Pacers at Trail Blazers
The fast start of the Indiana Pacers is reaching historic proportions as the club with the NBA’s best record visits the streaking Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. Indiana began a five-game road trip by defeating the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday to become the first team since the 2002-03 Dallas Mavericks – and 13th ever – to start a season with a 16-1 mark. Seven of the previous 12 to do so reached the NBA Finals with five claiming the title.
Portland continued its strong early season run of success with a road victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday for its 12th win in 13 games to improve to 14-3. The Trail Blazers are thriving with the inside-out duo of LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard and will be primed to halt Indiana’s seven-game winning streak. “It’s a good challenge for us,” Pacers forward David West said after the club opened a five-game road excursion by beating the Clippers. “We’re embracing this trip. We have a whole different animal going to Portland but we’ve got to be prepared to let this one go and leave this one in Los Angeles and prepare for a tough, tough game.”
TV: 10 p.m. ET, FSN Indiana, CSN Northwest (Portland)
ABOUT THE PACERS (16-1): Budding superstar Paul George followed up his strong November with a 27-point performance against the Clippers and said afterward that his shot-making feels as easy as it has looked this season. “It’s just to the point I feel I can score in my sleep,” said George, who is averaging 23.8 points. “I’m confident in my shots, I’m confident playing in the offense and I know where my shots are going to come from. I don’t have to press to shoot the ball. I just pick and choose times to be aggressive.”
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (14-3): Portland is tied with the San Antonio Spurs for the top record in the Western Conference and is about to face its toughest back-to-back tests this season with the Pacers in town Monday and the red-hot Oklahoma City Thunder next in line Wednesday. Aldridge appears headed to his third consecutive All-Star appearance and is averaging 24.8 points and 12 rebounds over the last four games while Lillard is playing even better than last season’s Rookie of the Year campaign by averaging 20.2 points with 10 outings of 20 or more points. Off-season acquisition Robin Lopez has been quietly good in the middle with six double-doubles, including each of the last two games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Pacers have lost four consecutive games in Portland.
2. Trail Blazers G Wesley Matthews is 29-of-56 from 3-point range over the last eight games.
3. West had a season-high 24 points and pulled down 12 rebounds against the Clippers for his fourth double-double of the campaign.