The Portland Trail Blazers continued their recent streak of meeting opponents with less-than-complete rosters, hosting the San Antonio Spurs minus Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker.
First Half
The game started off at a snail’s pace, which made sense given that Evan Turner took what looked like a million jumpers.
With the defense for both teams eclipsing their respective offenses, the Blazers trailed 25-22 after one.
Shabazz Napier kept the Blazers afloat in the second quarter, going 4-6 for nine points in the first half. His ability to find those pockets of space on the floor when defenses take away the paint and the three is a blessing. Sometimes, he even looks a little like CJ McCollum.
Speaking of, CJ didn’t make a field goal in the first half (0-9), which is not exactly a recipe for Portland’s success.
At least Damian Lillard had 14-2-2, and the Blazers trailed 54-46 at the half.
Third Quarter
The Blazers started the third quarter looking for Jusuf Nurkic, and he didn’t disappoint. Nurk got fouled on the drive, then hit a pretty floater in dead space, then hit a long jumper…. then another!
Quick as lightning, the Blazers had nearly erased the deficit.
Dame, who had been getting hit all night, got racked again, but this time his leg buckled a bit. He came up grabbing his quad, and had to leave the game, looking none too pleased with the officials.
After briefly taking the lead, the Blazers and Spurs went back and forth as Lillard looked on from an exercise bike on the sidelines. He eventually went back to the locker room, but didn’t stay for long.
Nurk ended the third with 15 points (7-11 FG), six boards, and a block. The Blazers trailed by two heading into the fourth, 74-72.
Fourth Quarter
Dame came back into the game early in the fourth and canned a deep three right away. With the crowd roaring, Portland got another stop, a Turner bucket, and forced a Spurs timeout on an 8-0 run, now leading 80-74.
Unfortunately, the Spurs, being the Spurs, struck back, taking a modest 84-83 lead with 6:07 remaining.
Ed Davis was doing yeoman’s work, playing solid defense and grabbing rebounds. As such, Nurk didn’t come back into the game until about 4:30 left despite a big third quarter.
As the game wound down, the Blazers made a few poor decisions: bad passes, rushed shots, and surrendering offensive boards.
With San Antonio up by a single point, Portland had a chance to take the lead, but Nurkic rushed a driving runner. They then gave up a bucket, and found themselves down 92-89 with 27 seconds left. Aminu heaved a three which rimmed off, but CJ grabbed the board and got the bunny to pull within one.
The Spurs inbounded, LaMarcus Aldridge was fouled… and he missed the first! Making the second, the Blazers were only down 93-91 with 15 seconds left and the ball.
CJ drove, got blocked out of bounds, and the Blazers retained possession with plenty of time left.
Then, the worst thing happened. And its name was Evan Turner.
With Dame and CJ on the court, Turner decided to dribble in circles. Yes, seriously… and as he spun around, he lost the ball out of bounds, with possession fortunately back to the Blazers.
But the damage was done. With just 2.6 seconds left and no timeouts, the Blazers failed to get a good look, and CJ’s buzzer-beater three fell short.
Three Takeaways
Shabazz Napier is a nice shot in the arm
Yes, yes… the Blazers may not have room for a third smaller guard playing heavy minutes. And Napier isn’t always the most consistent player. But when he’s on, he’s a net positive in a way that Evan Turner is not. Napier doesn’t hog the ball, for one. For another, Napier is able to slip around defenders with his speed and get to spots Turner can’t bully his way to. More Napier? Yes, please.
Nurk is nice
When Portland looks for Nurk on the roll, good things happen. Does the shot always go in? No, but the threat sucks in the defense and opens up the floor. Seeing Nurk go off in the third was a thing of beauty, and was a huge reason why the Blazers got back into the game when it could have easily gone sideways.
Next: All-Star Weekend 2018: Voting for the Blazers
Evan Turner is not fun to watch
Not when he makes shot, not when he misses shots, and NOT WHEN HE’S INEXPLICABLY DRIBBLING IN CIRCLES WITH THE GAME ON THE LINE AND SUPERIOR PLAYERS ON THE COURT. That’s all I’ll say on that.
Next Game
The Blazers take on the Denver Nuggets on Fri. Dec. 22 in Portland at 7:00 p.m. PT.