Defense has been the mantra for the Portland Trail Blazers throughout the early part of the 2024-25 season. Though it was inevitable there would be speed bumps in their approach, it wasn’t expected for those
to come against a conference rival missing its top three players and playing on the road in the second night of a back-to-back.
That’s exactly what happened as the Los Angeles Lakers came to town and shocked the Blazers and the Moda Center faithful 121-115 Monday night.
Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves were both afternoon scratches for L.A., joining LeBron James on the sidelines. It’s apparently never too early in the season to begin load management. Even so, there was still all the recipe for turning into a full-on Admiral Ackbar in Return of the Jedi level “Trap Game.”
And a trap it indeed was. After an encouraging start, the Lakers became nigh unstoppable and steadily proceeded to shoot the Blazers out of their own building.
Player of Note
Deni Avdija led all scorers with 33 points to go along with 6 boards and 2 assists. He got to the line 11 times. He was physical and effective at moving the ball past L.A.’s first line of the defense.
Stat of the Night
Portland didn’t shy away from contact and got to the line almost twice as many times as L.A. (30-16) but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Lakers’ shooting.
What We Noticed
The Blazers’ outside shooting deficiencies have begun to reach critical mass, as the Lakers continued the trend of sitting back in zone defense for long stretches and daring them to hit jump shots. Tonight those shots weren’t falling for anybody.
Portland finished a groan-inducing 9-40 from beyond the arc, good for just 22.5%. That isn’t going to get it done. The team shot the ball well overall (49%) but remained frustratingly committed to the long ball though it got them in trouble.
Up Next
The Blazers will get a day off before getting their first crack at the defending champs when they host the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Pacific.
