The Portland Trail Blazers went 3-1 this week as they continue their push for seeding in the NBA Play-In race. They earned wins over the Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Brooklyn Nets while suffering their lone defeat to the Denver Nuggets.
Throughout the week multiple players impressed at different times, but Toumani Camara earned the Blazer of the Week honor.
Camara averaged 18.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game this week. He did that while shooting 63.2% from the field and 59.3%
from three. These totals were helped by an incredible career-high 35-point performance against Brooklyn. He made 10-12 shots from the field and 9-11 from behind the arc in the contest.
Camara’s offensive efforts this week helped provide Portland with a threat for a driver to kick out to. But his defensive abilities were once again his best attribute. Camara has an incredible ability to draw offensive fouls and force turnovers. His one steal a game this week does not account for the turnovers that happen as a result of his smothering perimeter play.
While Camara will always be most valuable on the defensive end, he showed what he can look like on offensive as a true release valve. For a Blazers team desperate for perimeter shooting, that role would be perfect for Camara to slide into.
This week’s honorable mention is Deni Avdija.
Deni averaged 24.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game this week. He is continuing to round back into form and looked like his normal self running the offense this week. However, he still has not found his shot from deep again as he made just 23.8% of his attempts from deep this week. He did shoot 48.9% from inside the arc and 83.0% from the free throw line while averaging 11.8 attempts per game.
