PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (18-25) AT MIAMI HEAT (28-16)
Wednesday, January 19, 4:30 p.m. (Pacific) • FTX ARENA
Miami, Florida
SERIES HISTORY
ALL TIME: Trail Blazers lead, 41-25
PORTLAND HOME: Trail Blazers lead, 20-14
MIAMI HOME: Trail Blazers lead, 21-11
LAST PORTLAND WIN: 125-122, 3/25/21 (Mia.)
LAST MIAMI WIN: 115-109, 1/5/22 (Por.)
CURRENT WIN STREAK: Two (Mia.)
SERIES NOTES
• Wednesday's game is the second and final matchup between Miami and Portland this season.
• LAST MEETING: The Heat defeated the Trail Blazers 115-109 in Portland on Jan. 5. Max Strus led Miami with 25 points, six rebounds and five assists, while Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson combined for 28 points off the bench. Anfernee Simons led Portland with 28 points and seven assists while Norman Powell contributed 26 points.
• Jusuf Nurkić is ranked 4th in the NBA in rebounds per game in January, averaging 13.1 boards along with 16.4 points and 4.0 assists in eight games.
• Anfernee Simons is ranked ninth in the NBA in points per game in January, averaging 26.1 with 8.0 assists and 2.6 rebounds in seven games.
• Both teams rank in the Top 10 in the NBA in three-pointers made (Portland - 13.4, 7th; Miami - 13.5 - 6th) and Top 12 in three-point percentage (Portland - 35.4% - 11th, Miami - 37.5% - 2nd).
• Portland and Miami average 19.9 personal fouls per game while both ranking in the Top 12 in the NBA in free throw percentage (Portland - 77.7% - 11th; Miami - 80.6% - 5th).
• Jusuf Nurkić has averaged 11.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists in nine career games against Miami.
• Ben McLemore has played the Heat 15 times in his career, averaging 8.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.8 assists.
• Robert Covington averages 13.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.83 steals in games against Miami.
• Jimmy Butler has faced the Trail Blazers 14 times in his career and averages 16.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
• PJ Tucker leads the NBA in three-point shooting percentage with a rate of 47.4 percent.
• Max Strus is averaging 19.6 points over his last 10 games.
NEWS AND NOTES
NURK 20-20: Jusuf Nurkić turned in a monster performance at Orlando on Jan. 17, registering a double-double in the first half for the second straight game and fifth time this season. He finished the night with 21 points (10-21 FG, 0-3 3-PT, 1-2 FT), 22 rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks. It marked his second career 20-20 game, the ninth such performance in the NBA this season. He is the 11th player in franchise history to record at least four career games with 20-plus rebounds.
ONLY NURK: Jusuf Nurkić recorded 20-plus rebounds and 4-plus steals on Jan. 17 vs. Orlando, making him the only player in the NBA to record that stat line this season. He is also the only player in franchise history to finish a game with 21 points, 22 rebounds and four steals, which he has done twice (1/1/19 at Sac.)
SIMONS CAN'T BE STOPPED: Anfernee Simons knocked down seven three-pointers in the first half at Washington on Jan. 15, becoming the sixth player in NBA history to record five games with seven-plus three-pointers before turning 23. He finished the half with 26 points and six assists, just the fifth player to record that stat line in one half this season.
DOUBLE-FIGURE STREAK: Nassir Little and Ben McLemore have each recorded five consecutive games scoring in double figures between Jan. 9 and Jan. 17, for Little it represents a career-long streak.
STARTING FIVE: The starting lineup of Nassir Little, Robert Covington, Jusuf Nurkić, Ben McLemore and Anfernee Simons became the first Portland unit this season to all score in double figures on Jan. 10 vs. Brooklyn. The unit repeated the effort on Jan. 15 at Washington.
LAST FIVE GAMES
Game #43 - Portland 98, Orlando 88 — January 17, 2022, Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Portland defeated Orlando 98-88 at the Amway Center for their first road winning streak of the season ... Jusuf Nurkić led the Trail Blazers with 21 points (10-21 FG, 0-3 3-PT, 1-2 FT), 22 rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks in 36 minutes ... Nassir Little recorded a double-double with 13 points (4-9 FG, 5-5 FT) and 10 rebounds, his fifth consecutive game scoring in double-figures ... CJ McCollum tallied 16 points (7-13 FG, 2-4 3-PT), two assists, one rebound, one steal and one block in his return from injury ... Anfernee Simons registered his seventh consecutive game scoring in double-figures, finishing with 13 points (4-11 FG, 0-5 3-PT, 5-5 FT), seven assists and two rebounds ... Franz Wagner led the Magic with 14 points (7-18 FG, 0-5 3-PT), five rebounds and two assists ... Moritz Wagner contributed 14 points, four rebounds and two assists off the bench.
