Portland Trail Blazers: Evaluating the 3-game win streak

Three consecutive victories have put the Portland Trail Blazers on a win streak with all the makings of an impressive run.

There are a number of ways you could describe any NBA team’s 2018-19 season, as may be a year in which we’ve experienced more surprises and unexpected turns more so than most others. When examining the Portland Trail Blazers’ 2018-19 campaign through the first two months, perhaps there is no better way to describe it other than “shifty.”

Through 31 games, it has been hard to gauge what kind of club the Blazers are shaping into. They boast victories over the top seed in the Western Conference last year, the Houston Rockets, the LeBron James-led Los Angeles Lakers, the preseason Eastern Conference favorite Boston Celtics, and league-dominant powerhouses like the Toronto Raptors and Milwaukee Bucks.

Yet in the same breath, they’ve suffered crushing defeats and rough patches, including a back-to-back thrashings to the Bucks (43 points) and Golden State Warriors (28 points) on the road. They’ve climbed as high as first place in the battle royale that is the Western Conference, and have been out of the playoff picture as recently as last week.

With that being said, there’s no denying the Trail Blazers’ current win streak is nothing shy of excellent. Despite being only a three-game stretch, consistent play and the quality of opponents gives the impression this has the potential to be a very impressive stretch to not only close out 2018 but bleed over into the new year.

Prior to last Friday night, the Blazers were victims of two consecutive defeats that left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Rip City faithful and within the locker room. Back-to-back losses saw Portland perform with great effort, but a lack of execution and a higher level of play from their opponents resulted in road defeats in Houston and Memphis.

Following the 92-83 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, there was no doubt that there was cause for concern heading back to Portland. An evaluation in a postgame interview from head coach Terry Stotts pointed out that the Blazers’ offense “never really got going,” failing to sustain effectiveness for a 48-minute period.

A home game would bring comfort to all, but it wasn’t an ideal position to be in while getting ready to host a game against the top team not only in the entire NBA, the Toronto Raptors. If there were any time for a world-class display of team play, it was this contest.

In one of the biggest victories on the season thus far, the dynamic duo Portland is so accustomed to leading the way wasn’t the highlight of game. Damian Lillard, the reigning All-NBA First Team point guard, notched a solid 24 points on a stellar 8-for-10 shooting from the field, despite his usual righthand man, CJ McCollum, only tallying 14 points.

Although they were lacking the top assist man in the league and one of the game’s elite point guards in Kyle Lowry, Toronto brought the fight to the Moda Center, led by MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard, who was as close to unstoppable as anyone with 28 points on the night.

Fred VanVleet (21 points), Danny Green (19) and Serge Ibaka (18) all displayed how deep the Raptors’ roster is, providing a power struggle the entire evening. It was the supporting cast from members of the Blazers such as Zach Collins, Seth Curry, and Nik Stauskas that gave Rip City the upper hand, as eight players were in double-figures for Portland.

A 12-point lead as late as 3:55 in the fourth dwindled down as Toronto found a hot streak and a window of opportunity to spark a thrilling road comeback. That was a window closed shorty after three 3-point daggers from Lillard, McCollum, and Al-Farouq Aminu. The horn sounded on a 128-122 win, and as a result, Portland notched a victory against the top team in basketball. It was a much-needed victory that got the ball rolling heading into a contest against another formidable opponent.

I’d love to see a show of hands of who all imagined the 2018-19 Los Angeles Clippers being one of the top-level clubs in the league. Only a handful of people (led by Steve Balmer most likely) would have made that bet, but to the shock of just about everyone around the league, the Clippers have elevated their level of play to new heights not reached since the Lob City days just a few years ago.

Heading into their matchup with Portland, the Clippers were in the middle of a three-game losing streak after an unreal 17-9 start. For the Blazers, this could’ve had the makings of a trap game. A Los Angeles team led by underrated stars Tobias Harris and Lou Williams, in addition to developing rookie Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was undoubtedly starving for a win on this night at home.

The season series was split at 1-1, with the most recent matchup resulting in a slim four-point loss for the Trail Blazers at home. Following Monday night, the tide would turn again in Portland’s favor. It was another four-point difference in a battle between the two clubs, where a late spark nearly resulted in a crushing comeback loss for Portland once more.

The Clippers fought to hold down the fort with numerous primetime performances from Tobias Harris (who put up a career-high 39 points), as well as 20-plus point performances from Danilo Gallinari and Gilgeous-Alexander. Portland had built a lead as large as 18, erased by the Clippers on numerous occasions as the night turned into all-out warfare. It was won by the Blazers thanks to heroics from the dynamic duo of Lillard and McCollum.

Combining for 66 points between the two, the Blazers were able to stave off a monumental comeback from the home team, leaving Hollywood victorious over another top-level team. In an interview with Brooke Olzendam, Damian Lillard spoke about the close win, including his 22-point third quarter.

With back-to-back victories coming against some of the league’s upper-echelon opponents, the  Blazers’ locker room was beginning the pick up steam — steam the club would sustain as it avenged another loss a mere two nights later.

The Grizzlies were amidst a three-game skid as well, with their most recent victory actually coming against the Blazers exactly one week prior in the FedEx Forum. The contest proved to be a display of true leadership and the luxury of hosting star talent. With a game-high 24 points, Lillard was the only player on the Blazers to score over 12 points, proving to be the deciding factor in a seven-point home win.

It has been more than a solid albeit brief three-game stretch. Three straight wins against opponents over .500 have done more than lift the spirits of the Rip City fans and the confidence and proficiency of the men in the locker room. The signs for a phenomenal stretch are on the table for Portland heading into Friday’s matchup with a unexpectedly subpar Utah Jazz club, which can be a game that continues this run for the Blazers.