for Washington. Rodney Hood endowed them with the offensive end. The trio scored 24 points in the first 6:00, which helped Portland kick an 18-0 run. At the same time, the Wizards scored only 7. Most impressive of all, Damian Lillard contributed no points to the effort. That equates to a 19-point lead, shooting and an excellent defense without the franchise superstar lifting a finger.
As typical, Portland’s second unit could not maintain the strong defense, but the Blazers still led 40-23, while Lillard contributed only 2. time that ever happened except for matches, he was injured.
Second term
The Blazers obviously can’t have nice things without losing it. It contains clues of every size. The Wizards closed the sideline to 12 before you could say, “Boo!” in the second period. But Trent, Jr. calmly lifted it again and drained a few tries. No matter how much miss his teammates shot, Enes Kanter vacuumed them or dumped them in friendly hands. Even when the defense slipped, the offense got over, mainly thanks to Kanter’s efforts.
The story changed around 7 p.m. Bradley Beal started hitting tries, spreading the Portland defense and then paralyzing. It also apparently put off the power of the offense. The Blazers went into an isolation ball and started with the light acceptable Carmelo Anthony version which then turned into a tough watch. The lead waned to 7 points, and then 6. Lillard became aggressive as the half declined, but he still could not get the scorer going. However, that was enough. Portland led 75-63. A twelve-point lead gave the Blazers a cushion for the inevitable fatigue on the second night of a rugby player.
Third term
The third period started in the standard Blazers way: Lillard three, Trent, three Jr, Lillard three. Because he was a good guest, Portland also allowed the home team to hit from a distance. The flurry of points looked impressive, but did not change the margin much. Washington won 9-0 during the semifinals, then Portland won 12-0. Lillard scored a dozen in the period, was enough to push the Blazers on top when it was all over. Portland led 106-90 after three.
Fourth term
Rodney Hood started the fourth with a few tries and indicated to the Wizards that the return would be difficult. While Lillard was still on the roll and Trent, Jr. in the area, the Blazers had all the firepower needed to make it happen. But by marking the defense and feet, the Wizards were able to close out the lead. Portland stands and watches Washington run. The Wizards reduced the lead to 4 with four minutes left, but Trent, Jr., splashed three more and that was enough. A big Lillard battle with 2:10 left puts the lid on the game. We even got one of our first “Lillard Time” wristwatch celebrations when the Blazers sailed to victory.
Analysis
Be a little respectful of Gary Trent, Jr. ‘s name. He sets the tone in the game with his defense, then adds 7-9 shots from distance, 8-16 overall, for 26 points. His game is now professional: two-way, confident and striking.
Enes Kanter had five attacking setbacks, but it felt like 50. He was disruptive on the glass, giving the Blazers extra possessions and a watch to maintain the lead. He beats Wizards like bowling pins. 14 points, 15 rebounds.
Rodney Hood tonight looked like Rodney Good of old. His three-point shot was pure (3-6 from the arc) and he was able to move around the floor.
Robert Covington has a “What the What ???” moment in the first period, and hit his first three tries. He agrees with teammates who mostly provide a solid defense. 19 points on 5-8 shooting from distance gave Portland the lead to make the game comfortable.
Carmelo Anthony scored 21 points on 8-16 shooting, which is a fantastic stat line. With their bench seriously exhausted, the Blazers like to go to him. The Wizards also began to enjoy it as the game unfolded, doubling him on the catch, knowing he would either shoot in isolation or wither. The plan may not be sustainable; Portland needs to get players healthy quickly. However, you can not argue with 26 points within 26 minutes. Tip of the hat for ‘Melo.
The Blazers forced 7 times in the first period, a tremendous rate. Behind Trent, Jr. and Covington, showed them what their defense could be. Flag force prevented them from sustaining the attack, but for a moment they watched well.
Equally important, Washington fired on 17 free throws. Excessive defense of too tired players is usually a setup for Whistlemania. Portland avoided the trap.
Oh … Damian Lillard had 32 points and 8 assists as well.
The takeaways from this game were pretty basic:
- Portland can play good defense on occasion. If they do, they look good.
- Three-point shooting makes everything better for the Blazers. They scored 21-46 tonight, 45.7%. This made the game easy.
- Damian Lillard is fantastic, but if the Blazers want to win consistently, the rest of the team must be there. The difference between just a few little coordinated effort and Iso-Ball Hell (along with colander-like defense) is day and night.
Goal scorer
Check out this amazing Instant Recap from Marlow Ferguson, Jr.
The Blazers tackle Thursday night at 5 p.m., Pacific, Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers.