Report Card
Grade: C-minus
Technically, Portland went 2-2 last week, but they certainly did not play average basketball. One of those wins came last Monday against the Hornets, owners of the worst record in the Western Conference. The other came against the Wizards, who, well … have a worse record than the Hornets.
Sandwiched between those games was a decisive loss to Minnesota and a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Celtics, who led the Blazers 65-30 at halftime and increased their lead in the first quarter.
After the New Orleans win, the big talk in the locker room was how key this road trip was, and so far, the Blazers have not seemed to respond. Are there a flurry of winnable games when they come home? Sure. But if they don’t pick it up, it might be too late by then.
The one bright spot for Portland has been the reemergence of LaMarcus Aldridge, who struggled in his first games since the All-Star break but has looked like his old self since, scoring 30 points on 12-of-15 shooting against Washington, posting 22 points against both Boston and Minnesota.
