SB Nation: How good are the Portland Trail Blazers?

[Boise Blazer]

http://www.sbnation.com/2013/11/19/5120540/portland-trail-blazers-damian-lillard-lamarcus-aldridge

Last week, the Portland Trail Blazers held off Phoenix when Damian Lillard glided in for a layup at the buzzer. Other than Lillard's uncanny knack for doing fantastic things at the buzzer, it was a completely unremarkable game. There were almost 100 missed shots, 19 clanked three-pointers and 30 turnovers, all of which made for a truly forgettable evening.

But to Blazers' coach Terry Stotts, there was another more important takeaway: his team won with defense. Portland's defense isn't awful. It's mediocre, ranking 19th in defensive rating coming into play Monday night. Despite a big front line led by LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez that cleans up on the offensive glass, the Blazers are a pedestrian 17th in defensive rebounding percentage. It's an improvement from last season's sieve-like squad, but not one that fits the mold of a contender.

The defense doesn't have to be spectacular because the offense has been incredibly efficient. Portland came into Monday night ranked third in points per possession behind only Miami and the Clippers. While Aldridge and Lillard continue to do most of the work, Portland has a bunch of shooters, including Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum and Dorell Wright, who are all shooting better than 40 percent from three. Matthews, in particular, has been fantastic, draining 53 percent of shots from downtown threes. When the shots don't fall, the big men have been attacking the glass, grabbing almost 30 percent of the available boards.

The Blazers have gradually improved at protecting the rim, rising from 22nd last season to ninth in field goal percentage defense in the restricted area, per NBA.com's stats page. Portland has really tightened up on the perimeter. where teams are only shooting 29 percent from behind the arc. That's indicative of a team-wide effort.
"It's how we focus on our defense," Lillard said. "I think we take a lot more pride this year. Everybody's bought in. We're all on the same page right now. I think it will only get better as we start to get more comfortable with each other."

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

We're a good team. Not elite, but playoff good. It's a good improvement over last season. I suspect we will make a few changes and be better next season as well.

With the exception of Lopez, out starters are playing together for a second straight year and we have 4 true NBA players off the bench this year.

 

[Wizard Mentor]

I like what Bayno (I think) said:
"They have 3 3-point shooters on the floor for 48 minutes." Some teams just can't handle that.

 

[Boise Blazer]

I like what Bayno (I think) said:
"They have 3 3-point shooters on the floor for 48 minutes." Some teams just can't handle that.

Very true, might even be able to say 3.5 shooters