power rankings

Kylan Iwamasa

A 1-3 Week 21 for the Portland Trail Blazers consisted of dropping the first three games to the Warriors, Pelicans, and Hawks before bouncing back against the Magic.

After Monday's win in Detroit, the Trail Blazers hold an overall record of 31-34. The week and the road trip continue in Boston on Wednesday, at Philadelphia on Friday, and in New Orleans on Sunday to round out the week.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 23, one spots down from last week.

Damian Lillard can’t score 71 points every game, especially because he never gets to play against the Portland defense. Lillard did average 35 ppg over the Blazers’ four games last week, but the Blazers lost the first three, allowing their opponents to score 126.0 points per 100 possessions over the losing streak. The nadir was the 75 points on 49 second-half possessions that the Warriors scored as the Blazers blew a 23-point lead on Tuesday. They remain the league leaders in losses (15) in games they led by double-digits.

Jusuf Nurkic, who’s missed the last 13 games, has been particularly missed on the glass. The Blazers have grabbed just 65.5% of available defensive rebounds, the league’s lowest rate, since the All-Star break. And for the season, they’ve grabbed 75% with Nurkic on the floor and just 67.9% with him off the floor. The 24 second-chance points that the Hawks registered on Friday were one shy of their season high.

The Blazers got a win in Charlotte on Sunday, when Lillard scored 41 points and Nassir Little became the sixth different Blazer to make a shot to tie or take the lead in the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime. After a stretch where Portland lost nine straight games that were within five points in the last five minutes, it’s won five of its last seven clutch games, scoring 65 points on 50 clutch possessions over that stretch.

The Blazers’ game in Detroit on Monday is the end of a stretch of five games in seven nights. And then their six-game trip gets tougher. Their weekend split in Atlanta and Orlando has them 8-15 against Eastern Conference, with an 0-5 mark against the East’s top five. They’ve yet to play the Celtics (who they’ll visit on Wednesday) and their first meeting with the Sixers (who they’ll visit on Friday) was one of the three times they’ve scored less than a point per possession.

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Jazz at No. 22 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 24.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 23, the same spots as last week.

Portland lost three straight games by double-figures to start the week, but righted the ship with a solid road victory over the Magic on Sunday. Damian Lillard didn't have any more 70-point games, but he did average a humble 35 for the week.

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 22 and ahead of the Magic at No. 24.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, the same spot as last week.

This over is still very much in reach, but the Blazers are having a miserable time. It doesn’t matter how good Damian Lillard is. The Blazers need more. Portland is 2-6 since trading Josh Hart. The Blazers have a bottom-four defense in the NBA. They’ve had plenty of guys miss time, but so have most teams. I just don’t know their strategy game to game. Maybe they have one last push in them to try to make the Play-In. It would take a 10-8 finish to get the over.

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 21 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 23.

Kyle Wood from Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, two spots down from last week.

The Trail Blazers are getting passed by in the tight race for play-in position in the Western Conference despite the play of Damian Lillard. He went for 41 in an 11-point loss to the Pelicans at home last week and 33 in Atlanta as his team fell by 18. Lillard again finished with 41 on Sunday in Orlando, this time in a three-point victory, then poured in 31 in a six-point road win over Detroit on Monday. His backcourt partner Anfernee Simons reaggravated an ankle injury against New Orleans and missed the next two games.

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Pelicans at No. 21 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 23.

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POWER RANKINGS >> Trail Blazers See Little To No Change In This Weeks Ranks

With the All-Star break now behind, the Portland Trail Blazers returned to action on Thursday, Feb. 23 as they fell to the Kings in Sacramento. Their week continued on Sunday, Feb. 26 with a win at home against the Rockets, finishing the week 1-1.

Following Tuesday's loss to the Warriors, the Trail Blazers hold an overall record of 29-32. The week continues as they welcome long-time Trail Blazer CJ McCollum and the Pelicans to the Moda Center on Wednesday before hitting the road on Friday in Atlanta.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, three spots down from last week.

