Report Card: Trail Blazers Defeat the T-Wolves

Player grades from the Trail Blazers 96-93 victory over the lowly Timberwolves.

Starters

Damian Lillard: 21 points/8 assists/4 rebounds

It was just another day at the office, as Lillard, who tied McCollum for the team high in points, also led the team in assists. For Lillard, it marks the seventh time this month he has dished out at least eight assists. He had done so just ten times in the first three months of the year, clearly showing his efforts to get his teammates involved. He did most of his damage at the free throw line, where he made 10 out of his 12 attempts. It was his highest number of free throws made since the January 8th loss to Golden State. His outing was not without struggles though, as Lillard shot just 1-7 (.143%) from behind the three point line. Grade: A-

CJ McCollum: 21 points/1 assist/1 rebounds

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McCollum did his part in the scoring department, chipping in an easy 21 points (9-19). Other than that though, it was a rough one for McCollum. The Trail Blazers turned the ball over 13 times, one below their season average (14.2, 18th in the NBA). Unfortunately, McCollum was the biggest offender last night (turning the ball over a game high four times). He also owned a plus/minus of -14, the lowest for either team. Blazers fans might have to wait another game to see both Lillard and McCollum heat up, while both of them are in the top ten for field goals attempted and the Bucks hold teams to the sixth fewest field goals per game (82.8). Grade: B

Al-Farouq Aminu: 6 points/2 assists/6 rebounds

After having one of his best games of the year Friday against Charlotte (17 points/12 rebounds), Aminu was unimpressive in last night’s contest. Guarding an aging Tayshaun Prince, I thought Aminu would have a big game offensively. Instead, he scored a just six points on two made field goal attempts (his second lowest mark of the month). Still, he was able to provide production on defense, grabbing one steal and leading the team with two blocked shots. Grade: C+

Noah Vonleh: 2 points/0 assists/8 rebounds

Vonleh had been averaging a solid nine points over his last three games, but managed just two against Minnesota. Even so, he is beginning to look much more comfortable in his role, and his recent performances speak to that improvement. What was impressive about Vonleh’s game yesterday was his ability to get rebounds in limited playing time. In just 16 minutes (lowest mark of any Portland big man), he managed to snag a team high of eight rebounds. Although he may not have his offensive game completely figured out, Vonleh crashes the boards with enough consistency to make him valuable. Grade: C+

Mason Plumlee: 6 points/1 assist/2 rebounds

In the report card for Friday’s game against Charlotte, I predicted that Plumlee would have a hard time repeating his double-double performance matched up against the forces of Karl-Anthony Towns and Gorgui Dieng. That forecast turned out to be accurate, as Plumlee made just two of his five shot attempts. He also didn’t provide much on the boards, getting out-rebounded by the likes of Lillard, Crabbe, and Leonard – all who average less than five rebounds per game. Grade: C

Sixth Man of the Game (and seventh, and eighth…)

Entire Bench: 40 points/15 rebounds/+51

It was impossible to pick one standout performance from Portland’s bench, so the Sixth Man of the Game goes to the entire bench. They scored nearly half of all the team’s points and had a combined plus/minus of +51. Interestingly enough, every Trail Blazers starter had a negative plus/minus. Conversely, each and every bench player had a positive plus/minus. In other words, the bench (which is starting to look like one of the best units in the NBA) won last night’s game for Portland. Grade: A+

Report Card: Blazers Defeat the T-Wolves

By Perry Waggoner | Feb 1, 2016

Player grades from the Trail Blazers 96-93 victory over the lowly Timberwolves.