It’s time to find out how well the Portland Trail Blazers‘ recent on-court magic travels.
The Blazers (6-8) found their shooting touch, played great defense and watched their bench become one of the most productive in the league during a three-game winning streak at home.
Now the Blazers, 2-4 on the road, start a brutal five-game trip Wednesday night at the Oklahoma City Thunder (11-3). Next, they’ll continue with two games at the Houston Rockets (10-5), at Memphis (8-6) and conclude at Indiana (6-8).
“Obviously, we’re about to go out on a monster trip,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “But I don’t care what happens, I just want us to play right and continue to get better.”
For that to happen, the Blazers must improve in key areas where they have struggled away from Portland.
On the road this season, the Blazers rank 24th in offensive rating (107.0), 21st in net rating (minus-6.3), 24th in field goal percentage (43.7%), 27th in three-point shooting (31%), 29th in true shooting percentage (52.1%) and last in assists (18.3).
Most of those numbers saw a huge boost during home wins over Minnesota (twice) and Atlanta.
“The fans here are big-time, helping us a lot with the energy,” forward Deni Avdija said. “But we’ve got to figure it out on the road. I feel like we gotta do some more things together and build our chemistry and take care of our body better.”
Team chemistry has been on the upswing. A team meeting following a blowout loss to Memphis led to improved play in the final three games of the team’s homestand.
Those wins included stretches where the Blazers appeared vulnerable to defeat. They won’t have the home crowd to lean on away from home.
But forward Kris Murray said the Blazers are prepared for the challenge.
“We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now,” Murray said. “Guys are playing together and playing the right way. We just want to continue building upon that.”
— Aaron Fentress | [email protected] | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)
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