Postgame Notes - March 9, 2018 Portland 125, Golden State 108 Game #66 • Home Game #33 TEAM • The Trail Blazers won their ninth game in a row, extending the longest active winning streak in the NBA. The last time Portland won nine games in a row was Nov. 9 - 26, 2014. • Portland won its sixth straight home game and improved to 15-1 in its last 16 games at Moda Center. • The Trail Blazers improved to 2-1 against the Warriors this season, earning two victories against Golden State for the first time since the 2013-14 season. • Portland has won its first eight games after the all-star break for the first time in franchise history. • The Trail Blazers scored 125 points, the second-most points they have scored this season (127, Nov. 24 at Brooklyn). • Portland outrebounded Golden State, 46-33, and outscored them in the paint, 40-36. • The Trail Blazers had 14 offensive rebounds leading to 26 second chance points. The Warriors had six offensive rebounds leading to eight second chance points. • Portland’s reserves outscored their Golden State counterparts, 47-18. PLAYER • Damian Lillard finished with 28 points (8-21 FG, 4-10 3-PT, 8-8 FT), four rebounds and eight assists. Lillard has scored at least 20 points in 11 straight games, his longest streak of the season. • CJ McCollum scored 13 of his team-high 30 points (10-19 FG, 5-9 3-PT, 5-7 FT) in the fourth quarter. McCollum added four rebounds, one assist and one block. • Ed Davis had 10 points (4-5 FG, 2-3 FT) and a season-high 15 rebounds (seven offensive) to record his sixth double-double of the season. Davis also dished out a season-high four assists. • Jusuf Nurkic had 10 points, 11 rebounds and one assist. It was his second double-double in the last three games and his 17th of the season. • Zach Collins tied his career-high with 12 points to go with four rebounds and one assist. • Evan Turner recorded 12 points (5-11 FG, 2-6 3-PT), one rebound and three assists. • Shabazz Napier scored 10 points (3-7 FG, 1-3 3-PT, 3-4 FT), reaching double figures for the second straight game. • Kevin Durant scored a game-high 40 points (12-21 FG, 6-12 3-PT, 10-10 FT) to go with six rebounds, six assists and two blocks. • Klay Thompson finished with 25 points (9-19 FG, 4-7 3-PT, 3-4 FT), two rebounds and three assists. Thompson’s first three-pointer was his 200th of the season. He is one of two players in NBA history to make at least 200 three-pointers in six different seasons (Curry).
HEAD COACH TERRY STOTTS “I thought we did a lot of good things on both ends of the floor tonight. I thought the way we moved the ball in the fourth quarter gave us an opportunity to get some extra shots. Ed Davis played an outstanding game at both ends of the floor. We made timely shots in the fourth quarter. Zach Collins held his own and I thought Evan Turner really worked hard on Durant in the second half. So obviously they’re down some players, but they’re still a really talented team and it was a good win.” On closing with Davis, Collins and Turner – kind of rare: “I don’t know how rare to be honest. It was funny – last time we played Golden State, Zach and Ed didn’t play much and they did tonight because things were going well for us. It’s a tough decision, I was debating whether to go back with Farouq and Nurk, but I thought those two guys, Ed and Zach, deserved to stay on and I thought Evan was doing as good a job as you could.” What about Davis and Collins has earned your trust for late game “I don’t know about lately. I forget which game it was, the Minnesota game was a game they finished. I think they play well together. They have a good skill set to complement each other. They have good defensive instincts. Zach’s coming into his own as a perimeter shooter. I thought he made some really good passes in the second half. Like I said, it was tough because Nurk and Chief are a big part of our team as well. Games like tonight, it’s a tough decision, but I’m glad it worked out.” How do you feel about winning streak? “What streak? We’re just playing games, we’re just trying to get wins. As close as the West is, you’ve just got to keep getting wins.” Is that an evolution for this team that you’re not overly excited about this winning streak? “I think we’re all very much aware of what the standings are and there’s not a team in that group 3-10 that has the luxury to get too excited about anything one way or the other. All eight of those teams are battling and there’s not a lot of room to breathe.”
