Trail Blazers Game Notes: Portland Trail Blazers (24-34) vs. Memphis Grizzlies (41-18)

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (24-34) AT MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (41-18)

Wednesday, February 16 • 5:00 p.m. (Pacific) • FedExForum

Memphis, Tennessee

ALL TIME: Trail Blazers lead, 54-43

PORTLAND HOME: Trail Blazers lead, 29-20

GRIZZLIES HOME: Trail Blazers lead, 25-23

LAST PORTLAND WIN: 105-100, 12/19/21 (Mem.)

LAST MEMPHIS WIN: 113-103, 12/15/21 (Por.)

CURRENT WIN STREAK: One (Por.)

• Wednesday's game is the fourth and final matchup between Memphis and Portland this season and the second of two games in Memphis.

• LAST MEETING: Portland defeated Memphis 105-100 at the FedExForum in Memphis on Dec. 19. Damian Lillard dropped 32 points, five rebounds and five assists while Nassir Little chipped in 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal. Dillon Brooks led the Grizzlies with 37 points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal. Ja Morant did not play for Memphis.

• Expect a battle on the boards, Portland holds opponents to 9.1 offensive rebounds per game, best in the league; while Memphis averages 13.8 offensive boards per game, best in the league.

• On the defensive end, both teams rank in the Top 10 in steals since January 1, Memphis averages 9.7, tops in the league, while Portland ranks ninth with 7.9 per game.

• Jusuf Nurkić has recorded a double-double in three of his last five games against the Grizzlies, scoring 15-plus points in four of those games, while averaging 14.6 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

• In his last five games against Memphis, Josh Hart has averaged 11.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists.

• Anfernee Simons has scored 30-plus points in back-to-back games for the first time in his career, over his last three outtings, Simons is averaging 30.0 points, 6.3 assists and 2.3 rebounds with an average of six 3PM while shooting 48.6% from the field and 46.2% from beyond the arc, leading Portland to a 3-0 record in those games.

• Justise Winslow is averaging 16.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists in his last five games against Memphis.

• In his last five matchups against the Trail Blazers, Ja Morant has averaged 24.6 points, 8.4 assists and 5.8 rebounds, recording two double-doubles during that stretch and three games with 25-plus points.

• Steven Adams has averaged 7.4 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists in his last five games against Portland, he averages nearly a block a game throughout his career but has not tallied a block in his last five games against the Trail Blazers.

ANT MAKES HIS MARK: Anfernee Simons tallied his 30th career start on Feb. 14 at Milwaukee, nailing seven three-pointers to set the NBA record for most three-pointers made in a player's first 30 Starts with 113.

SPREADING THE LOVE: On Feb. 14 at Milwaukee, all five Portland starters recorded at least four assists, marking the first time since Nov. 13, 2003 that the Trail Blazers have accomplished the feat. The Charlotte Hornets are the only other team in the NBA to do so this season. Anfernee Simons led the team with six assists while Trendon Watford also contributed five off the bench.

FLORIDA'S FINEST: Anfernee Simons dropped 30-plus points in back-to-back games for the first time in his career vs. New York on Feb. 12 and at Milwaukee on Feb. 14, he has five 30-plus game this season and his 31 on the 14th is tied for the third-highest single-game total of his career. He went 7-of-16 from three, his 16th game this season with five-plus three-pointers, the most in the NBA for a player 22 years old or younger and fourth most in the league overall. His 22 career games with five-plus three-pointers are tied for the fifth-most in NBA history for a player before turning 23.

JOSH HARTS MODA CENTER: Josh Hart wasted no time getting comfortable in his new home, dropping 23 points in his Trail Blazers debut at Moda Center on Feb. 12 vs. New York. Shooting 7-of-12 overall and 3-of-6 from three, his 23 points mark the sixth-most in a Blazers debut, tied with Damian Lillard and Mychal Thompson. He also added two assists and one board. Hart continued his success when the team hit the road, scoring 27 points with seven boards and six assists at Milwaukee on Feb.14, the third-highest single-game total of his career.

Game #58 - Portland 122, Milwaukee 107 — February 14, 2022, Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Portland took down the defending champs 122-107 on the road ... All five Trail Blazers starters recorded at least four assists, the first time the team has done so since Nov. 13, 2003 ... Anfernee Simons continued his hot streak with 31 points (12-24 FG, 7-16 3-PT), two boards, six assists and one steal ... Josh Hart dropped 27 points (10-16 FG, 5-9 3-PT, 2-2 FT) with seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and one steal ... Jusuf Nurkić tallied his seventh straight double-double with 23 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and one steal ... Justise Winslow recorded a double-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block ... CJ Elleby added 10 points, 4 boards and four assists ... Trendon Watford drained the first three-pointer of his career and finished with nine points, 10 boards, five assists and one steal ... Jrue Holiday led the Bucks with 23 points and six assists.

