Portland Trail Blazers: 5 keys to winning season opener vs. Phoenix Suns

3. Lillard time!

Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum make up one of the most offensively potent backcourts in the NBA. Together, they’re troublesome to game plan for and a handful to defend against.

That’s why it’s so problematic when one of them misses time: they both complement each other so well, it’s difficult imagining the Portland Trail Blazers enjoying a long period of success without one of them.

But when one of them is out for a game or two, it creates a rare opportunity for the other guy to put on a show for the ages. In this particular case, Lillard would be the one set to have a big game, and there’s no better time to make a statement than in the first game of the season.

We’ve only seen Lillard play without McCollum once since the latter began starting as the off guard in 2015. In that game against the Los Angeles Clippers in January of 2016, Dame finished with 20 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, but shot just 7-for-25 in an 11-point Blazers loss.

McCollum’s scoring will certainly be missed, but there’s no denying the intrigue of Lillard completely going off in Phoenix.