The Portland Trail Blazers blew out the Philadelphia 76ers 135-118 in NBA action tonight for their third victory in a row. A career night from forward Toumani Camara in points (30) and threes (8 for 10)
were more than enough to compensate for Tyrese Maxey’s 30-point effort for the 76ers, but he wasn’t alone. The Blazers won the third quarter 49-22 to blow the game open, and everyone who played had a hand in it.
Following are some of the moments to savor:
Magical Headband?
According to Blazers numbers guru Tom Haberstrah, Toumani shoots threes significantly better wearing a headband than not. This assertion has not been verified by outside sources, but Camara hit a career-high 8 times from distance in 10 tries tonight on the way to 30 points. The headband may have had nothing to do with this eruption, but what are the chances that Toumani comes out without a headband going forward? All this from a guy known as a defender, a reputation he maintained even while shooting the lights out.
Flexing at the Five
A colossal confrontation at the center position was anticipated tonight, but it didn’t happen. Joel Embiid of the 76ers did not play. Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III most certainly did. The Blazers duo anchored an active defense and chipped in 5 threes in 7 attempts on the way to 23 points, 13 rebounds and 5 blocks. Andre Drummond filled in for Embiid, but his 11 points and 7 rebounds were a long way short of what the Sixers needed.
The Point of It All
The Blazers suddenly have point guards in abundance, so much so that some fans are concerned that they can’t all thrive together. Today the evidence suggests no problem: Jrue Holiday, Deni Avdija, Scoot Henderson and Blake Wesley combined for 55 points on 17 for 35 from the field, 4 for 14 from three, 17 for 21 from the charity stripe, 20 rebounds, 24 assists, 6 assists and 4 steals. Of course, this could still be a problem if the rumored emergence of another point guard materializes next season, but if so it will likely qualify as one of those problems that teams love to have!
Trending Trendon
Former Blazers fan favorite Trendon Watford started this game and logged several memorable moments. One of the most notable came in the second quarter when he backed Deni down in front of the basket and powered to a three-point play. But that wasn’t the notable part! He followed it with a glare at the Blazers newest All-Star that seemed to last half an hour or so. Please, Trendon, anything but The Glare! His final stats were 12 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists in 25 minutes, which was fine since the Blazers won.
Deni Drive-bys
Avdija was up to his usual mischief after missing time nursing a bad back. He was a little rusty from downtown (2 for 7), but that’s as good as it got for the 76ers. Deni played 27 energetic minutes and just missed a triple-double for his trouble: 26 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and a single turnover plus 8 for 10 from the free-throw line.
Up Next
The Blazers are back at it Wednesday when the Minnesota Timberwolves roll into town. Game time is 5:00 p.m., PST.
