The Portland Trail Blazers, set to play their second game in a back-to-back, will be riding a high when they host the Dallas Mavericks tonight. Last night in Los Angeles, the Trail Blazers completed a crazy comeback against the Clippers in overtime and will try to push their win streak to five games. The Mavericks currently sit in sixth place in the Western Conference and would face the Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs if they started today. The game will tip at 7:30 p.m. PST with the broadcast on TNT and the radio call on Rip City Radio 620 AM.
What a game! Last night’s win over the Clippers showed the world why you can’t count the Trail Blazers out. They now have 15 wins on the season where they trailed by double-digits at some point in the game. Batum transformed at the end of regulation and in overtime to prove he is still valuable to the team. On a night where Lillard went 1-13 from the field, and the Trail Blazers needed a hero, Batum decided it was his time. Perfect timing from our French Batman to put on his cape.
The Trail Blazers currently own the second longest winning streak in the NBA, only behind the five game streak of the Atlanta Hawks. A four game winning streak isn’t all that impressive but remember that a few weeks ago the sky was falling in Rip City. Heading into the All-Star break, the Trail Blazers had lost four of seven and looked burnt out. After the All-Star break, they came out and lost their first two games. Things were going the wrong direction but now the Trail Blazers sit in third place in the Western Conference standings and order seems to be restored for now.
Tonight’s game is about vengeance as the Trail Blazers blew a game in Dallas on February 7th. They saw an 11-point lead with two minutes to play in regulation vanish. The Mavericks clawed back to force overtime and the Trail Blazers late game struggles continued as they were outscored 15-5 in the extra period. Rondo was sidelined in that game due to an Achilles injury but Lillard failed to take advantage. He shot 36.8 percent from the field and contributed to the Trail Blazers 22 turnovers, coughing the ball up five times. Lillard had another poor offensive performance last night and desperately needs to bounce back tonight.
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The Mavericks will likely see their defensive anchor back in the lineup tonight. Chandler has missed the last three games with a hip injury. He is averaging 10.6 points and 11.7 rebounds per game this season and is an integral part of the Mavericks’ game plan. Chandler had 11 points and 13 rebounds in his last game against Portland. Parsons, on the other hand, has been ruled out of tonight’s game as he is still dealing with a ankle injury. That’s favorable news for the Trail Blazers as he had 20 points against them in the last contest.
As stated, Rondo missed the last meeting but will be on the court tonight. His defense on Lillard will play an important part for the Mavericks. I hope Lillard comes out ready to shake off last night’s performance and plays aggressively. He has the speed to blow by Rondo and will need to get to the rim early in order to see the ball go through the basket. Rondo was very productive in Monday’s win against the New Orleans Pelicans, where he put in 19 points. It was only the seventh time this season Rondo has scored 15-plus points.
With Chandler back, the Mavericks will have a more balanced attack. The Trail Blazers will have to keep Nowitzki in check, while making sure Ellis doesn’t get hot. Ellis the type of player that can go off any given night so the Trail Blazers must make sure that doesn’t happen. The bench play will also be important and I’d like to see Arron Afflalo and Steve Blake be more of a factor.
The high from last night’s win will hopefully spill over and allow the Trail Blazers to start off confident. If they can hang on to the ball and convert from the field, they will likely get their vengeance.