Portland Trail Blazers: The NBA’s Best Kept Secret

With no big name offseason acquisitions or overly flashy players, the Portland Trail Blazers have flown under the radar and quietly have the second best record in the NBA

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With six guys that average at least 1.5 three-point attempts per game and shooting at least 38 percent from three, it is evident that the Blazers are a team that relies heavily on being able to drain three-point shots. However, thanks to some shrewd offseason acquisitions by GM Neil Olshey in the past couple years, they have been able to some add muscle and much-needed inside presence.

In one of the more under appreciated offseason moves, the Blazers were able to sign veteran big man Chris Kaman, a wily seven-footer, who can score in the post. Although he has seen more playing time than expected–due in large part to an injury to Robin Lopez‘s hand–he has shown that he can operate out of the post within the offense, as evidenced by the 9.6 points per game he is averaging.

During Lopez’s absence, the Blazers have also seen steady production from third-year center Joel Freeland. Even though Freeland’s numbers aren’t special, he, like Kaman, has been able to become an obstacle for opposing players when they enter the paint on defense, in addition to his effectiveness grabbing boards when they play small-ball.

Collectively, the Blazers have actually been the best rebounding team in the league, averaging 46.6 rebounds per contest, with that number surely to increase once Lopez returns in late January or early February. And because of their ability to rebound, the Blazers are eighth in the league in second chance points with 14.5 per game.

But offense was never a concern for the Portland Trail Blazers, especially with offensive savants like LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard anchoring them on that side of the court. The question coming into this season was whether or not the Blazers could slow teams down and make other teams play in the mud, rather than constantly engaging in shootouts.

And 35 games into the season, the answer is an emphatic yes.

In the past, teams could slow things down and operate against a finesse Trail Blazer defense, but this season, teams are finding out that the Blazers are more akin to play a grind-it-out game. Despite their high scoring output, the Blazers rank only 12th in the league in pace, meaning that they are more willing to feed Aldridge on one side of the floor and let Aldridge and Lopez/Kaman/Freeland protect the paint on the other side.

Also, the Portland defenders are taking less gambles on the perimeter and playing a more methodical brand of defense. Relying less on individual playmaking and more of a team concept defensively has paid dividends for coach Terry Stotts and and his team, because Blazers now boast the second-best opponents’ effective field goal percentage at 46 percent.

As a result of their newfound defensive identity, the Blazers are also currently third in defensive efficiency (99.0 points per 100 possessions) and second in points allowed per game, yielding on 97 per game.

It remains to be seen whether the Blazers’ newly discovered stout defense and trademark prolific offense will be able to get them over traditional western conference titans, but it will at least keep them in contention deep into the season and late in games–where they may be most dangerous.

The reason why the Blazers are so effective late in games is because of their leader, third-year point guard Damian Lillard.

This season, Lillard has set career-highs in points, steals, field goal percentage, and player efficiency rating (PER). That means Lillard has not only been scoring more, but he has also been scoring more efficiently, and playing a more well-rounded game.

Due to Lillard’s increased effectiveness, he seems to have picked up where he left off last season, in terms of late-game heroics. In recent wins against the Lakers, Spurs, and Thunder, Lillard has topped at least 39 points in each contest, while making several crunch-time shots.

In a league stacked with point guards, Lillard sometimes gets lost in the shuffle, but just like his team, he plays with the intention to gain the respect of national media, and that alone should terrify every other team in the league.

An explosive offense, a top-tier defense and a blossoming superstar, all have the Portland Trail Blazers poised to go deeper in the playoffs this season. In spite of all that though, their rivals in Texas and California will continue to steal attention and headlines, but come April and May it will be tough to ignore the best team the Pacific Northwest has seen in 15 years.

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