Donovan Mitchell’s 71 points in January came against a better defensive team and in higher-leverage possessions. But Damian Lillard’s 71 points on Sunday came in almost 11 fewer minutes of playing time. Lillard is one of six players who’ve made 12 3-pointers in a game and now he’s one of three – Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are the others – who’ve done it multiple times. But in the 10 seasons of tracking data, he’s the only guy who’s made more than 10 pull-up 3s in a game, with his 11 (on 20 attempts) on Sunday matching his the 11 pull-up 3s he made in a double-overtime playoff loss two years ago. (James Harden is the only other player who’s made 10 pull-up 3s in a game, according to Second Spectrum tracking.)

Lillard also scored 16 points in the paint and another 14 at the free-throw line on Sunday. It was noted in this space a few weeks ago that the greatness of the season he’s having is about how he can shoot from deep, but also blow by defenders who try to take away his pull-up. He’s now at 15.8 drives per game, the most he’s averaged in those 10 seasons of tracking data. His field goal percentage in the paint (60.6%) and his free throw rate (44.7 attempts per 100 shots from the field) are both the best marks of his career by wide margins. Lillard’s true shooting percentage of 65.4% would be the third-highest mark in NBA history for a player averaging at least 30 points per game (83 instances), topped only by two Curry seasons (2015-16 and 2020-21).

Alas, with a historic season from their star, the Blazers are still two games under .500 and in 12th place in the Western Conference. They have seven games remaining against the four teams currently in Play-In position, with two of those (at Golden State, vs. New Orleans) being their Tuesday-Wednesday back-to-back, the start of their second (and final) stretch of five games in seven days. Their third (and final) six-game trip of the season begins in Atlanta on Friday.

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 21 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 23.

Well, that's one way to end a week. Damian Lillard dropped a career-high 71 points and 13 3-pointers in a win over the Rockets on Sunday, putting an exclamation mark an otherwise mediocre 2-2 week for Portland. It was the first time any player in NBA history has scored at least 70 points in fewer than 40 minutes. Let's put the team stuff aside for just a second and honor this man. Goodness.

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers behind the Timberwolves at No. 22 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 24

Kyle Wood from Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 20, two spots up from last week.

Damian Lillard missed Portland’s first game out of the All-Star break due to a delayed flight, but he used the extra rest to gear up for an all-time outing. Coming off a three-point-contest victory, Lillard scored a career-high 71 points on 13 made threes, also a career high, against Houston. That was enough for The Trail Blazers to beat the Rockets by 17 at home a few days after they lost to the Kings by 17 on the road without Lillard or Jerami Grant.

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Lakers at No. 19 and ahead of the Raptors at No. 21.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, two spots down from last week.

The Blazers still haven’t managed to catch fire at any point this season, even as Damian Lillard has been torching everybody, including Sunday night’s legendary 71-point masterpiece. Their longest win streak is four, and that was at the literal start of the season. Portland has a top-five offense, but their bottom-four defense is just frustrating. Maybe it’s going to be impossible to have a solid defense, just like it was with Lillard and CJ McCollum. Jerami Grant can’t pull this thing together by himself. And their offense is great but not great enough to give them a winning record. Does Joe Cronin have a plan for the summer to balance things out better? Does Chauncey Billups have a scheme to fix things with a different group? They just seem stuck.

Prediction update: Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons combine to average at least 50.0 points per game… Thanks to Dame for making this one super easy to attain. His scoring surge has this duo at 53.7 points per game on the season. Simons has done well, but Dame is inching toward the scoring title.

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 21 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 23.

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POWER RANKINGS >> Trail Blazers Rank In Bottom Half, One Week After The All-Star Break

After a hectic Week 18 in which the NBA trade deadline led to significant changes throughout the league, the Portland Trail Blazers finished the week 1-2. Portland fell to the Bucks and Thunder, with their only win of the week coming against the defending NBA Champions, the Warriors.

Following Monday's victory over the Lakers and Tuesday night's loss to the Wizards, the Trail Blazers hold an overall record of 28-30 heading into the All-Star break.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, one spot up from last week.

