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Portland Trail Blazers must weather the storm(s) before the storm(s)

By Matt George Moore

PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 3: the Portland Trail Blazers stand for the national anthem prior to the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 3, 2018 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 3: the Portland Trail Blazers stand for the national anthem prior to the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 3, 2018 at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Tuesday’s slugfest against the Houston Rockets was a sign of what’s to come for the Trail Blazers (44-27; third in the Western Conference). And we’re not even talking about the playoffs. Yet.

The Portland Trail Blazers were a basket or two away from defeating the Houston Rockets Tuesday and winning their 14th game in a row.

But despite the loss, the Blazers may have emerged from that game with an additional layer to the shield they’ve built for themselves since the start of 2018.

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Since Jan. 1, Portland has been one of the best teams in basketball.

The loss to the Rockets only underscored how difficult it will be to beat the Blazers in a seven-game playoff series.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

There are still 11 regular season games to be played.

And it won’t be a cakewalk.

Let’s look at the next three Blazers games.

Celtics vs. Blazers (Friday)

The Boston Celtics (48-23; second in the Eastern Conference) come to the Moda Center to play the Blazers Friday at 7 p.m. PDT. The Celtics did Portland a solid by defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, 100-99.

This game will be a chance for Portland to avenge a painful loss in Boston. The Blazers blew a 16-point lead in that one and lost the game on a last-second shot by Al Horford. That was the end of a discouraging three-game road trip which saw the Blazers come back to Portland 0-3.

The Celtics are banged up, with five players on the injured list — including Kyrie Irving and Marcus Smart, neither of whom is expected to play any time soon.

Blazers vs. Thunder (Sunday)

Next up for the Blazers is a possibly angry Thunder team, which, as we mentioned, lost to the Celtics on Tuesday. The Thunder are 43-40 (fourth in the Western Conference) and are three games back in the loss column to the Trail Blazers.

Portland has owned OKC lately, winning 11 of the last 15 regular season match-ups.

This will be the fourth and final game this season between the two teams. Portland has won all three, and looks to sweep the Thunder for the first time ever. (Portland swept the then-Seattle SuperSonics during the 2002-2003 season.)

Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. PDT Sunday.

Blazers vs. Pelicans (Tuesday)

The Blazers have had a tough-time with the Pelicans this season, losing two out of three. Tuesday will be the final match-up between the Portland and New Orleans (currently 42-30; fifth in the Western Conference).

The Pelicans have been without DeMarcus Cousins since he ruptured his left Achilles tendon against the Rockets on Jan. 26. But that hasn’t slowed them down much; they’ve gone 15-9 since then — including winning 10 in a row from Feb. 10 to March 7.

Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. PDT.

Weathering the Storm(s)

The Blazers have won 15 of their last 17. But thanks to the super-duper competitive Western Conference, they haven’t put much distance between themselves and the just-as-ravenous teams that are nipping at their heels.

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Portland must continue to weather these storms; they are going to be relentless, especially since many of the upcoming foes are clawing and fighting for playoff positions themselves.

As amazing as it might sound, the Blazers have secured nothing with their fantastic play of late. Time may be on the Blazers side as the season winds down and it becomes more difficult for teams to make up ground. But the truth of the matter is that Portland remains just a few losses in a row from not just losing that coveted third spot in the West, but from dropping out of the playoffs altogether.