The road can be rough.
The road can be rewarding.
And the road will likely be where the Portland Trail Blazers’ season will be determined over the next two weeks.
Starting today in Toronto, the Blazers play seven of their next eight games on the road. They will cover roughly 7,250 miles while playing teams that entered the weekend a combined 71 games over .500.
When that eight-game stretch is finished, only 11 games will remain in the regular season. With an eight-game lead over Oklahoma City, Portland is in control of the Northwest Division and the top-four playoff seed that goes to the division winner.
“This trip, it can be huge for us,” Blazers forward Nic Batum said. “We are going to be playing good teams, teams that need wins. It’s going to be a big game every time.”
But this road trip is about much more than playoff seeding. For the Blazers, it’s about coming together after their most devastating injury in a season filled with them.
When Wesley Matthews ruptured his Achilles tendon March 5, the Blazers reacted as if the guard has suffered a fate even worse than a season-ending injury. Players wore T-shirts in his honor. His jersey was hung in his empty locker. Photos of his empty airplane seat were posted on social media.
That reaction reflected the void the Blazers felt without their emotional and defensive leader.
It’s not like injuries are new to this Portland squad. The Blazers have weathered the extended absences of centers Robin Lopez and Joel Freeland. Batum hasn’t been fully healthy most of the season and LaMarcus Aldridge is playing with a torn ligament in his thumb.
But Matthews’ injury hit Portland in its heart. The following game, the Blazers missed him dearly in a 121-113 loss at lowly Minnesota.
The Blazers, however, have begun to pick up the pieces. They overcame a 7-point second-half deficit to beat playoff-bound Houston. They took care of business against a bad Detroit team, even getting in a late-game scuffle that started with Freeland sticking up for Meyers Leonard.
And that’s why this road trip comes at such a critical juncture. If things go well, Portland can further forge the post-Matthews identity it will carry into the playoffs. New acquisitions Arron Afflalo and Alonzo Gee can be further integrated into the team.
“You are with your team and your teammates more often than you are at home,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. “(On the road) you don’t have the commitments that you have at home. In a sense it can be helpful.”
But if the road trip goes poorly, it could rattle a post-Matthews Portland team that still feels fragile.
“It’s hard to win on the road,” Stotts said. “Road wins bring a team together. When you lose, not so much.”
From Toronto to Miami to Phoenix, the next two weeks will see the Blazers touch each corner of the NBA landscape. But that trip might just be what they need to get centered for the playoffs.
Micah Rice is the sports editor for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4548, micah.rice@columbian.com or on Twitter @col_mrice.
