Saturday night’s all right for fighting (for playoff position): OKC at PDX

The season is winding down; Portland is looking up. And with every game, the stakes are rising for the Portland Trail Blazers.

Hello, Rip City! And happy Saturday to you. The Trail Blazers are prepping for what should be an intense match-up with the Oklahoma City Thunder. So let’s take a quick look at what’s what and who’s who, yeah?

The West

Portland (36-26) is currently third in the Western Conference.

You read that right — third in the Western Conference.

It’s so tightly packed in the West that a loss can send a team tumbling down the standings. Minnesota, for example, was the third seed in the West when they arrived in Portland to take on the Blazers Thursday. Two straight losses later, and the Timberwolves are now in the sixth spot.

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Portland, meanwhile, has won five in a row for the first time this season and has vaulted up the standings just as fast as the Wolves have dropped toward the bottom.

Of course, their positions could flip-flop if the Blazers aren’t careful.

There is little room for error for any of the eight contending Western Conference squads trying to squeeze into just six playoff spots. (Let’s assume that Golden State and Houston are locks for the first and second positions, although one can dream …)

It’s not an exaggeration: A few wins or losses in a row will make or break the Trail Blazers’ season. As Radiohead might say, these teams are packt like sardines in a crushd tin box:

Thunder vs. Trail Blazers

Portland has won five straight and seven of their last eight. They’ve also played well at home of late, winning 12 of their past 13 at the Moda Center. (Winning at home is one of the little “secrets” of Portland’s recent success.)

Portland has tightened up their already solid defense in recent days, too.

In fact, it was the Blazers’ defense that helped stave off an aggressive Timberwolves team in the final minutes of their game Thursday. Portland really locked in on the defensive end, clogging passing lanes, blocking shots and generally mucking up the T-Wolves’ offense. It was a beautiful thing to watch.

Oklahoma City enters Saturday night’s tilt against the Trail Blazers having won three in row and seven of their last 10. However, six of those seven wins have been against the worst teams in the Association: Memphis (twice), Sacramento, Orlando, Dallas and Phoenix. The Thunder’s only quality win in that stretch was against the Warriors, a team the Blazers beat on Valentine’s Day.

The Blazers have won both meetings against OKC this season — once at home and once in Oklahoma City (and Damian Lillard didn’t play in that one.)

After Saturday’s game at the Moda, the teams will face off one last time on March 25 in OKC.

Next: Secrets of the Portland Trail Blazers’ five-game winning streak

We’re not sure if Maurice Harkless will play tonight. He’s got a patellar tendon strain and the injury reports says he’s “not expected to be available against the Thunder on Saturday.” However, Harkless told The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman that he hoped to play.

Tip-off Saturday at the Moda Center is set for 7 p.m.

Go Blazers.