DAMIAN LILLARD “A good win against a quality team. I think we had a really solid first half. We know they take over games and dominate third quarters and they came out and made a run for it and I really liked how we weathered that storm. They did what they always do but we kept fighting, we fought it and we still ended the third quarter with the lead and then back and forth fourth quarter, we made the plays, we got the stops and we did more to win the game.” On Ed Davis: “He’s having a career year. His impact on the game is crazy. Every time I look up at the six minute mark or so when him and Zach come in the game together, they come in and they bring that energy and they get us extra possession, they’re protecting the rim, they’re setting great screens and they just really impact the game. It’s great to see that from Ed after how he ended last season. I knew how hard he was working this summer. You can tell mentally and physically, he came into this season ready to go and it’s really starting to show through.” On bench outscoring Warriors 47-16 and depth: “I’ve been saying it since we’ve been on this run, even before this winning streak when we started winning games, the difference has been the contributions we’ve been getting from everybody. Everybody’s coming in and impacting the game, whether that’s E.T., ‘Bazz, Zach, Ed, Pat – everybody that steps on the floor, we’re just sharp. Guys are coming in and doing their job and doing what they need to do when they get in the game to help the team.” On limiting second half turnovers: “It’s huge. You’re getting a shot every time, making them have to defend which is also part of your defensive strategy against a team like them, is making them have to guard. When you turn the ball over, they get out in transition, run to the corners, run to the three point line and they pass the ball well and that’s three quick points, so if you can keep them out of transition, limit you turnovers, it’s going to give you a much better chance to win. Even the first time we beat them here, I think we had no turnovers in the fourth quarter and that was what we need to pull that game out. So any time you can limit your turnovers, you’re going to have a great chance.” On nine-game win streak: “I’m proud of it but we’ve got to keep going. I think we’ve done a great job of being sharp in practices and when we go in the film room, we’ve been taking our game seriously. Not that we haven’t all season, but I think lately it’s a different level of focus, it’s more intense. It’s a different excitement amongst our team. Just simple stuff – Ed making a play and getting juiced up, the bench, our coaches, we’re locked in and each time we do something right, we win a game and we’re moving on to the next one. That just tells me we’re not soaking in our success and being proud and patting ourselves on the back. We’ve got to move forward and I think we’ve been able to make this kind of run because of that.”
HEAD COACH STEVE KERR On what bothered him the most about tonight’s game: “Take your pick. The fouling bothered me the most. I thought the end of second quarter and the end of the third quarter, those were really key points in the game. We won both quarters… well we didn’t exactly win the second quarter point total wise, but we outplayed them in the second quarter and it’s 52-50 with two minutes left and I think they outscored us 11 to 2 or something, mostly on fouls. Same thing happened late third quarter, we made some mistakes… we fought hard, I really liked our competitive spirit, but you’ve got to be smarter. We just did not play a smart, focused game tonight and it cost us.” On the discrepancy in bench production: “Nothing. I don’t look at that at all. You can look at a box score and say this happened or that happened… their bench scored, our bench didn’t. That happens sometimes. Sometimes it’s in reverse. We’ve got four guys sitting out, so…” On if he got an explanation on what happened between Durant and the fan: “All I heard from the official was that the fan was using inappropriate language, so he got tossed.”
