Examining the Portland Trail Blazers’ progress after 50 games

What is the state of the Portland Trail Blazers 50 games into the 2017-18 NBA season?

The Portland Trail Blazers completed their 50th game of the 2017-18 regular season Tuesday night. They defeated the Los Angeles Clippers, 104-96. Damian Lillard led the charge with 28 points while Jusuf Nurkic (14 points, 20 rebounds) and Al-Farouq Aminu (10 points, 11 rebounds) secured double-doubles.

The Blazers are now 28-22 on the year thanks to the win. This is one of their better positions through 50 games compared to recent seasons. They were 22-28 at this juncture in 2016-17 and 24-26 the season prior. A 34-16 record in 2014-15 was the last time Rip City was above .500 through 50 games.

Their success this season can be attributed to a number of factors. The backcourt of Lillard and C.J. McCollum continues to play a dynamic brand of basketball. The duo combines to average 46.9 points per game, shooting 44.3 percent from the field and 39.6 percent from 3-point range.

Speaking of 3-point shooting, the team is collectively adept at it. Rip City’s 38.0 percent shooting from beyond the arc is third-best in the NBA. However, the fact they attempt a below-average amount of 3-pointers each night has buoyed the Blazers’ efficiency for much of the season.

Through December, the Blazers averaged the fifth-fewest long range shots in the league at 26.6 per game. However, that problem was remedied recently. Portland has averaged 30.2 3-point attempts per game through the first 30 days of January, 10th-most in the league.

The Trail Blazers’ defense has also been commendable this season. They have allowed only 104.2 points per 100 possessions, eighth-fewest in the league. This is particularly noteworthy after Portland placed 21st in this same category last season and 20th the year before.

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But despite all the good, this hasn’t been a perfect season for Portland. The word “inconsistency” has come up quite often when discussing the team. The Blazers haven’t fallen under .500 at any point this season, but they also haven’t pulled far away from the middle, either.

Portland has endured two separate three-game losing streaks and a five-gamer. Conversely, they have completed four three-game winning streaks but nothing longer.

The Blazers are also last in the NBA in assists, averaging 19.1 per game. With two talented ball-dominant players starting in the backcourt and another in Shabazz Napier coming off of the bench, the offense stagnates at times.

As a consequence, Portland averages 105.1 points per 100 possessions, 15th-most in the league. They placed 11th in this category in 2016-17 and seventh in 2015-16.

However, the Blazers seem to be hitting their stride as a new month approaches. Following the Clippers victory, they are now 6-1 over their last seven games. The swell kicked off on Jan. 16 with a 118-111 win over the Phoenix Suns. Portland is tied with the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder for the best record in the league since that evening.

In the process, Portland has churned out the second-best net rating in the league over this span. The Blazers are averaging 113.2 points per 100 possessions (second-best) while only allowing 105.0 points (13th). That works out to a net rating of +8.1 points per 100 possession since the Jan. 16, bested only by the Thunder’s +11.2.

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While things look promising, there is still work to do. Their first challenge of the season’s final 32 games is hosting the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night. If their star backcourt continues to deliver, their 3-point shooting remains potent and they continue to play good team defense, the Portland Trail Blazers could find themselves closing out the 2017-18 season on a very strong note.