The Blazers rank as a bottom-five defensive team for the fourth straight year, and over their last five games, they’ve allowed an amazing 127.9 points per 100 possessions (their worst defensive stretch of the season), even though none of the five opponents have had a top-10 offense. On Friday, the Thunder had 70 points in the paint and beat the Blazers with a 35-9, fourth-quarter run in which those 35 points came on just 16 possessions.

It seems like the Blazers made a backwards move at the deadline, but size matters on defense, and this team did get bigger and longer on the wings, swapping 6-foot-4 Josh Hart and 6-foot-2 Gary Payton II for 6-foot-7 Cam Reddish and 6-foot-5 Matisse Thybulle. The Blazers rank 28th in deflections per game (12.0), and they’ve added the guy (Thybulle) who ranks fifth with 4.9 deflections per 36 minutes, 3.1 more than Hart has averaged (1.8). Reddish shot 37.9% from 3-point range the last time he got regular rotation minutes (with Atlanta in the first half of last season) and, while Thybulle remains a poor and reluctant shooter, he does move well without the ball. Damian Lillard should empower both more than their previous teammates have.

The Blazers will have a relatively tough schedule after the All-Star break, but they go into the break with an opportunity — games against the Lakers and Wizards — to get back to .500. They’re 13-11 (7-5 at home) against the other 12 teams that currently have losing records, a mark that includes a win in Washington 10 days ago in which the two teams combined to score 128 points per 100 possessions.

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 18 and ahead of the Jazz at No. 20.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 23, four spots down from last week.

The Blazers avoided an 0-3 week with a comeback win over the Warriors on Wednesday, while the front office decided to part ways with Josh Hart and take a chance on Cam Reddish. That doesn't do anything to improve the defense, which allowed 128 points per 100 possessions in the three games this week.

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers Behind the Bulls at No. 22 and ahead of the Lakers at No. 24.

Kyle Wood from Sports Illustrated has the Tral Blazers at No. 22, the same spot as last week.

The Trail Blazers have their defense to blame for their recent losses. They rank third in offensive rating and 29th in defensive rating in February, and are just 3–3 so far this month. Just last week, Portland let up 127 to Milwaukee in a loss, 122 to Golden State in a win and a season-worst 138 points to the Thunder in a losing effort. Despite the tear that Damian Lillard has been on for several weeks running, the Blazers are on the outside looking in when it comes to the play-in picture. And they dealt Gary Payton II and Josh Hart, two of their better defenders, at the deadline, while acquiring Matisse Thybulle and Cam Reddish.

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Jazz at No. 21 and ahead of the Raptors at No. 23.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, three spots down from last week.

Did the trade deadline serve them well? Maybe? If they end up with the Knicks’ pick in the first-round, then it turns out to be a good trade deadline for the Blazers. I didn’t love their moves. I wanted Portland to be more aggressive in improving the team, and even as a guy who still (foolishly?) believes in Cam Reddish, I don’t think they made this roster better. Matisse Thybulle just doesn’t do it for me, in that respect. But luckily, their core is still very solid.

What’s next? Portland is on the outside looking in with the Play-In Tournament, currently. But they’re also 2.5 games away from being in the top six. The West is truly insane and we’ll see how far Damian Lillard can carry this group.

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Nets at No. 18 and ahead of the Magic at No. 20.

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POWER RANKINGS >> Trail Blazers Remain In Bottom Half Of Ranks Heading Into All-Star Break

Week 17 for the Portland Trail Blazers consisted of a home game against the Hawks before hitting the road for three games against the Grizzlies, Wizards, and Bulls. The Blazers finished the week 3-1 with their only loss coming to the Bulls on Saturday.

Portland holds an overall record of 26-28 following Monday's loss to the Bucks. The homestand continues for the Blazers with the Warriors on Wednesday, Feb. 8 and the Thunder on Friday, Feb. 10.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 20, four spot up from last week.

