With a 34-43 record in the competitive and talent-rich Western Conference, you might not anticipate finding the Portland Trail Blazers at the forefront of the playoff chase. However, they continue to be very much in contention.
Currently, Portland is vying intensely for one of the last two spots in the Western Conference play-in tournament alongside the 38-39 Dallas Mavericks (who are presently seeded ninth in their conference), the 36-40 Sacramento Kings (holding down the tenth spot), and the 35-41 Phoenix Suns (occupying the eleventh position).
Currently, the Trail Blazers hold the Western Conference’s No. 12 spot, sitting 1.5 games ahead of the 32-44 San Antonio Spurs, who remain surprisingly competitive even after turning off veteran All-Stars Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox for the season.
To potentially sneak into the bottom spot of the play-in tournament bracket, Portland might need to aim for a record of 4 wins and 1 loss over its final five games of the 2024-25 regular season, considering they currently trail Sacramento by 2.5 games.
On Friday evening, the Trail Blazers, Kings, and Suns will all be playing. The outcomes of these games will play a crucial role in shaping their playoff chances.
In a fresh piece, Aaron Fentress from The Oregonian usefully outlines all the different complex outcomes that might arise from the three games happening tonight.
According to Fentress, should Portland lose to the 34-42 Chicago Bulls (who have secured a play-in spot in the Eastern Conference), and the Kings defeat the rebuilding Charlotte Hornets, then the Trail Blazers' record would drop to 34-43. This would place Sacramento at 37-40, giving them a lead of 3.5 games over Portland with only four games remaining for the Trail Blazers.
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Sacramento and Phoenix both have six games remaining on their schedule for this season.
In Boston, the Suns face off against the 56-20 Celtics, a team that surprisingly seems more susceptible at home this year. Meanwhile, the Kings head to Charlotte to compete with the 19-57 Hornets. Recently, Sacramento has struggled, losing six out of their last eight games, notably suffering an unimpressive loss of 116-111 against the 17-60 Washington Wizards earlier in the week, which makes them appear quite weak right now.
The Bulls are set to facePortland. In their recent games, they have secured victories in six out of nine matches, and 14 of their previous 15 defeats were against opponents who had better win-loss records.
If the Trail Blazers secure a victory and the Kings suffer a loss, Portland will trail Sacramento by just 1.5 games with only four contests left to close the gap. Following their game in Chicago, the Blazers face off at home against the Spurs this upcoming Sunday, followed by a showdown in Utah against the 16-61 Jazz on Wednesday.
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The Suns and Kings face stronger opponents towards the end of their schedule compared to Portland. For the Trail Blazers to secure a spot in the play-in game, they must improve upon the closing records of both teams (provided Dallas remains at No. 9).
Recently, the Portland Trail Blazers have been performing well, largely due to the skilled gameplay of their small forward, Deni Avdija, and shooting guard, Shaedon Sharpe.
Avdija has recently reached his 1,000th career assist.
Meanwhile, Sharpe has been incredibly hot with his scoring lately, emerging as more of an offensive cornerstone. He's been racking up an average of 34.5 points over his last two games.
Even though Portland might stand a chance of defeating Dallas, would they fare well in the play-in tournament when facing the 45-32 Minnesota Timberwolves, who hold the seventh seed in their conference, or even the 44-32 L.A. Clippers?
That's a whole new ballgame.
More Portland Trail Blazers:
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Blazers Might Send $100M Veteran to Lakers in Big New Trade Speculation: Report
Blazers Choose SWC Guard in Recent Mock Draft
To stay updated with more news and insights about the Portland Trail Blazers, check out The Portland Trail Blazers on ESPN .
The article was initially posted on www.si.com/nba/trailblazers as Celtics and Hornets Games Might Doom Blazers' Playoff Chances .
