In what will surely be remembered as the best basketball game to take place on April 3, 2021 (by the way, I wonder what happened at Gonzaga-UCLA), the Portland Trail Blazers blew up Oklahoma City Thunder 133-85. CJ McCollum was Portland’s top scorer with 20 points in the night, while Kenrich Williams led OKC with 18 points off the bench.
You can find Dave Deckard’s summary of the stock quarter by quarter in our Instant Recap. Here are five observations of tonight’s action.
A Blowout?!?!?
This was an honest blast for good. There was never any doubt that the Blazers would win, and it should never have existed. A Thunder team that doesn’t have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Al Horford? Yes, this was probably not going well for OKC.
Still, it is good for Blazers to simply bury an opponent, regardless of skill level. Remember, last week Portland played a game in which the Orlando Magic fielded what was technically an NBA team, but narrowly. It was much closer than it should have been. Portland needs to eliminate teams like this consistently, and it was a pleasure to see them do it tonight.
Enes Kanter Effective Outside the Bank
It’s not like anything else is expected, but Enes Kanter has been very good off the bench since Jusuf Nurkic’s return. Kanter is making life miserable for second units with his relentless search for rebounds, generating extra possessions. He had 12 points and 17 scholarships tonight. I have a feeling he will have a few more doubles off the bench this season.
Away from NORM-al
Norman Powell has been very good for the Blazers since joining the club within the NBA negotiation deadline. He is an effective offensive player and also a solid defender. He may not have a game that ends +54 in plus-minus like former Blazer Gary Trent Jr. just did for the Toronto Raptors, but we’ve seen how effective Powell can be.
Tonight, Terry Stotts allowed Powell to create. I would like to see more of that. Powell knows how to shoot. Why not put the ball in your hands when Damian Lillard or McCollum are on the bench? Why not let Lillard get away from the ball while Powell takes control? Stormin ‘Norman isn’t much of a passer, but I don’t see how occasionally letting Lillard escape the ball can be a bad thing. Blazers could be more creative in the way they use Powell.
Good defense or bad attack?
The Blazers technically had a good defensive game. Thunder committed 22 turnovers, a record of the season for an opponent of the Blazers this year. They shot below 40% of the field and hit less than 30% of their trios. They simply could not create anything for themselves thanks to the Blazers placing the tweezers.
I don’t see this game as a good barometer for Portland’s defense, however. This Thunder team did not put even an average shot maker. The best of them may have been newcomer Theo Maledon, and he hit 1 out of 12. This was a good defensive game for Portland, but it’s not enough to reevaluate.
Moses Brown, anyone?
A final thought, because there is a lot to take away from a game like this: it was fun to see Moses Brown tonight! It was great to see him do well with Thunder, getting a long-term contract, even if that contract has more gaps than you can count. Your good move means that it is worth at least a few minutes of your time to think about whether or not it is worth keeping Brown in Portland.
Okay, maybe not to play for real. He was legitimately lousy whenever he entered the court last year for the Blazers. But his case makes me wonder how amazing it would be if Portland had a direct G-League affiliate to develop guys like Brown. He worked hard to develop his body and use it in a way that could at least present large numbers, especially in the G-League. I still don’t think he’s very good, but I’m also happy that he has a chance to pursue a career in the NBA now. His track record solidifies Portland’s need for a G-League team.
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Then the Blazers will head south in Los Angeles to fight the Clippers. They will play on Tuesday at 7 pm PT.