Rip City Project
Fansided

Best of the Season, Part XIX: Blazers clinch a playoff berth for fifth straight season

By Matt George Moore

PORTLAND, OR - APRIL 1: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers shoots the ball during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on April 1, 2018 at the Moda Center Arena 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 Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - APRIL 1: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers shoots the ball during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on April 1, 2018 at the Moda Center Arena 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 Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

This edition of our Best of the Season series focuses less on the game — a win, natch — and more on what it signified: Another playoff berth for the Portland Trail Blazers.

It was April 1. Easter Sunday. And at that point in the season, the Portland Trail Blazers (47-29) were third in the Western Conference. And as they prepared to face the lowly, tanking Memphis Grizzlies (21-55), they were faced with a rather delightful prospect: Win and they were in.

The playoffs, that is. For the fifth straight season.

Their magic number was one.

And it was going to be a great holiday. No foolin’.

The Blazers beat the Grizzlies that day by a score of 113-98. But as it turned out, they would’ve made the postseason even if they had lost.

Blazers in the Playoffs

Since Portland’s magic number was one, there were several scenarios in which they would earn a spot in the NBA playoffs.

First, as we’ve already mentioned, win and they were in.

But before they were even done throttling the Grizzlies, one of the other scenarios came to pass: The Utah Jazz beat the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Blazers were in.

The Game, Though

But Portland still had some work to do. And they proceeded to take care of business against Memphis.

More from Blazers News

Damian Lillard was dynamite, scoring 27 points and dishing out nine assists. Lillard, by the way, missed the Blazers’ previous game against the Grizzlies to attend to the birth of his son. Portland lost that game on March 28 in Memphis, 108-103, despite 42 points from C.J. McCollum. That loss — not to mention several others late in the season — prevented Portland from surpassing the 50-win mark. Instead, they would finish the season at 49-33.

But enough bummer news. April 1 Easter Sunday was about clinching the playoffs.

More Stats

In addition to Lillard, the other four starters all scored in double figures. McCollum had 20 points, nine assists and four steals. Al-Farouq Aminu and Evan Turner both scored 17 points. (Aminu added 10 boards.) And Jusuf Nurkic finished with 10 points and eight rebounds.

It was good that the starters were so effective, because the bench was … well, not. As a unit, the bench scored just 22 points spread out among seven players. And the main members of that second unit shot poorly.

Zach Collins was just 2/8 (seven points). Shabazz Napier shot 1/8 (two points). (Meyers Leonard, on the other hand, got some rare playing time, shooting 3/4 and scoring six points.)

Sign of Things to Come

If it seems like we keep veering off into glass-half-empty territory, that’s because we are. This game against the Grizzlies was a sort of microcosm of this year’s Portland Trail Blazers, especially late in the season.

Despite clinching a playoff spot, the Blazers were starting to display worrisome signs by this point in the schedule. And the team’s lack of consistent offensive fire power from anyone other than Lillard or McCollum would prove to be their death knell.

Next: Best of the Season, Part XVIII: Blazers sweep Thunder

In fact, after beating the Grizzlies, Portland would go on to lose their next four games — including an 0-for-Texas swing. And they would go 5-5 in the final 10 games. And that was before getting swept out of the first round by the New Orleans Pelicans.

But the final game of the season would be a win.

Stay tuned for that one as we close out this year’s edition of Best of the Season.