Portland Trail Blazers: Why Portland Won’t Win A Championship
What’s the common theme among the majority of NBA championship winning teams? A rock solid defense. The Portland Trail Blazers were in the upper echelon of the NBA last year. Winning 54 games in the Western Conference is no joke and neither were the Blazers last year.
But, the Trail Blazers lack what championship winning teams have: defense.
The 2013-14 Portland Trail Blazers were a run-and-gun team. The Trail Blazers attempted a whopping 87 shots per game last year, good for third in the NBA. The team pushed the tempo and there was no relief in sight for opposing teams. The Portland Trail Blazers averaged an excellent 106.7 points per game, as they finished fourth in points scored. The team ran all over opposing defenses as they used their incredible firepower to propel them into the top of the league.There is no denying their offensive prowess.
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As important as offense is, the title is still usually won by teams with good defense. The saying “defense wins championships” isn’t a mere saying in the NBA; it’s practically a rule.
Unfortunately, it’s something the Trail Blazers were sorely lacking. The Portland Trail Blazers were 22nd in points allowed, as they let teams drop 102.8 points per game on them. I understand their blistering pace a lot to do with the higher amount of points allowed, but even taking that into account their defense still was not good.
Their Defensive Rating as a team was 107.4, which was in the lower half of the league. They forced 12 turnovers per game, which was dead last. They simply were not good on the defensive end.
It isn’t just a system problem, however. The Portland Trail Blazers simply do not have the personnel to play defense at a high level. Any team that plays Damian Lillard for 30-plus minutes has very little hopes of turning themselves into an elite defensive team.
Between Lillard, Wesley Matthews and Mo Williams, the team had plenty of players who, straight-up, didn’t play any defense. That has to change in the near future if Portland wants to realistically be able to win a championship.
With the additions of Steve Blake and Chris Kaman, the Portland Trail Blazers look like they might be able to improve, if only by a little bit. Blake isn’t the best defender, but he is savvy and plays hard on the defensive end. Likewise, Kaman isn’t a defensive anchor, but his size should provide a bit of rim protection for a team that allows a lot dribble penetration. Obviously, improving on defense starts with the starters, but throwing in a few guys who are more than willing to play defense can sometimes make a big difference.
The Portland Trail Blazers are a team on the rise, and they still have a lot of potential to improve. The team has players with high potential and a very young, promising core of players. With that said, the team is unlikely to win an NBA championship next season, due to the fact that they don’t play a lot of defense. This can change in the near future, but as the team is built, it looks like it won’t be starting next season.
Which is a shame because that’s all this team needs to push themselves over the hump.