Yesterday we ran a post asking you to name your single favorite Portland Trail Blazers team by season. We got some interesting, fun responses, but the exercise did lead to a further question. What if we were to take this out of the purely subjective realm, stop asking about your personal favorites, and got down to the actual basketball quality of the teams? If we could somehow bring all of the Trail Blazers teams from years of yore into a gym, match them up against one another, and play it out, which
team would be the ultimate winner?
Obviously we have a clue or two. The teams that performed the best in their own environment would have the edge over less-accomplished rosters. With that in mind, for the sake of convenience, we’re going to narrow down the choices to six teams. You can retcon this and pick whatever season’s lineup you want (as long as you pick one team from one year, no mixing and matching) but I’m guessing the finalists would be some incarnations of these squads.
1976-77 Championship Blazers
STARTERS: Bill Walton, Maurice Lucas, Bob Gross, Lionel Hollins, Dave Twardzik
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: Johnny Davis, Larry Steele, Herm Gilliam, Lloyd Neal
This is the team that won it all, Portland’s only championship. It featured the best center in franchise history in Bill Walton, plus All-Stars in Maurice Lucas and Lionel Hollins. Those bigs had range on the floor too. Walton often played in the high post. The ultra-talented Lucas had a face-up jumper to 20 feet. They wouldn’t be overmatched against more modern counterparts.
Honorable Mention: You could also go with the 1977-78 squad that went 40-8 before Walton was injured. Take out Herm Gilliam and add in center Tom Owens.
1990-91 Most Regular-Season Wins
STARTERS: Terry Porter, Clyde Drexler, Jerome Kersey, Buck Williams, Kevin Duckworth
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: Cliff Robinson, Danny Ainge, Mark Bryant, Danny Young
These Blazers won 63 games and went all the way to Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals before getting deposed by the Los Angeles Lakers in a heartbreaking season-ender. They weren’t entirely unbeatable, but the combination of talent and seamless synergy made them as close to dominant as a Portland squad has ever been. You could not ask for more up and down a lineup.
Honorable Mention: You could also select the 1989-90 or 1991-92 Blazers who made it to the NBA Finals despite not winning as many regular-season games.
1999-00 Traveling All-Star Team
STARTERS: Damon Stoudamire, Steve Smith, Scottie Pippen, Rasheed Wallace, Arvydas Sabonis
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: Brian Grant, Greg Anthony, Detlef Schrempf, Bonzi Wells (and Jermaine O’Neal, though he barely played)
No Trail Blazers team has ever matched this one for depth. They earned 59 wins in their season, then turned it up to make it to the Western Conference Finals, eventually losing in a fourth-quarter collapse in Game 7 versus the Lakers (again). Like the championship Blazers, every big who suits up for this team (outside of Grant) has range. They play defense, 5th-best in the league that year. They can score from every position. They’re a nightmare to deal with, cohesion being the only potential sticking point.
Honorable Mention: The Blazers also made the Conference Finals the year before with Isaiah Rider, Stacey Augmon, and Jim Jackson in tow, minus Smith and Pippen.
2008-09 Team That Could Have Been
STARTERS: Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden, Nicolas Batum, Steve Blake
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: Travis Outlaw, Rudy Fernandez, Joel Przybilla, Sergio Rodriguez, Jerryd Bayless
This lineup was hobbled by injuries to Greg Oden, but when they all played together, they were TOUGH. The bench isn’t bad either. Turning formerly-shaky starters into solid bench players was an underrated aspect of this era. If everyone stayed healthy, this team would be a handful and a half. Roy, Aldridge, Oden, and Nicolas Batum? Yes.
2014-15 Dynamic Duo Peak
STARTERS: Damian Lillard, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge, Robin Lopez
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: CJ McCollum, Chris Kaman, Meyers Leonard (Arron Afflalo would show up late because of a trade following an injury to Matthews)
This was the most complete and balanced starting lineup of the new millennium, an incarnation that would top 50 games twice in a row. The 2013-14 version actually won more games (54-51) but this 2014-15 squad was one of the hidden contenders in Trail Blazers history. Many Blazers fans argue that, but for a late-season injury to Wesley Matthews, this team would have been vying for the conference crown. Alas, Aldridge would depart in free agency the summer following and we’d never find out. But young Lillard and Prime LMA were a near-unstoppable force, while Matthews, Batum, and Robin Lopez provided all the defense anyone could wish around them.
2018-19 Lillard-McCollum Prime
STARTERS: Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, Maurice Harkless, Al-Farouq Aminu, Jusuf Nurkic
KEY BENCH PLAYERS: Rodney Hood, Evan Turner, Enes Freedom, Seth Curry
This was the apex for Damian Lillard-led teams, a trip to the Western Conference Finals. The team got swept by the Golden State Warriors, but their three-point shooting, high-octane performances still left a mark. That Lillard and CJ McCollum were able to take a team of largely-anonymous, if underrated, teammates deep into the playoffs—vanquishing the soon-to-be-champion Denver Nuggets in the process—stands testimony to just how good they were. This team might just spread the floor on all of the other rosters and three-point them into submission. And there isn’t a guard anywhere in this article who is stopping 2018-19 Dame.
Make Your Choice
So those are the six most likely teams to get mentioned in this exercise. You are free to choose one or go off the board with your own candidates. Just remember the guidelines.
- We are NOT talking about your favorite roster. We’re talking about these teams competing with each other on a basketball court.
- Similarly, we’re not just talking about wins or stats in isolation. We could have done that easily without the vote. Consider matchups and styles.
- Assume relatively good health on the part of all participants. We’re not playing a full season here, just a tournament or a few games against each other.
- Assume modern-ish rules, including the three-point arc. (Sorry, 1976-77 team.)
Consider your options and then cast your vote in the comments section below for the best Blazers team ever if they all faced up against each other.
