Rebounding, Three Pointers Earn Blazers a Win Over Suns

The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Phoenix Suns in overtime, 121-119, on Monday night to secure their most impressive victory of the season, firmly announcing themselves as a contender for this year’s postseason play-in games. The Suns lost the previous game to the Blazers and did not want to drop two in a row. Portland had other plans, starting the game off in a furious fashion to push the lead to 14 points in the first quarter. The Suns would battle back, but the game was on.

The Blazers, led by Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara, and Deandre Ayton, matched the Suns point for point. If it wasn’t for a defensive breakdown at the end of regulation, they would have defeated the Suns right there. Defense, ball movement, and little bit of luck with Kevin Durant missing open threes were the main reasons the Blazers pulled off a win in overtime.

Let’s dive into five points of extended analysis.

MVP of the Game

During regulation, the MVP of the game was going to be shared between Avdija and Camara. I had a line written that went something like this, “If Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum were given wings like Deni and Toumani, the Blazers would have collected multiple NBA Championships.” Then the game went into overtime and Deandre Ayton stepped up and snatched the MVP from both of them.

Against his former team Ayton scored 25 points and collected 20 rebounds. His free throw shooting down the stretch proved to be his biggest contribution. Ayton calmly stepped up to the line and hit 4-5 in overtime to seal the win. As a 60% free throw shooter, this was very unlikely.

Ayton’s 9 offensive rebounds singlehandedly kept the Blazers in the game and provided the extra possessions needed to hold off the Suns at the end of the game. An engaged Ayton is Portland’s most deadly weapon in any game this season.

Offensive Movement

The Blazers are no longer just sitting around on offense waiting for others to score. Early on in the season, most games consisted of isolation basketball for 40+ minutes. Those games usually ended in losses. Tonight, the ball movement and player movement was at an all-time high for the Blazers. Every possession they were trying to set up the correct player for the best shot on the court.

Not even two minutes into the game, Avdija made a quick drive to the hoop to pull Anfernee Simons’ defender. Avdija kicked it out to Simons. Ant immediately found Camara open for three that ignited a 31-point quarter for Portland.

At the 10:35 mark of the second quarter, the Blazers used the same action to find Avdija for an open three. In the third quarter, at the 1:12 mark, Scoot Henderson found Camara off a down screen for a wide-open three from the wing.

The Blazers again recorded 30+ assists in a game, which is usually a formula for success. I could go on and on, but the point is the Blazers are moving around the court. Portland looks as if they have been watching game tape of the offensive flow made famous by Stephon Curry’s Golden State Warriors.

In overtime the game slowed down, which resulted in more isolation sets, but overall the Blazers earned this win because of their movement with and without the ball.

Forcing Turnovers

Portland’s wings came up huge tonight on the defensive side of the ball. Camara and Jerami Grant were able to frustrate Devin Booker and Durant enough to force missed shots. Durant finished 2-9 from the three-point arc. Booker only attempted 18 shots on a night where he could have ended up with 50 points.

Portland did a great job of not letting Phoenix get comfortable. They ran two defenders at Durant, swarmed Booker every time he was in the paint, and forced the Suns into 15 turnovers. Deflections played a big role, but cutting off passing angles forced most of the turnovers.

Portland’s defense has been all-consuming during this recent stretch of wins. Tonight it was one of the main reasons they pulled out yet another win.

Sweet Spots

In Season 8, Episode 16 of Full House, Uncle Jesse finds himself in a charity basketball game with none other than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Uncle Jesse is terrible at basketball, but he is able to score when he finds his “sweet spot.” Sweet spots may sound cheesy, but they’re a real thing. Tonight the Blazers pulled an Uncle Jesse, finding each other in their sweet spots too.

Scoot Henderson’s first assist came halfway through the first quarter when he fed Ayton at the high post for an easy jumper. Grant scored the first points of the night off a right-wing three. Avdija was able to get into the paint for easy layups and kick-outs to open shooters in the corner.

Finding your teammates on the court in their sweet spots takes time and repetition. During this recent winning stretch, the Blazers have been able to stay healthy, which has resulted in settled lineups finally playing minutes together. That continuity is paying off.

Offensive Rebounds

The Blazers are still ranked in the top five of the league in offensive rebounding. Tonight they hauled in 14 of them, with Grant collecting the game-sealing rebound in overtime.

Spreading out the Suns created those opportunities. Ayton’s man was often needed to help on drives, which opened him up for offensive boards.

The Blazers were able to earn extra possessions tonight against the Suns. They needed every single one of them in order to pull off the win.