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POWER RANKINGS » Picking Up Momentum In Week 15

The Trail Blazers return home from their six-game road trip, the longest of the season, with four more wins and a better idea of what their team identity can be when this roster coalesces as a unit. Behind a third consecutive 2-1 week, Portland is now 6-2 over its last eight games and boasts the league’s seventh-best defensive rating (106.9) during that span. Offensively, the Blazers have had five players in double-digit scoring in nine of their last 11 games. With defensive schemes and ball movement being focal points for coach Chauncey Billups coming into the season, it has to be refreshing to see this team gain some consistency on those fronts after struggling in that regard for much of the season. “I thought it was an excellent trip. I’m so proud of our guys; we’re just becoming a real unit,” Coach Billups said in summation of the trip following Sunday’s victory in Toronto.

This week’s success coincided with the return of CJ McCollum, who is averaging 20.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.3 steals in his four games back. Portland is 3-1 since McCollum’s return, and one player who has seen the benefits of McCollum’s gravity as a perimeter scorer is Jusuf Nurkic. Nurkic is leading the league in rebounding in the four games since McCollum has been back at 16.0 RPG. Nurkic (19.8 PPG), McCollum (20.8 PPG), and Anfernee Simons (20.0 PPG) are each averaging about 20 PPG across that span as well. The Trail Blazers are the only team in the league with three players averaging at least 19.8 PPG over the last four games and Norman Powell, who is averaging 18.6 PPG on the season is set to make his return on Tuesday after missing the last eight games. With the return of Powell, Portland will once again have a slew of offensive threats available to them. None by the name of Damian Lillard, who will remain out for most of the rest of the season, but this team continues to show real growth in his absence and has fought their way to an 8-9 record in games without Lillard this season.

Portland has found a way to close out close late-game victories in each of the last two games without the luxury of having one of the most prolific clutch scorers in league history in Damian Lillard. Against the Celtics on Jan. 21, it was Jusuf Nurkic who hit the go-ahead hook shot off of an offensive rebound with 13.1 seconds to go in the fourth quarter. This proved to be the dagger, as Portland went on to beat Boston 109-105. Nurkic recorded 29 points, 17 rebounds, and six assists in the winning effort and became the first Trail Blazer since Bill Walton in the 1977-78 season to record 29 or more points, 17 or more rebounds, and six or more assists. Nurkic has had a knack for recording these anomalous stat lines since his historic performance of 24 points, 23 rebounds, seven assists, five steals, and five blocks against the Kings in 2019, the NBA’s first and only 20-point 20-rebound 5x5 game. Portland also set a season-high mark in 3-PT % against the Celtics shooting 48.5% from deep in that game.The Trail Blazers shattered that mark two nights later against the Raptors in Toronto connecting on 18 of 32 threes for 56.3% from deep. Portland also reached a season-high mark in assists in that game with 31 despite no one player having more than six assists individually. The Raptors game had the makings of a blowout with the Blazers leading by 30 at the half, but the Raptors clawed their way back into the game in the second half with hard trapping defense to get within four points with just over a minute to go in the fourth. After the Raptors’ on-ball pressure forced a couple of turnovers off of inbound plays late in the fourth quarter, it was Anfernee Simons who proved to be the hero on this night with two late threes to put the Raptors away. “Through it all, we’ve gotten better - obviously came out with some good wins as well,” Simons said in summation of the recent 6-game road trip.

Some good wins indeed, but it hasn’t yet been enough to move the needle much in either the standings or the power rankings this week. After a 4-2 East-Coast road trip, the Trail Blazers have tripled their road win total on the season and now sit at 12-7 against Eastern Conference teams. While this recent stretch has shown promise for Portland, they will need to continue to string together quality wins to get back into the Western Conference playoff hunt. Portland is up just slightly in this week’s power rankings coming in as high as No. 20 and as low as No. 22. Here’s where the Trail Blazers sit in the 15th edition of the weekly power rankings with hope on the horizon.

• John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 20 this week, one spot better than last week...

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Hawks at No. 19 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 21.

• The panel of voters at ESPN has the Trail Blazers at No. 22 this week, one spot better than last week...

The folks at ESPN have the Trail Blazers behind the Hawks at No. 21 and ahead of the Pelicans at No. 23.

• Zach Harper at The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 21 this week, one spot better than last week...

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Lakers at No. 20 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 21.

• Michael Pina at Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 22 this week, the same as last week...

Pina has the Trail Blazers behind the Knicks at No. 21 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 23.

• Kyle Irving at Sporting News has the Trail Blazers at No. 22 this week, three spots better than last week...

Irving has the Trail Blazers behind the Hawks at No. 21 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 23.