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Portland Trail Blazers: Top 5 games to watch in 2018-19

By Ty Delbridge

PORTLAND, OR - FEBRUARY 11: Jusuf Nurkic #27 and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen before the game against the Utah Jazz on February 11, 2018 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - FEBRUARY 11: Jusuf Nurkic #27 and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen before the game against the Utah Jazz on February 11, 2018 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Torrey Purvey/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Torrey Purvey/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

5. Feb. 11 at Oklahoma City Thunder

This away game in Oklahoma City is the second game after the trade deadline and is the second to last game before the NBA All-Star weekend begins. The NBA trade deadline occurs on Feb. 7 at 3:00 pm ET. Depending on how the season is going, the Blazers team could look different if the front office decides to make a deal. The past two seasons, Portland has made a trade around the deadline.

This game against the Oklahoma City Thunder will be the Blazers’ first crack at an elite team after the deadline passes. If they do make a trade, this will be a real test for the new-looking team on the road in a back-to-back situation. If they don’t make a deal, this will be a game to show why they didn’t need to move anyone on their roster.

The Thunder and Blazers always play in entertaining games when they meet each other. Last season, the Blazers swept OKC in the season series. The final scores were 103-99, 117-106, 108-100 and 108-105. This game on Feb. 11 will be the third game of this season’s series.

It’s also an excellent head-to-head battle between two of the best point guards in the league in Russell Westbrook and Damian Lillard. Last season, Lillard averaged 26.7 points, 8.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game against the Thunder, including a 36-point, 13-assist performance. Westbrook averaged 25.0 points, 9.0 assists and 8.5 rebounds per game against the Blazers.

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