Portland Trail Blazers: 3 takeaways from 5-game road trip

The Portland Trail Blazers completed a daunting five-game road trip with a 4-1 record. Here are three takeaways from what transpired.

The Portland Trail Blazers are looking like one of the top teams in the NBA after completing a 4-1 road trip. They were able to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies, Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards and New York Knicks while falling short against the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Blazers now stand at 13-8 on the year, fourth in the Western Conference. Their rightfully lauded defense was challenged at times throughout the trips, but they always found a way to win. Portland was able to bookend their trip with defensive performances that kept their opponents under 100 points.

The Big Three of Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic delivered big over the course of the trip. Lillard was the leader of the pack, averaging 29.2 points and 5.2 assists per game. McCollum followed up with averages of 18.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Nurkic was the post presence down low, averaging 16.4 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.

The Trail Blazers were able to pass this road test. However, this isn’t the last one. Portland will set out for another five-gamer within two weeks. That trip kicks off Dec. 11, featuring games against the Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets and Minnesota Timberwolves.

But what was there to learn from these games? This article will take a quick look at three things to take from the Blazers’ 4-1 road trip.