PORTLAND — After clinching a playoff spot with a blowout win, the Trail Blazers turn their sights to a red-hot Los Angeles Clippers team that has won seven straight games heading into Tuesday.
But before the Blazers did that, they had a light day that consisted mostly of filming playoff promotions.
With a make-up game against the Brooklyn Nets scheduled during what should be a rest day next Monday, the Blazers are counting their blessings of any extra time away from the court.
“Especially when we have a Brooklyn make-up game which was going to be a break in the schedule for us, to get some time off was needed and beneficial,” head coach Terry Stotts said.
The Blazers played a stretch of nine games in 14 days that ended Saturday. Starting Wedensday, they’ll play a similar stretch of nine games in 15 days before the season ends April 15.
If the playoff started Tuesday, the Blazers and Clippers would face each other in the first round. But despite the fact the Blazers are ahead of them in the standings, the Clippers would host the series by way of having a better record.
It’s tempting to look at the importance of Wednesday through the prism of a potential playoff match-up. And some Blazers have addressed those implications.
“This is a team that was of now we could be potentially playing,” Arron Afflalo said. “This is a team that we may see, so it’s a big game.”
It’s also temping to look at the standings and see that the Blazers are just two games out of the No. 2 seed in the West. The Blazers need only two more wins or one win and one Oklahoma City loss to clinch the Division.
But Stotts doesn’t want to think ahead.
“That’s getting ahead of ourselves. We just want to get ready to play the Clippers. You get ahead of yourself. I think it works against you.”
LaMarcus Aldridge won’t add any emphasis to the game either, seeing eye-to-eye with his coach.
“I think every win is important,” Aldridge said. “I think we just go about it like regular business, trying to get a win.”
Both teams have dealt with injuries throughout the year, making it somewhat tough to use previous meetings as a point of reference.
“Obviously the last game, but they didn’t have Blake (Griffin),” Stotts said of the teams’ March 4 meeting. “We didn’t have (Robin Lopez on Jan. 14). Certainly there are more things you can glean from them, the more recent games, than the ones played in November.”
In Portland’s lone win against the Clippers on March 4, they came back with a small line-up and they still had a healthy Wesley Matthews. But with Griffin back in the line-up, the Clippers play a style more conducive to keeping Lopez on the floor. Clippers guard Jamal Crawford has been dealing with a calf injury that has hindered his ability to even walk, let alone play.
“It changes their style of play with a more spacing line-up, going to the rim,” Aldridge said of the Clippers with Griffin back. “With both of those guys, we can pack it in and protect the rim better.”
It’s certainly an important game. Just how important it is won’t be determined for a few more weeks.