Damian Lillard has taken a career-high 55.4% of his shots from 3-point range, and he hit two straight 3-pointers (part of a 17-4 run) to give the Blazers the lead with less than two minutes left in Memphis on Wednesday. The win ended both Portland’s eight-game road losing streak and Memphis’ eight-game home winning streak.

But, while he’s shooting more from deep, Lillard can still get to the basket. And it was his quickness that got the Blazers a win against the Hawks two nights earlier. First, he rejected a screen and blew by Clint Capela for a layup to put the Blazers ahead with a little less than a minute left. After the Hawks tied the game again, he drove by Dejounte Murray, drew help, and fed Anfernee Simons for a go-ahead 3-pointer. Lillard’s 15.2 drives per game rank 10th are tied with his 15.2 in 2019-20 for the most he’s averaged in the 10 seasons of player tracking. Additionally, the 58.3% he’s shot on drives ranks 10th among the 116 players with at least 100 field goal attempts. His free throw rate (44.3 attempts per 100 shots from the field is also the best mark of his career by a wide margin, and he’s 74-for-77 (96%) from the line over his last seven games.

The Blazers’ victories in Memphis and Washington were their 12th and 13th in games they trailed by double-digits. And their loss in Chicago on Saturday (the third time in their last five games that they’ve allowed more than 130 points per 100 possessions) was their 12th in a game they led by double-digits. Both of those totals, along with their six 3-pointers (on 11 attempts) to tie or take the lead in the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime, lead the league.

The Blazers’ remaining five pre-break games are at the Moda Center, and the homestand includes big games against the Warriors, Thunder and Lakers. Portland is currently 1-5 against those three teams.

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 19 and ahead of the Lakers at No. 21.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, three spots up from last week.

The Blazers had a strong week, rattling off wins over the Hawks, Grizzlies and Wizards before Saturday's loss to the Bulls on a back-to-back. Portland can either be buyers, sellers (Anfernee Simons, Jerami Grant, Josh Hart) or something in-between as the deadline nears, and what they do will say a lot about the direction of the franchise.

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers Behind the Bulls at No. 18 and ahead of the Jazz at No. 20.

Jason Burgos from Sports Naut has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, one spot up from last week.

Back from a season-ending injury, Damian Lillard was playing like a monster to start the NBA season and helped the Portland Trailblazer gets off to a very fast start. However, he suffered a hamstring injury recently and the team immediately went into a slump soon after.

Yet, even with their anchor back, the Trail Blazers have not played as well as they did earlier in the season. They could be a team to watch at the deadline as they could start to sell instead of earning a quick exit in the NBA playoffs.

Burgos has the Trail Blazers behind the Jazz at No. 18 and ahead of the Thunder at No. 20.

Enzo Flojo from Clutch Points has the Trail Blazers at No. 21, two spots up from last week.

The Blazers showed signs of life in late January, and they’ve continued some strong play to begin February. Portland has won five of its last seven games to close in on a play-in spot. One caveat, though, is how they’ll behave at the trade deadline. Will they make a big move to provide more firepower around Damian Lillard?

Flojo has the Trail Blazers behind the Wizards at No. 20 and ahead of the Hawks at No. 22.

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POWER RANKINGS >> 3-1 Week Leads To Positive Results In Ranks For The Trail Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers collected much-needed wins in week 16 of the NBA regular season. With wins over the Spurs on Monday and the Jazz on Wednesday, followed by a loss to the Raptors on Saturday, the Blazers finished the week 2-1.

Sixteen weeks into the season, Portland holds a 24-26 record after Monday's win against the Hawks to close out the homestand. The week continues as the Trail Blazers hit the road for three games starting Wednesday, Feb. 1 in Memphis before a back-to-back in Washington on Feb. 3 and then in Chicago on Feb. 4.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 24, one spot up from last week.

