NBA Power Rankings: All 30 Starting Shooting Guards
By Shane Young
9. Wesley Matthews — Portland Trail Blazers
No other shooting guard last season caught my attention, or forced me to appreciate the Pacific Northwest than Matthews. He’s one of the last guys you can add to that list of players you wouldn’t consider a household name.
Portland obtained the No. 5 seed in the West based off their offensive firepower, proving that they could out-score you on any given night and not have to worry entirely too much about the defensive end. Robin Lopez patrolled the paint better than we’ve ever seen him do, and Portland tried to defend screen rolls the exact same way their opposition did to them.
The 54 wins were factual evidence that a better offense beats a sturdy defense eight or nine times out of 10. Terry Stotts’ Trail Blazers allowed the 22nd most points per game last year, giving up 102.8 points on average. But, the Net Rating of +3.9 meant they were scoring enough to relieve themselves of it.
Matthews ended up being a rather large part of that, having his best all-around season at age 27. He’ll be turning 28 this October, and it doesn’t feel anything close to that old. He’s a six-year player out of Marquette, who went vastly under the radar after his rookie season in Utah. He was known for highlight plays here and there, but never anything worth jumping out of your chair over.
During the Trail Blazers’ magical year, Matthews became a 3-point warlock. The “above the break 3” has been Matthews’ treat fest recently. Those triples are anything near the top of the key, without being a wing or corner 3-pointer. In those areas, Matthews shot 39.4 percent last year, great enough for 5th of all guards, Stephen Curry included.
He plays with an edge that has the perfect combination of confidence and respect. He knows he’s better than you, but he doesn’t get the national attention with two future superstars on his team. Since the attention doesn’t come, he respects how he’s rated and he leaves it to huge moments similar to these to make his statements:
For as long as I live, I’ll never forget the February matchup at Indiana, in which I covered live. Being able to consistently hit shots off-balanced, use the glass in the tightest of angles, and catch-and-fire under pressure are all tools Matthews put on display in that overtime thriller. Watching it up close and personal, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
Portland has three starters who provided no mercy for defenders last season, and they’ll be waiting until you give a reason why that’s going to change.