Portland Trail Blazers: 3 takeaways from Game 3 vs. Pelicans
The Portland Trail Blazers faced a must-win situation in Game 3 of their first round series in the 2018 NBA Playoffs. Here are three takeaways from the loss that may have ended their season.
If Game 2 was a must-win situation for the Portland Trail Blazers, Game 3 on the road was either the rock foundation they’d build their comeback on, or the boulder they’d roll in front of their tomb. Unfortunately for Rip City, it might be time to eulogize their 2017-18 season.
With the series shifting to the Smoothie King Arena Thursday night, the New Orleans Pelicans continued to dig a grave for the Blazers, thoroughly dominating Game 3 from start to finish en route to a 119-102 victory to go up 3-0 in the series.
The Pellies blitzed Rip City from the opening frame, building a 16-point advantage on the backs of hot shooting and well-balanced production. They never looked back from there.
Nikola Mirotic was the story of the night, erupting for a playoff career-high 30 points and eight rebounds on a blistering 12-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-6 from deep. While he became the third player to score 30 in this series for New Orleans, Anthony Davis was his usual brilliant self with 28 points, 11 boards, three steals and two blocks.
Nikola Mirotic tallies #NBAPlayoffs career-high 30 PTS, shooting 12-15 from the field, in the @PelicansNBA Game 3 victory! #DoItBigger pic.twitter.com/UBfl7Gbjo0
— NBA (@NBA) April 20, 2018
Jrue Holiday added 16 points and seven assists and Playoff Rajon Rondo showed up again, finishing with 16 points, 11 dimes and five rebounds.
C.J. McCollum led a feeble resistance for the Blazers, finishing with 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Though Damian Lillard added 20 points, they came on 5-of-14 shooting. Al-Farouq Aminu continued to be the best player of the series for Portland, tallying 21 points and eight boards on 8-of-15 shooting. No other Blazer reached double figures.
So how was Rip City’s 2016-17 season pushed to the brink so quickly? And buried in a 3-0 hole, is there any hope for the Portland Trail Blazers to climb out? To make sense of what’s gone wrong and what to expect next, here are three takeaways from the crucial Game 3 defeat.