Blazer Beef
More and more, it looks like the Portland Trail Blazers are headed for a potential playoff match-up against the Los Angeles Clippers.
While fans are excited at the prospect of a more winnable series against what many see as the most vulnerable of the top-four seeds, I can’t say the same.
If this series happens, it’s going to be an eyesore.
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum will bring some excitement into the games, but we all know that the series could devolve into a hack-attack for the ages.
The Blazers forced DeAndre Jordan into a Clippers’ franchise record 34 free-throw attempts the last time they faced off.
The small rivalry between head coaches Terry Stotts and Doc Rivers will only exacerbate the hacking, I fear.
Blake Griffin’s potential return could add some juice to the match-up, but he and Chris Paul will bring their fair share of complaining.
If the Blazers want to stick with the Clippers, unfortunately, they’ll have to get on the officials as well.
Luckily for them, Lillard has been doing a much better job talking to officials and getting their attention.
All of that still doesn’t mean this is going to be fun to watch in terms of fast-paced, well-executed basketball.
We will get that for stretches and it will provide drama, but I just hope both sides can avoid their base instincts and allow two really talented teams to play.
Blazer Bravo
McCollum is running away with the NBA’s Most Improved Player award with good reason. Adding to his case, he’s carried the Blazers more in crunch time as of late with Damian Lillard in a shooting slump.
But their teammate Al-Farouq Aminu also has a legitimate argument to be in the same discussion.
And Aminu’s improvement over the course of the whole season has been almost as impressive as his improvement over the course of his career.
He’s shooting a a career-best 35.5 percent from long-range and his taking 48 percent of his shots from three, a career-high by a wide margin.
But has also made strides when it comes to taking care of the ball.
He posted a turnover ratio of 7.2 percent in March, the lowest number he’s had of any month despite keeping his usage, the percentage of possessions he uses per game at the same rate.
His breakout game against the Boston Celtics when he scored 28 points was an exclamation point on a season of improvement that’s far from over.
Aminu is just 25 and the move to make him the team’s power forward mostly full time has already taken the Blazers to another level.
By The Numbers
20 — As of Sunday, the Blazers starting line-up of Lillard, McCollum, Maurice Harkless, Al-Farouq Aminu and Mason Plumlee has the best net-rating (20.0) of any line-up in the entire NBA that has played for more than 200 minutes according to NBA.com. Not only has it been Portland’s best line-up, but it’s one of the best in the NBA in terms of point differential.
3 — After facing the Warriors on Sunday, three of Portland’s final four games are against sub-.500 teams.
9-3 — The Blazers’ record this season against the four teams remaining on their schedule.
The Week Ahead
Tuesday at Sacramento Kings (7 p.m., CSN): All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins won’t play on the road for the rest of the season, but he should be available when Sacramento hosts the Blazers.
Wednesday vs. Oklahoma City (7 p.m., KGW 8): The Thunder are locked into the third seed in the West. They play Tuesday in Denver and have rested key players such as Kevin Durant in recent games, so they may very well rest their stars again.
Saturday vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (7:30 p.m., CSN): The Timberwolves are 25-51, but with Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and improved scoring from Ricky Rubio have them looking like a problem in the Northwest Division for years to come.