Game #57 - Portland 112, New York 103 — February 12, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon

Portland defeated New York 112-103 at Moda Center behind a 35-point fourth quarter for the Trail Blazers in which they held the Knicks to 11 points ... Anfernee Simons tallied his 21st career game with five-plus three-pointers, finishing with 30 points for his fifth career 30-plus effort, also contributing eight assists and five rebounds ... Josh Hart dropped 23 points in his Portland debut with two assists and one board ... Jusus Nurkić grabbed a game-high 19 rebounds to go with 12 points and six assists for his 29th double-double on the season ... Justise Winslow added 14 points, six assists, five rebounds, one steal and one block ... Ben McLemore dropped 17 points off the bench with five rebounds, two assists and a steal ... Julius Randle led New York with 28 points, 16 rebounds and six assists ... Kemba Walker added 23 points and Quentin Grimes contributed 20 points.

Game #56 - Portland 107, L.A. Lakers 105 — February 9, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon

Portland defeated the Lakers 107-105 at Moda Center, behind a tough defensive effort that forced 21 turnovers and tallied 11 steals ... Anfernee Simons led the scoring effort with 29 points, knocking down five three-pointers for the 14th time this season ... Jusuf Nurkić tallied another double-double, finishing with 19 points and 12 rebounds ... Justise Winslow scored 11 points with eight rebounds, three assists and four steals ... Greg Brown III dropped 11 points, two rebounds and a block off the bench ... Dennis Smith Jr. became the ninth player in league history to record 11 assists and six steals off the bench ... CJ Elleby scored eight points with eight rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block in 43 minutes ... Ben McLemore dropped eight points with two rebounds, three steals and a block ... LeBron James led the Lakers with 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

Game #55 - Orlando 113, Portland 95 — February 8, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon

Portland lost to Orlando 113-95 following a trade that left the team with nine active players ... Anfernee Simons dropped 19 points for the fourth straight game, shooting 7-of-17 from the field, 3-of-9 from deep and 2-of-3 at the line, finishing with five rebounds, five assists and one steal ... Jusuf Nurkić tallied his 27th double-double of the season with 14 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks ... Greg Brown III scored a career-high 15 points off the bench, grabbing a career-high eight rebounds and one steal ... Justise Winslow made his first start as a Trail Blazer and recorded 12 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks ... CJ Elleby tallied 11 points (4-10 FG, 1-2 3-PT, 2-2 FT) with nine rebounds, four assists and two steals ... Cole Anthony led the Magic with 23 points, nine assists and seven rebounds ... Wendell Carter Jr. added 18 points, eight boards and five assists.

Game #54 - Milwaukee 137, Portland 108 — February 5, 2022, Moda Center, Portland, Oregon

Portland fell to Milwaukee 137-108 at Moda Center ... Jusuf Nurkić dropped a double-double with 11 points (5-6 FG, 1-3 FT) and 10 boards, along with three assists and two blocks ... Ben McLemore contributed 19 points off the bench, knocking down four three-pointers, adding four rebounds and two assists ... Anfernee Simons scored 19 points, knocking down fivee-plus three-pointers for the 13th time this season ... CJ McCollum added 17 points (7-18 FG, 1-8 3-PT, 2-2 FT), six assists and two rebounds ... Tony Snell scored nine points, grabbed one rebound, one block and one steal ... Greg Brown III scored a career-high 10 points (4-7 FG, 1-2 3-PT, 1-3 FT) off the bench, adding four rebounds, one steal and one block ... Justise Winslow scored six points and grabbed seven boards in his Portland debut ... Bobby Portis led Milwaukee with 30 points while Giannis Antetokounmpo added 29 points and nine boards.

For the Trail Blazers, Eric Bledsoe (left Achilles; tendinopathy), Joe Ingles (left knee; ACL tear), Keon Johnson (right ankle; sprain), Damian Lillard (core muscle recovery), Nassir Little (left shoulder recovery), Didi Louzada (left knee; recovery) and Dennis Smith Jr. (right elbow; sprain) are out for Wednesday’s game at Memphis.

The Grizzlies, playing on the second game of a back-to-back, have yet to release an injury report for Wednesday’s game.

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.