There was another nail-biting finish. Another outburst from Damian Lillard. Another amazing Houdini act.
The Portland Trail Blazers have been nothing, if not dramatic, at the NBA reboot in the Disney World bubble.
And her final act, a 134-133 season-saving victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night, was her biggest and most entertaining yet. It forced a play-in series against the Memphis Grizzlies, with the winner earning the No. 8 seed at the Western Conference – and a date with the No. 1 seed Los Angeles Lakers.
One of the wildest seasons in franchise history has come here: Win one of the next two games and reach the playoffs. Here’s “The Good, the Bad and the Gutsy”, from another Blazers win …
GOOD: THE GROWTH OF JUSUF NURKIC
When Jusuf Nurkic arrived at the Blazersbank early in the third quarter, he wore the appearance of a man who had been defeated.
He exploded with 10 minutes left in a socially distant chair, shook his head in disgust and then buried his face in his hands, hiding away from an invisible situation.
Nurkic had just been whistled for a foul after being bullied by Rodions Kurucs and hit him on the court with a shoulder-lift. It was his fourth, and in the biggest game of the season – against the team he suffered his devastating injury against last season – Nurkic had a night to forget.
In previous years, especially early in his Portland term, that would probably have been a wrap for the Bosnian Beast. Chances are he won in his accident and checked out the night, underwent at least some of his emotions or reckless foules collecting no. 5 and 6. But in a performance that illustrates his growth and improved maturity, Nurkic has instead regrouped and played a significant part in another clutch bubble comeback.
When the Blazers fought tooth and nail to overcome a double-digit deficit against the cunning Nets and save their hopes of the playoffs, Nurkic was a catalyst, pooling the Nets, diving to the ground for loose balls, taking the heat from a doubles team Lillard and ready the Blazers to a win.
In the make-or-break fourth quarter, Nurkic played every 12 minutes, recording 12 points, four rebounds and one steal, while making 6 of 7 shots. And in the final two minutes, Nurkic played a crucial part in two important, momentum-changing plays. The first came with 1:47 left, when Nurkic ran free to the rim, collected a pass from CJ McCollum and finished a lineup while being buried by Joe Harris. The bowl gave the Blazers an edge of 132-130.
Then, on the next possession, Nurkic shot a pick-and-roll into the lane, snatched a Nets-scoring chance into the lane, and doubled in front of the court to sniff a loose ball, and threw it to McCollum just before its massive 7-foot, 290-pound frame flew beyond bounds.
“Whatever it takes,” said Nurkic, who finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.
Nurkic looked on during the Blazers’ final game – a stunning Tuesday night victory over the Dallas Mavericks – and it was fair to ask whether he had hit the bubble wall. After all, between the crisis in the coronavirus and his recovery from a left leg fracture, Nurkic had missed the last 16 months. After opening the bubble with four dominant performances, he was dropped back to earth, punctuated by a six-point, nine-rebound, six-foul outing against the Mavericks, which came while he was out for the third time in four days played.
So when he gathered that fourth foul Thursday, one would have forgotten to think back and remember the old ‘cute’ Nurkic. The young, unfree center that would whistle shots up close, keep floping, yelling at officials and screaming your “DUNK THE BASKETBALL” on your television screen. But, it turns out, those days are long gone.
The Blazers lived to play another day as Lillard (42 points, 12 assists) re-emerged worldwide, McCollum, Carmelo Anthony and Gary Trent Jr. hit important shots of the late game, and – for reasons not to be described – directed Caris LeVert for a last-second step-back jumper with the game on the line.
But they also won because of the maturity and growth of Nurkic.
BAD: FATIGUE
The Blazers’ push to the play-off round has been entertaining, emotional and exciting. It has also been exhausting.
When the Blazers set a 6-2 bubble record and forced a play-in matchup with the Grizzlies, they mostly played roles with an eight-man rotation that played heavy minutes.
Lillard averages 41.7 minutes in Orlando, second-most among the 22 teams. McCollum averages 40.9 minutes while playing with a fracture in his lower back. Anthony, 36 years old, averages 34.9 minutes. Trent, who sees important, playoff-like playing time for the first time in his career, averages 34.1 minutes. And Nurkic, who is playing for the first time since March 2019, is averaging 31.6 minutes.
The Blazers have three of the bubble’s 22 most heavily used players, including two of the top four.
What’s more, almost all of the Blazers ’eight bubble games have been intense, draining, and low-threshold matchups, which obviously require more energy.
It’s no wonder Lillard was surrounded on Thursday, hands on knees and whistling to the air, after the final horn sounded on a night he played 44 minutes.
“I was tired,” he said, when asked what went through his mind to the fourth quarter buzzer. “I played the whole second half.”
The Blazers let their heavy minutes downplay on Thursday and dismissed the idea that fatigue would become a problem going forward. Coach Terry Stotts notes that the toll of the trip will not come in the bubble, there will be plenty of off-days to recover and back-to-backs will not be a factor in the playoffs.
“Yes, we have spent a lot of energy,” he said. “But … I think athletes are very resilient.”
Lillard said the dismissal of the fourth month did wonders for his body, adding that, under normal circumstances, the Blazers will enter the playoffs immediately after the end of an amazing 82-game regular season. This, he said, was just a sprint of eight games.
“Obviously there will be some fatigue,” Lillard said. “But it will not be as hard as you might think.”
Maybe. But the Blazers have traveled a hard road to force a play-in chance. And now they’re staring at a date with Memphis, only to get a chance to face LeBron James and the Lakers.
It’s hard to believe that fatigue will be all the way irrelevant.
“I’m going straight from here straight to the cold bath,” Lillard said before leaving the arena Thursday night.
GUTSY: McCOLLUM DELIVERED BY PAIN
The man who delivered in Game 7 on Mother’s Day last year delivered a thin performance Thursday night, powered by a painful injury to save the Blazers’ season.
McCollum led the Blazers early and made two mammoth plays late – all with a fracture in his lower back – and improved his emerging big shot reputation.
The Blazers’ starting goalie scored 12 points and two assists in his first move, making 6 of 7 shots to open the game as the Blazers built momentum early. Then he examined the last two buckets of the Blazers, including the eventual game-winner.
It was McCollum’s pass, of course, that led to that coupling Nurkish lineup – and 132-130 edge – with 1:47 left. But also, on the Blazers’ next possession, McCollum nailed his biggest shot of the bubble. With 53.4 seconds left, he stepped up Harris on the perimeter, shuffled from side to side and stepped to the right, rising to a 21-foot pull-up jumper. The shot swung and the Blazers led 134-130, a margin that proved enough.
McCollum’s last line: 25 points, seven assists, three steals, one block and two important connecting games. He then did not speak to reporters, but admitted his injury during a television interview after the game.
“I’m just hopping here,” McCollum said when asked about his injury by Blazers sideline reporter Brooke Olzendam. “I have to do what I can for the team to help us in the playoffs. I can rest this summer. We do a good job of controlling it and I have a pretty good pain tolerance. But, as you can imagine, if your back is a little broken, it hurts. ‘
McCollum cooled off considerably after his hot start, finishing just 9 of 21 from the field – including 0-for-6 from three-point range – and one has to wonder how much the illness affects his jumper. It could be a problem that is progressing.
But, for at least one sleepy night it did not.
– Joe Freeman | [email protected] | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | Subscribe to Oregonian / OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories
