The Portland Trail Blazers were all ready to continue their triumphant homestand against lottery-bound teams on Friday night, taking on the Dallas Mavericks in the friendly confines of the Moda Center. As it turned out, Dallas had other plans. The Mavs hustled as hard as the Blazers, shot more accurately, and took way better care of the ball. Lump all that together and you end up with a 100-93 Dallas victory in a game Portland could not afford to lose.
Here are some analytical observations from the
contest.
Roamin’ Empire
Dallas had a clear game plan from the opening tip: make Blazers center Donovan Clingan cover the entire floor on defense. They’re not the first opponent to employ this strategy, but man did they seem dedicated to it, especially early in the game. Part of the reasoning—besides nerfing Clingan’s considerable defensive prowess in the lane—was to wear him out early and eat into his effectiveness. It appeared to work a little bit. Shots and layups came up short for Clingan tonight. He finished with only 6 points on 2-9 shooting. He did manage 17 rebounds, but only 1 blocked shot. He also had 5 turnovers and 4 personal fouls.
The Murray Files
This game will not be on Kris Murray’s highlight tape of “Why I Should Be an NBA Player”. Granted, Murray got the unenviable task of guarding Cooper Flagg on multiple occasions. He got slow-roasted in that assignment and that’s fair. But Murray couldn’t hold onto the ball, couldn’t shoot or score, and at times looked to be staring off into the distance in shell shock. Whatever was up with him, this was not his night. His final line was 0 points, 0 shots, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 blocks, 0 steals, 2 turnovers, and 3 personal fouls in 12 minutes.
This is like standing in the middle of a WWE ring, trying to convince the audience how good you are and how decisively you’re going to win your next match, then the lights go off and you hear, BONNNNGGGGG…
The Direct Approach
Dallas had a simple, efficient defensive approach: go hard against whomever was handling the ball for Portland and live with the consequences following. The point-of-attack defender would try to sit on the dribbler’s dominant hand while Dallas’ mobile bigs closed at the rim after penetration. They didn’t care who the attacker passed to (or where) as long as Portland didn’t score easily off the drive.
Deni Avdija broke the Mavs when the Blazers got into their offense early, but even he struggled when the game ground into the halfcourt.
In recompense, Dallas seemed ok leaving Portland open at the arc. When shots fell the Blazers looked brilliant! They were hit and miss, though, ending the night 8-30, 27% from distance. As a result, the Mavericks never abandoned their initial scheme. Watching the Blazers try to handle and pass the ball in heavy traffic was…not fun.
It’s somewhat certain that Portland’s opponent(s) in the Play-In Tournament are going to employ this strategy as well. It won’t work if they have a huge, slow center, but everyone else is going to play the odds and make the Blazers beat them from the arc instead of in the lane. Watch out.
Screen Follies (Part 2)
A couple games ago we offered that the Blazers are not great at using screens, as they don’t time and space them precisely, often rendering them useless. Here’s a dirty little secret: Portland isn’t good at dealing with opposing screens either.
Donovan Clingan is a massive hawk. When he’s in position, he’ll deny post-screen shots before they ever go up. But often he’s out of sync with his partner because Portland’s smaller players aren’t where they’re supposed to be.
Tonight Dallas set great picks, prospering by getting into the paint relatively Clingan-free. They ended up with 52 in the lane. Granted, they’re Top 5 in the league in that category, but the Blazers didn’t hold them back at all.
Exhibit A was Marvin Bagley III, who scored a season-high 26 points on 11-14 shooting, most of it off of screen action.
Pick plays are one of the NBA’s bedrock attributes. If you’re neither using nor defending them well, what, exactly, is your plan? Inquiring minds want to know.
More of the Same
In semi-concerning news, Robert Williams III left the game late in the second period with a lower back injury and did not return. Williams has appeared in 52 games this season and has been charging hard lately. His spotty health history is well-documented. If the Blazers don’t have Williams down the stretch, that’s a serious blow.
In more-concerning news, Jerami Grant left the game in the fourth quarter with a calf injury. That one seems like it could be serious.
Avdija Questions
Ever since Deni Avdija came back from an injured back a few weeks ago, questions have arisen regarding his speed and whether he’s 100%. Only Deni can answer that, but it’s undeniable that on at least one occasion late, the Mavericks were trying to get him on an island defensively, figuring he couldn’t move laterally well enough to stop the drive. That’s not something we’re used to seeing. He also lost the ball on a couple possessions after.
Whether it’s fatigue or health, this might not be the best Deni Avdija we’ve ever seen. He’s absolutely fine on straight-line drives, but as soon as he gets bumped or has to go sideways, it’s awkward.
Avdija finished the game with 20 points on 8-15 shooting with 9 rebounds and 6 assists. It’s a mark of how excellent his season has gone that his stat line looks THAT good on a night when we’re going, “Hmmmm…”
Turnover…and Over…and Over…
The Blazers committed 25 turnovers tonight, a semi-obnoxious number that didn’t help their cause any. The aggregate is less striking that individual numbers:
- Deni Avdija—5
- Donovan Clingan—5
- Jrue Holiday—4
- Scoot Henderson—3 (in 10-13 fewer minutes than the other three)
That’s ALL of Portland’s primary ballhandlers plus the guy they depend on more than anyone else to finish easy plays. There’s a fair amount of, “Yikes!” in that.
Yo, Unc
I don’t know, guys. All due respect, but we might want to get the tongs and a plate, because Klay Thompson looks cooked. He shot 2-10 from the field, 2-8 from the arc, and none of them looked good.
Up Next
The Blazers’ homestand continues on Sunday as they take on the Washington Wizards at 3:00 PM, Pacific.
