The Portland Trail Blazers are different looking team than the one that won 51 games and the Northwest Division title last season. Four-fifths of the starting lineup from a season ago is gone and so are the expectations of another playoff run in the Rose City. Memphis won eight of nine meetings with the Blazers last season, including the postseason, and that was when Portland was good. In all likelihood the run of success will continue.
TRAVEL/SCHEDULING/LETDOWN/LOOK AHEAD
Ouch. The Grizzlies’ five-game road trip didn’t start very well as they were annihilated 119-69 by the defending champion Warriors on Monday night. Memphis looked pretty good for 12 minutes, up 22-21 after one quarter. The Griz appeared capable of grinding out a win against the team that eliminated them from last year’s postseason. And that would stand as a notable achievement for a team that bounced back from an opening night blowout loss to Cleveland with two wins in a row. But things didn’t go quite so well for the next three quarters and the Grizzlies were handed their worst-ever loss over both the Memphis and Vancouver eras of the franchise. The result should be startling to a Grizzlies squad that lost by 30 to the Cavs at home on opening night. Memphis continues to run a one-dimensional offense that struggles to shoot from the outside and end opposing runs before they get out of hand. The results over the remainder of the road trip could set expectations for the rest of the season.
INJURIES
Portland’s rookie big man Cliff Alexander has yet to play this season as he recovers from a knee injury suffered early in training camp. But he may be out longer than expected, according to reports. Alexander was initially expected to miss “a couple weeks” with a bone bruise, but may need surgery after an MRI revealed he had a setback in his recovery.
KEY MATCHUP
The Grizzlies are who they are and that’s not about to change. They are a team that relies on a dominant inside game with low-post players Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph doing much of the damage. Memphis will have a decided advantage down low against the Blazers and expect Gasol and Randolph to exploit mismatches against a far less talented group of bigs. Gasol is one of the best passing big men in the game and he will pull Mason Plumlee out of the middle to open up space for Randolph. Myers Leonard and Al-Farouq Aminu won’t be able to keep up with Randolph’s strength and assortment of low-post moves and he should have a big night. He averages better than 17 points a game in his career but hasn’t scored more than 15 in the first four games. So he’s due for a breakout. It’s also a bit of a homecoming for Randolph, who was drafted by the Blazers with their first-round pick in 2001 and spent the first six seasons of his NBA career in Portland.
ODDS AND PREDICTION
One game doesn’t make or break a season, so take the Grizzlies loss at Golden State Monday for what it is – one game in 82 over the course of six months. Memphis has plenty of talent and its starting five is better than Portland’s, but the game still has to be played. With all the personnel losses the Blazers endured they certainly are not expected to repeat their 51-win season and Northwest Division title. Gone are LaMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Matthews, Robin Lopez and Nicolas Batum, four players who started last season’s opener and contributed to the team’s success. But they still have Damian Lillard and he can single-handedly steal a win, much like he did Monday in Minnesota when the Blazers got their first road win of the season. He scored 34 points with seven assists as Portland held on for a 106-101 win. But moments like that will be few and far between for the Blazers this NBA season and any hopes of avenging last season’s first-round playoff loss to the Grizzlies will be extinguished.
Memphis 98, Portland 92
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