When the Portland Trail Blazers season wraps up, will it deserve a bum rap?
Within two weeks, we’ll know what to call the Blazers’ first-round playoff series against Memphis.
Best case, we’ll describe it as a gutsy triumph by a team that hasn’t caught a break that didn’t involve a bone.
Worst case, we’ll reflect on a mercifully quick end to the team’s suffering. Having won all four meetings this season, Memphis has been a tough matchup since before the Blazers camp resembled a M.A.S.H. unit.
But should the worst happen, there’s one thing you can’t call this series — a referendum on the season. That would be a rash rush to judgment, which sports fans are prone to do.
Seven months ago, Blazers general manager Neil Olshey welcomed the higher expectations that followed Portland’s first playoff series win in 14 years.
“There’s a responsibility for us to embrace being an upper-tier Western Conference team,” Olshey said at Media Day. “There are high expectations and we need to start acting like an elite basketball team.”
Asked how he would gauge success this season, Olshey said it would be if the Blazers are playing their best basketball in April.
That hasn’t happened. Portland enters the postseason having lost five of its last six games. Despite being the No. 4 seed by virtue of winning the Northwest Division, the Blazers are considered a longshot to make much noise in the playoffs.
You can thank injuries. LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum, CJ McCollum and Chris Kaman have been hobbled in the past week alone. The week before that saw Arron Afflalo and Dorell Wright go down. Those followed the hardest blow of the year, Wesley Matthews’ season-ending achilles tear.
If this season were a Calculus test, the calculator would have broken midway through.
Sure, every professional sports team deals with injuries. And let’s not be Pollyanish, the Blazers have issues for which an injury report isn’t a get-out-of-jail-free card.
After starting the season 30-8, many envisioned Portland being a Western Conference contender. Nevermind that many of those wins came against inferior Eastern Conference competition. Against teams now in the Western Conference playoffs, Portland was 11-14.
The bench is better, but marginally. Portland’s reserves have averaged 27.3 points per game, about 3.7 points better than last year. But that still ranks 27th out of 30 teams.
Portland made strides on defense, rising to 10th in defensive efficiency (points allowed per 100 possessions) from 16th last year. That includes a late-season swoon that followed the loss of Matthews, the Blazers’ best defender.
It’s tempting to wonder what might have been possible if the Blazers stayed healthy.
It’s also tempting and trendy to use the upcoming playoffs declare the season a colossal success or abject failure.
It’s not sexy, but the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Portland made progress this season, but still has plenty of issues to address.