The Portland Trail Blazers are now 5-1 after an impressive 118-110 road win Monday night over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.
Jokic unsurprisingly "got his" finishing with a well-rounded 26 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, and 4 steals. But Blazers big man Donovan Clingan deserves a ton of credit for making Jokic work for every single bucket, forcing him into 10-of-22 shooting.
Donovan Clingan was the X-Factor in Blazers' win over Nuggets
Again, a great night by everyone else's standards, not named Nikola Jokic on planet Earth. But this is the formula Portland has found success with under first-year head coach Micah Nori. Clingan and Toumani Camara provide the defense in this starting lineup, while Damian Lillard and Deni Avdija provide the offense.
Clingan turned out to be the X-Factor in this contest, not only because he could relatively contain Jokic but also because he contributed on the offensive end himself. Clingan had 17 points, 18 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 blocks. 9 of those 18 rebounds came on the offensive end, where Portland somehow had 21 total as a team.
Nori has talked about winning the possession battle countless times since taking over as head coach, and Clingan is already proving to be the perfect center to fit that identity and playstyle. It's no surprise he finished with the best plus-minus of all starters in this contest at a +10, and the eye test matching up against Jokic supported that as well.
Clingan is the center every contender covets
Another thing that stood out, and that should be a promising sign for Portland going forward, is Clingan's conditioning. He played 32 minutes and was all over this game on both ends of the court, whether it was defending Jokic, creating extra possessions, etc.
Teams around the league are paying a premium to have that Clingan-type center in the frontcourt. Take the Los Angeles Lakers' steep offseason investment in Walker Kessler, or even the Indiana Pacers surrendering what turned out to be the No. 5 overall pick in the draft (Keaton Wagler) as part of the package to get Ivica Zubac.
Again, these are quality starting-caliber centers, but it's games like Monday that remind us that Clingan is already in that tier.
Portland is lucky to have come away with him in such an uncertain 2024 draft class, one that's somehow aged even worse this season. This was a solid win over a Western Conference contender on the road, and it wouldn't have happened without Clingan's play on both ends of the court.
Not only did he play all those minutes in a matchup against Jokic, but he also maintained that high level of productivity. He's already proven to be a starting-caliber center for Portland at just 22 and continues to improve. With elite frontcourt stars in the West like Victor Wembanyama, Jokic, and Chet Holmgren, Clingan will be a key part of Portland's path to contention.
Monday reminded us why this young core is in good hands, and why Clingan remains firmly inside it as a building block.
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