The Portland Trail Blazers stormed back heroically to beat the New Orleans Pelicans in the fourth quarter of Monday’s 102-93 victory. They trailed by 15 in the fourth quarter only to deliver a gritty, confident last eight minutes of the game that peaked with Damian Lillard hitting a highlight three (again) from the top of the key with less than two minutes to play. I give the Blazers all the credit for pulling out a win after being outplayed for three quarters. Great teams are able to find ways to win (and I think that Portland is turning into a great team). But the Pelicans should have won because they suit up Anthony Davis and the Blazers have no answer for him. He is on top of my current Blazer killer list along with Goran Dragic, Chris Bosh, and maybe DeMarcus Cousins.
I couldn’t believe that the Pelicans weren’t throwing it to Davis on every possession when the Blazers started clawing back. During the first three quarters, he was lethal from around the rim and even made a few jumpers to keep the Blazers honest. None of the Blazers’ frontcourt could stop him and he started 13 for 16 from the field. Then, he conveniently disappeared mostly because the ball was not coming his way. Pelicans’ fans were furious while Blazers’ fans let out a sigh of relief. There is no excuse for having somebody as devastating as Davis roam the lanes while Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans brick off balance jumpers. No excuse.
Davis’ offensive production (31 points) didn’t even come close to his defensive presence. He seemed to be everywhere: altering shots at the rim, stealing errant passes, and all while shutting his guy down. During one possession, Davis blocked a LaMarcus Aldridge fade away (the only guy in the NBA who can block LaMarcus), and then seemed to trip as Wesley Matthews caught the ball. Matthews immediately tried to beat the shot clock with another fadeaway, but Davis recovered and somehow managed to block this shot too (here’s the play). It was too amazing for me to be upset.
Davis’ performance made me think about matchups though. The Pelicans and Blazers play twice more this year and, barring a major injury or trade, Anthony Davis will return to Portland for important games in the future. Imagine facing him seven times in a row in a playoff series. He might steal enough passes by the Blazers to feed a Portland orphanage. The Blazers can’t rely on Tyreke Evans to take Davis’ possessions forever.
The truth is that New Orleans matches up really well with Portland. Aldridge seems a lot less lethal when Davis checks him and every perimeter player fears the paint when Davis sits there like Smaug on the Lonely Mountain. Jrue Holiday is a good defensive guard and he makes Lillard work for his points. Despite this last one, Tyreke Evans has had some great games against the Blazers including a game winner last year. This is a scary team for the Blazers and I haven’t even mentioned the defense of Omer Asik who didn’t play on Monday. The rise of Anthony Davis is here.
The Blazers visit New Orleans on December 20 and I hope they’re ready for a tough game.
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