Portland Trail Blazers: Mission To Reach Playoffs Accomplished

How were the Portland Trail Blazers able to earn their fourth consecutive playoff berth after a 1-2 start to April?

The turnaround is complete.

The Portland Trail Blazers were 24-35 and tied with the Dallas Mavericks for 10th place in the West at the end of February.

But now they are 40-40 and are heading to the NBA playoffs for the fourth straight season. The team clinched the eighth and final playoff berth in the Western Conference. They are set to face the No. 1 seed Golden State Warriors in the first round.

The Blazers entered the weekend with a magic number of two. This meant that any combination of Portland wins or Denver Nuggets losses equaling two would cement their place in this year’s postseason.

They helped themselves with a 101-86 win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday. The game is particularly notably for Damian Lillard‘s 59-point explosion.

Those 59 points mark Lillard’s new career high, surpassing the 51 points he dropped in February 2016 against the Warriors.

However, 59 points is also a new Trail Blazers franchise record, besting Damon Stoudamire‘s 54 points against the then-New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) in January 2005.

Portland Trail Blazers

The following evening, the Nuggets lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 106-105. The loss came in heartbreaking fashion. Russell Westbrook decided the game by knocking down a distant, contested three at the buzzer.

That shot for him was the cherry on top of his 42nd triple-double of the season, a new NBA record. It was also the dagger to the Nuggets’ playoff chances.

The Blazers clinch a playoff berth after things looked shaky just a week ago. After going 13-3 in March, the team has been without burgeoning center Jusuf Nurkic for all of April. The team went 1-2 in their first three games without him.

But then, not only did the team reel off back-to-back victories, they had to play the second win with even fewer bodies on the bench than they already had.

Allen Crabbe played a major role in Thursday’s 105-98 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. He went 8-of-10 from beyond the arc and had 25 points, a team high.

However, Crabbe was unavailable on Saturday against Utah. He was held out due to a sore left foot. An MRI showed inflammation in an area that has been a lingering issue. This left Portland without one of their sharpshooters for one of the biggest games of the season.

But on Saturday night, they didn’t need him. Lillard took off for his historic game, and now the Portland Trail Blazers are officially in the playoffs.

PLAYOFFS. pic.twitter.com/85s1ZZ5hd2
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) April 9, 2017

Team defense has been huge over the last two games. Portland learned from their mistakes on the road against Minnesota and Utah. They then applied those lessons against the same two teams when they came to Portland’s home floor.

In the Minnesota win, the Blazers held the T-Wolves to 22.2 percent shooting from three. Portland also held them to 11 points in the fourth quarter. Minnesota didn’t score a field goal until 2:40 remaining in regulation.

Portland was able to dispatch Utah on Saturday night by packing the paint to prevent drives and neutralize Rudy Gobert. The Blazers also used their athleticism to stay tight on Jazz players and keep up with their constant off-ball movement.

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For instance, Maurice Harkless did well defending Gordon Hayward for much of the game.

In the two road games against the Jazz and T-Wolves, Portland gave up 122.0 points per 100 possessions. In the games at the Moda Center against those same two opponents, the Blazers only conceded 99.4 points per 100 possessions.

Playing at the Moda Center may have also played a part in Portland’s fortunes. The Blazers are 24-15 at home. By contrast, they wrapped up their road schedule with a 16-25 record.

So with the playoffs assured, the Blazers can close out the year with peace of mind. They wrap up the 2016-17 regular season against the San Antonio Spurs and the Pelicans. These two teams will be tough matchups.

New Orleans throttled Portland in their last meeting 100-77 on March 14. The following night, they were able to take down the Spurs 110-106. However, San Antonio is still the second-best team in the West and have a MVP candidate in Kawhi Leonard on their roster.

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But a newfound defensive intensity and a historic effort by Damian Lillard makes these final two games a lot less stressful. Now, the Portland Trail Blazers can have the mindset of preparing for the playoffs as opposed to dealing with the pressure of still qualifying for them.