5 NBA teams stuck between excellence and mediocrity

PORTLAND, OREGON - JANUARY 14: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers and Domantas Sabonis #11 of the Indiana Pacers react to a jump ball call by the referee in the fourth quarter at Moda Center on January 14, 2021 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. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – NOVEMBER 01: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers looks on against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center on November 01, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 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. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images) /

5 NBA teams that are too good to blow things up, but too bad to win an NBA championship this season: Portland Trail Blazers

This position isn’t an unfamiliar one for the Trail Blazers, as harsh as that sounds, given they’ve made the playoffs in six consecutive seasons.

Their 11-11 record isn’t appeasing fans, though, nor will it appease their star point guard Damian Lillard, whose future in Portland was the source of debate during the off-season.

With Lillard as the focal point and CJ McCollum pairing with him in the backcourt, the Trail Blazers will always be a competitive team capable of being a threat on any given night. The question mark has always been about what ceiling this team has with that duo as their two best players.

History suggests, outside of their Western Conference Finals appearance in 2018-19, that there’s a limit on what this team can produce. They’ve been eliminated in the first round four of the past five seasons, with nothing about this season so far suggesting that things will be any different.

The Blazers need to try something else, particularly before Lillard takes matters into his own hands and potentially requests a trade.