The Blazers are stumbling into an answer to the Jusuf Nurkic dilemma

Maybe partly by design but mostly out of necessity, the Portland Trail Blazers have played a different style of basketball in their last two games.

Starting center Jusuf Nurkic – the only player on the Blazers’ roster taller than 6-foot-9 – has struggled with a calf injury. He was on the bench at the end of Portland’s 129-125 win against the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 30 and left after two minutes in the team’s critical road win in Memphis on Feb. 1.

Nurkic hasn’t been a popular player among Blazers fans, maybe deservedly so. He’s not athletic, isn’t fleet of foot, and his effort has waxed and waned. He is, however, the only real size head coach Chauncey Billups has at his disposal.

But maybe the 7-footer’s calf injury is a blessing in disguise. It’s forced Billups to put a much different team on the floor, and at least through two games, that team has flourished.

The Blazers have been forced to go small, and it’s working

Injury related or not, Billups decided to roll with Nurk’s backup, Drew Eubanks, down the stretch against Atlanta. Eubanks ended the night having played 22 minutes compared to Nurkic’s 26.

The two teams went back and forth during the fourth quarter, but an Anfernee Simons’ three with 34 seconds remaining put Portland ahead for good.

After Nurkic exited just a couple minutes into the game against Memphis two nights later, it was Trendon Watford’s turn to log some minutes as the Blazers’ small-ball five. The 6-9 Eubanks played 24 minutes, while the 6-8 Watford played 22.

Oh, and Portland lost Jerami Grant to concussion protocol that same night. He of his 6-8 size and 7-3 wingspan, which would have been quite useful and possibly would have replaced Watford as the Blazers’ “backup” center.

Eubanks finished with a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. He and Watford combined for 16 points, 14 rebounds, and 2 blocks.

Nurkic’s season averages? 13.8/9.4/0.9 blocks.

There were, obviously, other reasons Portland won both these games. Damian Lillard averaged 42 points on 49 percent shooting and 40 percent from three. Simons had 11 assists to just 4 turnovers combined. Shaedon Sharpe finally got some actual run and scored 10 points against Atlanta and 9 against Memphis.

But, and small sample size alert, the Blazers surpassed their season scoring average by more than 11 points. They hit more than 43 percent of their threes. The biggest question mark with Eubanks and Watford playing center was always going to be rebounding – how would Portland fare on the boards without Nurk?

Again, small sample size, and the Grizzlies were admittedly without their own starting center in Steven Adams, but the Blazers’ total rebounds dropped by less than six compared to their season average, and their number of defensive rebounds by less than two.

Maybe more than anything, this Portland team sans Nurkic passed the eye test. It was clear to anyone watching that the Blazers were quicker, faster, more athletic, and more dangerous to play against.

The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that Portland is a “strong suitor” for Utah forward Jarred Vanderbilt. Replacing some of the Eubanks/Watford minutes with the athleticism and energy of Vanderbilt – even if he’s also only 6-9 – would be a massive upgrade.

Especially when you consider pairing him (7-1 wingspan) with Grant (6-8, 7-3 wingspan) at the forward spots. Their combined length and athleticism create almost an ideal small-ball front court in today’s NBA.

(And don’t forget about Nassir Little – he’s 6-6 but with his own wingspan of more than 7 feet.)

If general manager Joe Cronin can indeed land Vanderbilt, this Portland rotation is starting to look a lot more like a playoff-caliber one.

Nurkic has been the most significant question plaguing this season’s Portland roster. Whether by design or by the sheer misfortune of injury, though, Billups seems to have stumbled upon an answer:

Go small. Even if it means going really, really small.