KEVIN DURANT On the 3 point fouling and rebounds: They shoot a lot of long shots, and those rebounds we have to all come in and rebound. That’s the thing, and with fouling shooters… I thought we fought hard all night. We fought to get good position at the end of the third, but they made shots all night. The third, you were up 6 then down 4. What happened there?They hit shots. They hit shots. They’ve been making shots on this run for a while. Napier hit some big shots. Evan Turner hit a 3, or 2 3s, pulled up jump shots. Damian Lillard was shooting off the catch at the 3 point line, as well as CJ. So they hit some shots tonight. I thought we did a good job of making them shoot tough ones, but they made them. On the fan getting ejected from the sideline: He just got tossed. The refs heard him. I didn’t hear him the refs did. I don’t know what he said. The refs said they were about to kick him out before them anyway. He was talking shit. I mean, when you’re sitting court side you think you’re tough and you can say and do whatever, but the ref caught him. The ref caught him, and before I even walked over there they said he was going. When do you decide to interact with a fan like that?I don’t know. It just happened. Sometimes just shut up and watch the game. You have nothing to do with what’s going on on the floor. You’re not important. You’re just a fan at the game. Watch the game and enjoy it. These fans want to get involved when you’re sitting courtside. Just enjoy the game. I’m glad the refs stepped in. How do you process a game where you carry the load and you’re able to be productive but it’s still not enough?You just kind of look at it from a wide scope. We could have done a lot of things better. Obviously, we had some good looks. We didn’t rebound, and like you said, we didn’t finish the quarters well. It was just all that happens in a basketball game, all that happens in a season with the ups and downs. We just get better from it. It looked like you and Draymond did a lot more ball handling with Steph out tonight, how did you handle that?We are missing Dre and D. West… guys we throw the ball to a lot to initiate our offense. Coach called our number tonight, and I just tried to make the right play. Draymond tried to make the right play. Klay as well. Just everybody on the court. We played extremely hard.
KLAY THOMPSON What do you think led to the issues with the 3 point plays and the fouls?We just have to be smarter, chop our feet. I’m just happy the big men contested. They showed great effort like they did all night tonight. A few plays here and there as far as offensive rebounding, and fouling shooters. We were right there so I’m not disappointed with our effort. I am disappointed with the outcome though. On missing Steph and key reserves: I mean, we’ve been missing guys all year. Nothing changes when they’re out. Just go out there and compete, play together, play hard. Obviously, Kevin was special tonight. Their backcourt played great as did the Blazers, and they killed us on the glass. I thought we held them in check until they kept getting boards and outrebounded us. Can’t have that when we’re missing Steph and all the other guys we didn’t have. What do you notice about Kevin’s mentality while Steph has been out?It’s the same. I don’t think it ever changes. Obviously, the shots are less when Steph’s there because he’s one of the best shooters of all time, but Kevin plays the same way all the time. From pre-season to the finals, he’s out there to crush you and put on a show.
DRAYMOND GREEN On fouling 3 point shooters:It’s tough. You can’t overcome that on the road. Especially being down as many guys as we’re down, and making a run. I think every time we did it was on a run. That’s tough t overcome, but it’s something we’ll learn from. What do you make of the fact that when you play Portland, Kevin was able to get production and it wasn’t enough?We just lost. Kevin gets a lot of production off everybody. What’s our record? How did you and Kevin approach the extra ball handling tonight?I mean, I’m going to ball handle and facilitate. Kevin is going to ball handle and facilitate as well. We had the ball a lot more tonight. It will pry be that way until Steph gets back. So it’s cool. It works for us. It just didn’t tonight. What went wrong in the third:The 3-point shooting fouling. Other than that, I think it was pretty good. Then, once we kept fouling 3 point shooters, in the end, I think once Dame and CJ gave the ball up we relaxed, and that’s when they were getting the 3s. When they would give the ball up, we relaxed, and then they would fly back to the ball and get the 3. So we just have to understand that once they give the ball up, that’s when the work starts. But like I said, it’s something we’ll learn from. On Portland sitting in the 3 seed and being a different type of threat this year: They’re always a threat. They have 2 of the best guards in the league. When you have 2 players like they have, they’re always a threat. Mo Harkless is shooting better. I really don’t know what ET’s numbers are, but he shot the hell out of the ball tonight. Ed Davis was great. The young boy Collins is playing great for them. Nurk is playing well. So they’ve improved for sure, but the key is always to contain Dame and CJ. If you do that, you can win. If you can’t do that, you have a shot at winning, but it’s not good.
Green earned a little credit from me tonight. In the first half shortly after he picked up his T. He fouled Lillard, and instead of bitching about it. He helped Lillard up. Bit of respect for him.
Agreed. I've watched interviews with him and as cocky (confident?) as he is, he is actually kind of a dork.
I like Draymond, but because I lived in the bay area before the Warriors blew up - they are one of my secondary teams (happy to see them do well anytime they do not play the Blazers).
You know your team is doing well when no-one notices that CJ drops 30 and plays good defense on an all-star.
