A pair of teams rocking red and fighting for a play-in spot will meet for the second time this weekend. The Portland Trail Blazers (29-33, 30-31-1 ATS) are in Georgia, hoping they can beat the Atlanta Hawks (31-31, 27-35-0 ATS) yet again. At the end of January, Portland bested Atlanta 129-125 in the Moda Center, although the Hawks beat the spread. Not much has changed for either team since then, except for the number of games remaining on their schedule. We'll see if the outcome will change this time now that they're meeting in Atlanta's State Farm Arena. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. EST.
So maybe Portland isn't traveling through that exact path, but regardless a six-game road trip begins in Atlanta at a critical time for the Trail Blazers. They are currently 12th in the Western Conference, sitting 1.5 games back of New Orleans for the final play-in spot.
A successful road trip will keep them in striking distance, but a poor outing will likely sink the ship. The Blazers begin the trip 12-18 away from the Pacific Northwest and will be without at least Jusuf Nurkic and Justice Winslow in the beginning. Anfernee Simons is also questionable for Friday.
Losing at home on Wednesday night to the Pelicans was not an ideal way to embark. Damian Lillard's 41-point night was not enough, as Portland got outscored 31-19 in the fourth quarter, resulting in an 11-point loss. A win would've put them ahead of New Orleans in the standings, and temporarily 10th in the Western Conference , but their defense had no answers for Brandon Ingram or C.J. McCollum. Trade acquisition Cam Reddish at least continues to prove he was worth Portland acquiring thus far. He's averaging 12.6 points per game as a Trail Blazer, a number that would be a career-high over a full season.
Defense has been an issue all season in Portland. The team ranks 27th in the NBA in adjusted defensive rating this season, only ahead of three teams that are tanking. They are bottom-10 in turnover percentage, rebounding percentage, and effective field goal percentage on the defensive end. No team in the NBA allows opponents to attempt a higher percentage of shots at the rim than Portland. Foes also shoot 37.0% from three against the Blazers, which is 23rd in the league.
It's a good thing they have Damian Lillard. Since the calendar flipped to 2023, Lillard is averaging 36.3 points per game along with 7.1 assists. He leads an offense that's fifth in adjusted rating and eighth in effective field goal percentage. The three-ball works for Portland, as they're eighth in attempts per game and three-point percentage this season. They're also ninth in percentage of shots at the rim, which helps them get to the free-throw line. The Blazers are fourth in free throw rate. Turnovers are a bit of a problem, however, as they're 21st in turnover percentage.
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