Believe it or not, but questioning the Portland Trail Blazers as serious NBA title contenders is a legitimate query.
Yes—even after racking up 25 wins in 32 chances through January 2.
Second in the Association with a .781 winning percentage and first with 13 road wins, the Blazers simply cannot avoid the incredulous naysayers.
Their epically heartbreaking past just won’t allow it.
(We’ll refrain from bringing up any draft-day catastrophes.)
Despite immensely talented rosters throughout the years, the Blazers have been nothing short of championship failure since their 1976-77 NBA Title.
They reached the postseason in 25 of the next 26 seasons, including 21 straight from 1982-2002. But they fell short twice in the Finals, thrice in the Western Conference Finals and semifinals and lost a whopping 17 times in the first round.
Portland more recently went one-and-done in three consecutive series from 2008-2010.
This depressing basketball history has clearly not left the Blazers in their present second-in-the-West campaign.
That said, let’s leave the past where it belongs and stay current.
The Blazers occupy No. 2 in the league with a 25-7 record. They own the tiebreaker over the San Antonio Spurs based off their 115-105 head-to-head win back on Nov. 2.
The Northwest upstarts emerged victorious in 25 of their first 29 contests, with separate winning streaks of four, five and 11 games.
They suffered consecutive defeats for the first time all season against the defending champions Miami Heat and highly competitive New Orleans Pelicans on Dec. 28 and 30.
But even then, the Portland-based NBA power lost via game-winning shots as time expired in both instances. And it’s not like it responded by beating the first-place Oklahoma City Thunder—for the second time this year—or anything.
Powering the Trail Blazers in 2013-14 is a comprehensive attack led by above average or elite personnel at all spots on the floor.
Damian Lillard ranks third among point guards with 21.3 points per game and second in three-point (43.6) and free-throw percentage (89.1).
He rocks a fantastic 20.3 player efficiency rating.
Power forward LaMarcus Aldridge rates second at his position and seventh overall with 23.6 PPG. He also sits top-seven in the league with 10.9 rebounds and third among his front-line fellows with 2.9 assists.
Aldridge boasts an even better PER of 22.6.
Shooting guard Wesley Matthews and small forward Nicolas Batum average a combined individual mark of 15.3 PPG. Each shoots 82 percent from the line and at a top-seven rate from the hardwood at their respective positions.
Matthews joins Lillard in the upper echelon of three-point scoring with a 43.1 percentage.
Batum, meanwhile, is alongside Lillard and backup point man Mo Williams with a collective individual average of 5.3 floor-spreading dimes.
And last but not least, Robin Lopez is the hardnosed glue that holds it all together in the paint. He ranks ninth among centers with 1.50 blocks, fifth in field-goal percentage (54.4) and fourth with an 80.2 percent clip on free throws.
Lopez does the underappreciated, but always necessary, dirty work. He also grabs 8.3 boards per game.
The starting five all told averages 25.6 years of age with a PER of 18.8
It’s a group of good, young, efficient players that operate with cohesion and offensive explosion. Portland sits atop the rankings in collecting 108.3 points per contest.
That includes the second-highest rate from three-point range (39.6). Amassing a fourth-best 12.9 rebounds on offense contributes to a bevy of second-chance points.
Only a 26th-ranked defense (102.6 PPG) seems to detract from the Blazers resume.
But that gets deservedly lost in the background. They still defend the three at a top-10 rate (34.8 percent) and feature the NBA’s fifth-best differential at plus-5.7.
Oh, and did we mention that they are absurdly clutch?
Per Jeff Caplan of NBA.com:
"In the standard definition of a clutch situation (ahead or behind by five points with five minutes to go), Lillard’s plus-minus rating ranks No. 1 at plus-52. It’s little surprise that his teammates—Nicolas Batum, plus-51; Wesley Matthews, plus-50; and Aldridge plus-49—rank second through fourth. Robin Lopez is seventh at plus-32."
Portland wins big—and wins even bigger when it matters most.
This thoroughly balanced squad is unrivaled at 15-5 in clutch scenarios.
With head coach Terry Stotts instilling unselfish, team-first basketball on top of everything else, the Blazers are certifiably great.
And most definitely serious title contenders.
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