Utah, Phoenix, Houston and Dallas are ...

[Further]

...all behind the Blazers in the standings.

West
Team----------Record-----Percentage
Lakers--------(35 -9)------- .795
San Antonio--(30-14)-------.682
New Orleans-(28-14)-------.667
Denver-------(30-16)-------.652
Blazers-------(28-17)-------.622
Houston-----(28-19)--------..596
Phoenix------(25-18)-------..581
Dallas--------(26-19)--------.578
Utah---------(25-21)--------.543

The Blazers are still not quite breaking away from the rest the playoff cusp teams, but they are getting better. If the Blazers can keep this streak up for a while, we might just be concerned at the end of the season regarding what seed we get and not whether we make the playoffs.

 

[Tortimer]

You forgot Dallas.

 

[Darkwebs]

I'm hoping we get homecourt advantage in the playoffs. Our best chances of that happening is to overtake Denver as the NW Divsion leader.

 

[maxiep]

I'll be interested to see how Denver does out on the road.

 

[julius]

I'll be interested to see how Denver does out on the road.

Them and the Lakers.

It wouldn't surprise me to see both teams maintain their winning %'s though. The Blazers need to not worry about how other teams do, and just worry about winning every game they can. And kicking the snot out of the teams in the process. Like, Jerryd Bayless style.

 

[Further]

You forgot Dallas.

I added Dallas. I always forget them.

 

[crowTrobot]

we also have 10 games left against the grizzlies/thunder/clippers.

 

[Uther TheGardener]

its slap chop now....not shamwow!

 

[yenniedn]

A win against the Jazz on Saturday would be very, very nice. We've got them at home on the back end of their back-to-back game AND they've been struggling. It'll be nice to widen that gap between us and them.

 

[Bosco]

A win against the Jazz on Saturday would be very, very nice. We've got them at home on the back end of their back-to-back game AND they've been struggling. It'll be nice to widen that gap between us and them.

God if we could take one from them it would be huge.

 

[KingSpeed]

I'm hoping we get homecourt advantage in the playoffs. Our best chances of that happening is to overtake Denver as the NW Divsion leader.

Winning the division doesn't guarantee home court advantage so it really doesn't matter. The only way to do that is to get one of the top 4 records.

 

[B-Roy]

Winning the division doesn't guarantee home court advantage so it really doesn't matter. The only way to do that is to get one of the top 4 records.

IT does for the first round. Winning a division AUTOMATICALLY guarantee's one of the top 4 seeds.

 

[julius]

IT does for the first round. Winning a division AUTOMATICALLY guarantee's one of the top 4 seeds.

It doesn't guarantee HCA, if the team you play has a better record. So if Portland wins the Division (or Denver or Utah) and the team that they play, a lower seed, has a better record, the team with the better record has HCA.

 

[The Sebastian Express]

It doesn't guarantee HCA, if the team you play has a better record. So if Portland wins the Division (or Denver or Utah) and the team that they play, a lower seed, has a better record, the team with the better record has HCA.

People always forget this for some reason. Despite it happening to Utah I believe twice against Houston.

Not that it helped Houston much at all, obviously.

 

[alex42083]

If we don't win our division and end up playing Denver in the first round, that would definitely be our best-case scenario. I would definitely want them in the first round over New Orleans, San Antonio and LA.
Saturday's game is going to be BIG to create more separation.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

This hurts Utah:

Utah Jazz: Kirilenko to have surgery Friday
By Tim Buckley
Deseret News
Published: Thursday, Jan. 29, 2009 9:47 a.m. MST

Jazz sixth man Andrei Kirilenko will undergo surgery Friday morning to remove a bone fragment from his ailing right foot.
Kirilenko has missed four straight games and six since early December due to the injury.
The forward from Russia, an NBA All-Star in 2004, had hopes of putting off surgery until the off-season. But when two cortisone shots in the last week and a half failed to help alleviate the pain, his decision for surgery was made.
The Jazz do not have any timetable for how long Kirilenko will be out, but he previously suggested such surgery would require a recovery period of three to four weeks.

 

[THE HCP]

I just heard he is having the surgery Friday BUT is expected to start against us on Saturday! Some crazy new procedure!! Wow!

 

[elcap15]

The Blazers are also getting better, instead of getting worse like the Mavs and Utah seem to be. I know it sucks to keep hearing the youth argument, but believe it or not, players actually do improve with expirience. The Suns suck right now too. I think the Blazers have the best shot to make the playoffs out of any of Dallas/Phoenix/Utah.

 

[MIXUM]

not if we cant beat utah, dallas or suns

 

[alex42083]

I just heard he is having the surgery Friday BUT is expected to start against us on Saturday! Some crazy new procedure!! Wow!

How do you have surgery the night before when they cut open your foot and remove bone fragments, and be able to play the next day??
I don't believe it...

 

[THE HCP]

It is true you "Non-Believer"! It's called Mormon Magic!

 

[<-=*PdX*=->]

It is true you "Non-Believer"! It's called Mormon Magic!

 

[Masbee]

A win against the Jazz on Saturday would be very, very nice. We've got them at home on the back end of their back-to-back game AND they've been struggling. It'll be nice to widen that gap between us and them.

No joke, it is a big game.

We are now 4 up on Utah in the loss column. Utah is the 9th place team. We want to stay in front of the 9th place team to make the playoffs.

We lose, and we are up 3 games in the loss column.

We win this single game, and we are up 5 games in the loss column on the 9th place team.

Go get 'em boys!