Game #42 - Portland 115, Washington 110 — January 15, 2022, Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
Portland earned their third road win of the season with a 115-110 victory at Washington ... Anfernee Simons continued his hot streak, earning his third career double-double with 31 points (11-21 FG, 7-14 3-PT, 2-3 FT) and 11 assists, his seven first half three-pointers made him the sixth player in NBA history to record five games with seven-plus threes before turning 23 ... Jusuf Nurkić tallied his 17th double-double of the season with 23 points and 14 rebounds to go with a pair of assists and a pair of steals ... Robert Covington recorded 15 points (5-13 FG, 2-6 3-PT, 3-4 FT), nine rebounds, four steals and two assists ... Nassir Little finished with 18 points, his fourth consecutive game in double figures ... Ben McLemore scored 10 points in 28 minutes ... Spencer Dinwiddie led the Wizards with 27 points ... Kyle Kuzma dropped a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Game #41 - Denver 140, Portland 108 — January 13, 2022, Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
Portland fell to Denver 140-108 at Ball Arena ... Ben McLemore led the scoring effort for the Trail Blazers with 18 points (6-14 FG, 4-9 3-PT, 2-3 FT), four assists, two steals, one block and one rebound ... Dennis Smith Jr. entered the starting lineup and tallied 17 points (7-12 FG, 0-1 3-PT, 3-5 FT), eight assists, two rebounds and one steal ... Jusuf Nurkić grabbed eight rebounds and knocked down four shots to finish with 10 points ... Trendon Watford had a big night, setting career highs in points (11) and blocked shots (2) ... Robert Covington scored 10 points (4-10 FG, 2-5 3-PT, 0-2 FT) with seven rebounds and four steals ... Portland's five starters have all scored in double figures in back-to-back games ... Will Barton led the Nuggets with 21 points, four rebounds and two assists ... Nikola Jokić tallied 20 points (8-10 FG, 1-2 3-PT, 3-3 FT), eight rebounds and seven assists.
Game #40 - Portland 114, Brooklyn 108 — January 10, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Portland won both games of a back-to-back with a 114-108 win vs. Brooklyn at Moda Center ... Robert Covington became the first player in franchise history with a single-game performance of five three-pointers, three blocks and three steals, finishing the night with 21 points (6-9 FG, 5-8 3-PT, 4-4 FT) and five rebounds ... Anfernee Simons logged his first double-double of the season with 23 points (10-24 FG, 2-11 3-PT, 1-2 FT), a career-high 11 assists and six rebounds ... Ben McLemore knocked down five three-pointers en route to 20 points (6-11 FG, 5-8 3-PT, 3-4 FT), five rebounds, two blocks and one steal ... The Trail Blazers got off to hot starts in each half, outscoring the Nets 33-26 in the first quarter and 32-19 in the third ... Portland's nine blocked shots tied a season-high ... Kevin Durant led the Nets with 28 points (9-19 FG, 2-7 3-PT, 8-8 FT) and 10 rebounds ... Cam Thomas contributed 21 points off the bench.
Game #39 - Portland 103, Sacramento 88 — January 9, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Portland defeated Sacramento 103-88 at Moda Center ...Jusuf Nurkić finished an assist shy of his second career triple-double, totaling 14 points (6-12 FG, 1-2 3-PT, 1-3 FT), 16 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and one block in 38 minutes ... Anfernee Simons led the scoring efforts with 31 points (10-17 FG, 7-11 3-PT, 4-4 FT), six assists and three rebounds in 35 minutes ... Nassir Little chipped in 13 points (4-13 FG, 3-8 3-PT, 2-2 FT), grabbed three rebounds and dished two assists in 34 minutes ... Ben McLemore started in place of Norman Powell (Health and safety protocols) and totaled 13 points (5-12 FG, 3-8 3-PT), two rebounds and two assists in 25 minutes ... Portland's defense held Sacramento to 88 points, a season low for a Trail Blazers opponent... Tyrese Haliburton led the Kings with 17 points (6-11 FG, 2-6 3-PT, 3-4 FT) and nine assists... Alex Len contributed a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
INJURY NOTES
For the Trail Blazers, Dennis Smith Jr. (right ankle; sprain) is probable; CJ Elleby (right ankle; sprain) is questionable; Norman Powell (personal reasons) is doubtful; Damian Lillard (core muscle recovery), Larry Nance Jr. (right knee inflammation), and Cody Zeller (right patellar fracture) are out for Wednesday’s game at Miami.
For the Heat, Kyle Lowry (personal reasons), Markieff Morris (return to competition reconditioning), KZ Okpala (right wrist; sprain), Victor Oladipo (right knee; injury recovery) and Chris Silva (ineligible to play) are out.
BROADCAST NOTES
Wednesday’s game can be seen locally on ROOT SPORTS with Kevin Calabro, Lamar Hurd and Brooke Olzendam calling the action. On the radio side, Travis Demers, Michael Holton and Jay Allen will have the call on Rip City Radio 620 AM and on all of the stations of the Deschutes Brewery Trail Blazers Radio Network.