The Portland Trail Blazers took care of the Phoenix Suns 132-119 on the road Wednesday night behind a balanced offensive attack that had Suns defenders scrambling.
Damian Lillard (25 points, five assists), Donovan Clingan (24 points, 11 rebounds), and Deni Avdija (21 points, 12 assists) all crossed the 20-point threshold. Those performances helped the Blazers shoot 51.2% from the field, dish out 29 assists and make 14 3-pointers to improve to 6-1 on the season (5-0 on the road) and move into the No.
1 spot in the Western Conference standings.
Following the win, Blazers head coach Micah Nori, Avdija and Clingan spoke with reporters about the win, Portland’s hot start and more. Below are some notable quotes from the interviews, including video.
Micah Nori
Micah Nori on what he liked about the performance:
Most importantly, we got to the free throw line 41 times, and with that, we still had 29 assists. So the ball was moving. I felt that the way they had guys at the level and were putting two on the ball, we were moving it. Sometimes I felt like we even passed up some really good shots.
And the other thing is, to outscore them 36-20 on fast break and second chance [points]. Those are all positives. The one negative I would say is the 18 turnovers. … and we just missed too many free throws.
Nori on the third-quarter injury to Blazers reserve wing Vit Krejci, which Nori revealed was a lower left leg fracture:
We will definitely miss him. No pun intended, obviously, but that’s an awful break for him and for us because we need him. But we’ll support him, and he’ll be back. It’s been tough, but even with Ja [Morant’s hamstring injury] and all that, these guys are resilient, and it’s one more. You face adversity, but you just keep going.
[The mood of the locker room was] very somber. Not to overplay it, but we talk about at the very beginning of the year that we’re going to be with these guys for the next 200 days, and it’s a second family. And you can see the way they play, it’s not to overstate it, they care about each other. … They are going to lift his spirits. He’s going to work to get himself back, just like Shaedon [Sharpe] and Ja will, and we’ll go from there.
Nori on if he still plans to play a 10-man rotation after the injury to Krejci:
I think we’ll probably still [play 10]. … Chris Youngblood will step into those minutes, and then we’ll probably either bring up [John] Tonje or [Jayson] Kent. I’ll talk to Joe [Cronin] and see what he wants to do there. … It’ll be interesting to see how we play it out, but I really do like playing 10 guys, and I feel really good about the depth that we have that allows us to do that.
Nori on why the offense is meshing so well and putting up such good numbers:
I think it’s a really good combination of we do have selfless guys, but we also have guys that their skillsets match. It’s not like we have three, four of the same. … So we just have a lot of really good offensive players. Quite honestly, we have a lot of really good defensive players. And I’m getting way too much credit — I really am, I’m not just saying it, I’m not trying to be overly humble — but I’m getting way too much credit for putting really good players in good positions, and that’s just playing them to their strengths.
Deni Avdija
Deni Avdija on why Nori’s perfectionist coaching style is good for the team:
I think the will to be great is very important, especially for a coach, especially for our leader — just being focused with the little details, making sure we do them. Because at the end of the day, the great teams, they do the little details very, very good, and I think he puts a lot of emphasis on it, and it’s a big step up for us.
Avdija on what he liked about the win:
We played together, we shared the ball. Everybody ate today, everybody came to play. Obviously, we’re missing some key players that we do miss, but everybody is stepping up and doing their job. It’s just really hard for me right now with Vit, with the injury. He’s been very important for us, and we’re waiting for him to get healthy and come back.
Avdija on what the team loses with Krejci out of the lineup:
Shooting, energy, just making the right play. Always on the court, he’s making the right play. He’s been great on defense this year. He’s been great off the bench for us.
Donovan Clingan
Donovan Clingan on if something lit a fire under him during these last few games (Clingan also had 17 points, 18 rebounds and four blocks in Portland’s road win Monday against Denver):
I don’t know if I was really pleased with my performances the first couple of games, realizing I had to turn it up a notch. And I feel like my teammates and my coaches really put me in good positions to succeed in the ball-screen game, I crash the glass a lot. I feel like the team’s been playing so well that really everyone has been finding their way out there.
Clingan on what he wasn’t happy about with his earlier performances:
I feel like I was a little slow, like a step behind. I wasn’t as aggressive on the boards, offensively. It just wasn’t me, and I found myself.
Highlights!
Can’t get enough Blazers basketball as you wait for their next game? Enjoy the highlights from last night one more time (or see what these guys were talking about if you couldn’t watch the game):
The Blazers are back in action with a back-to-back this weekend. First, they play the Los Angeles Lakers on the road Friday at 7 p.m. PST. Then they head back to the Moda Center for a Saturday night matchup against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
