After winning ten of their previous eleven games, the Portland Trail Blazers entered Saturday just two games out of tenth place in the Western Conference.
In a six-team battle for three play-in berths, the 13th-place Blazers begin a challenging three-game road trip on Saturday against the Minnesota Timberwolves (29–23).
When the Spurs fell 117-116 at the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night, the Blazers won a half-game over 12th-place San Antonio. It was the first game for guard De Aaron Fox, who was acquired from Sacramento prior to Thursday’s trade deadline.
The Spurs (22-27) are one game ahead of the Blazers.
It will be difficult to catch eighth-place Dallas (27-25). After strengthening their defense by acquiring Anthony Davis from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Luka Doncic, the Mavericks now lead the Blazers by four games for eighth place and seem to be the strongest club in the group.
Nineth-place Phoenix (26-25), Sacramento (25-26), and Golden State (25-26), who are tied for tenth, are the clubs who are most likely to catch up.
The Blazers defeated the Kings Thursday night, earning a complete game against them.
The Suns defeated Utah 135-127 at home on Friday, putting them three points ahead of the Blazers.
The Blazers’ current tour must not end in disappointment. Prior to the All-Star break, they play two games at the Denver Nuggets (33-19) on Monday and Wednesday after playing the Timberwolves.
Following the break, the Blazers will play the Los Angeles Lakers (30-19), who have a new look.
Should two of the four teams they are pursuing go 3-1 or 4-0 in that same span, the Blazers might be buried in any 1-3 or 0-4 run. With less than 26 games remaining, it would be challenging to make up five or six games.
The schedule for Saturday’s games against the teams the Blazers are pursuing is as follows:
Timberwolves against. Blazers (29–23)
Orlando Magic vs. Spurs (25-28)
Chicago Bulls vs. Warriors (22-30)
Suns against. Denver Nuggets
Kings vs. New Orleans Pelicans (12-39)
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Aaron J. Fentress | [email protected]|@AaronJFentress (Facebook), @AaronFentress (Instagram), and @AaronJFentress (Twitter)
