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Portland Trail Blazers: Game-for-game picks and analysis of the eight-game schedule

By Marlow Ferguson Jr.

PORTLAND, OREGON - DECEMBER 18: Jusuf Nurkic #27 (L) and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers have a conversation on the bench in the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors during their game at Moda Center on December 18, 2019 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 (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OREGON - DECEMBER 18: Jusuf Nurkic #27 (L) and Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers have a conversation on the bench in the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors during their game at Moda Center on December 18, 2019 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 (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /
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Portland Trail Blazers
Jusuf Nurkic, Portland Trail Blazers (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images) /

The Portland Trail Blazers will have one eight-game schedule to decide their Playoff chances. What have previous meetings against these teams told us about how each game could play out?

Not that this should come as any surprise to you, but Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard does not miss.

Okay, so yes, he did technically miss 631 shots this season, but when it matters most, the scope’s always on target — on-court and off-court to boot. The little leverage Lillard had went a long way towards pushing the NBA into a 22-team season, which includes a play-in tournament for a postseason berth.

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As both a Blazers fan and a writer who wasn’t ready to discuss the NBA Draft and modern day trauma just yet, I thank Lillard. Someone send him a gift basket.

In the meantime, we’ve got some semblance of a schedule, even if the official one hasn’t been produced. In an even, eight-game schedule world, Portland’s schedule shakes out like this: vs. Grizzlies, vs. Rockets, vs. Mavericks, vs. Celtics, vs. 76ers, vs. Nets, vs. Jazz and vs. Nuggets.

The big caveat is this: the Blazers have already played one more game (66) than the Grizzlies and Spurs have (65). On Zach Lowe’s Lowe Post Podcast, he confirmed that some teams will have that additional game, which could be of huge benefit, given how percentage points play out.

In ESPN’s press release, they also validated the idea that a double-elimination play-in tournament, should the No. 8 and No. 9 seed be separated by anything less than four games. And, in that tournament, the No. 9 seed must beat the No. 8 seed twice, whereas the No. 8 seed would only need to beat the No. 9 seed once.

Portland’s currently 3½ games out, so that’s absolutely a cause for optimism. Here’s a brief look (and prediction) of how they match up with the eight teams on the schedule.