The Blazers’ starting lineup had been pretty healthy for almost eight weeks (since Damian Lillard returned from a seven-game absence in early December), and it ranks second among all lineups (behind only the Kings’ starters) in total minutes played. But it hasn’t been very good, getting outscored by 7.3 points per 100 possessions in its 209 January minutes and by 0.4 per 100 for the season. Lillard scored 97 total points (shooting 16-for-26 from 3-point range) against the Spurs and Jazz last week, but the Blazers were at their best with reserves on the floor over the two wins. And reserves were necessary on Wednesday, when both Josh Hart (hamstring) and Jusuf Nurkic (calf) were lost to injuries.

Of course, without Hart and Nurkic against Toronto on Saturday (the recently returned Nassir Little and Drew Eubanks were in their place), the Blazers were in a 16-point hole before Chauncey Billups made a sub. No matter who’s playing (though Justise Winslow has been missed), this team just isn’t very good defensively, and the wire-to-wire loss on Sunday was the Blazers’ worst defensive game of the season (123 points allowed on only 92 possessions).

The Blazers can say that they’re still just two games in the loss column out of fourth place, but they’re also a team that hasn’t won three out of four since mid-December. A win over the Hawks on Monday would give them a 3-1 stretch, but that game is followed by a three-game trip, and the Blazers have lost their last eight on the road.

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Bulls at No. 23 and ahead of the Pacers at No. 25.

Kyle Wood from Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, the same spot as last week.

Lillard lifted the Trail Blazers to back-to-back wins to begin the week, totaling nearly 100 points in two games. He scored 37 in a 20-point blowout against the Spurs and then set a new season high with 60, including nine made threes, to beat the Jazz by 10. Lillard added 30 more Saturday versus the Raptors, but it wasn’t enough as Portland still fell by 18. The Blazers have one more game at the Moda Center on Monday to wrap up their six-game homestand.

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Wizards at No. 21 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 23.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, one spot up from last week.

The Blazers beat the Spurs and Jazz to start the week, but failed to take advantage of a Raptors team on a back-to-back on Saturday in Portland. All Damian Lillard did was put up 60 points on 29 shots in the win over Utah, while averaging 42.3 for the week on 51 percent 3-point shooting.

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers Behind the Raptors at No. 21 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 23.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, three spots up from last week.

Buyers or sellers? Buyers. The Blazers should probably just roll with what they have and see how everything falls. There are times they look really good, and times they look like they’ll miss the Play-In Tournament. Jerami Grant is an expiring deal, but the Blazers are banking on keeping him. Portland could really mix things up by sending out Jusuf Nurkić and shaking up the rest of this support core. Josh Hart is a very cap-friendly deal. The Blazers have a good amount of control of their picks. But I don’t know if they have a significant deal available.

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 18 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 20.

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POWER RANKINGS >> Trail Blazers See Slight Rise In Ranks Following 2-1 Week 16

Coming off two impressive wins over the Mavs to close out week 14, week 15 was quite the opposite for the Portland Trail Blazers, ending the week 0-3. The week consisted of a loss to the top-seeded Nuggets in Denver on Tuesday before dropping to both the 76ers and Lakers to start a six-game homestand.&nbsp;

Fifteen weeks into the NBA regular season, the Trail Blazers hold a 22-25 record following Monday's win against the Spurs. Week 16 sees the Blazers homestand continue with the Jazz on Wednesday, Jan. 25 and the Raptors on Saturday, Jan. 28.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 25, five spots down from last week.

"Their visit from the Lakers on Sunday felt like a pretty big game for the Blazers. Holding onto 12th place in the West (which the Blazers held by a half-game before Sunday’s meeting) in the middle of January doesn’t matter, but maybe these teams will be fighting for eighth, ninth or 10th place in a couple of months. It was also an opportunity for the Blazers to regain some footing, having lost seven of their previous nine games.

The Blazers have generally been at their worst in the first quarter, and they fell into an early hole on Sunday. But they climbed out of it and, with Anfernee Simons outscoring the Lakers by himself, won the second quarter by 32 points (45-13), tied for the biggest single-quarter point differential in any game in *almost 36 years. But while Portland was a plus-32 in those 12 minutes, the Lakers were a plus-34 over the final 22 to move ahead of the Blazers in both the standings and the season series (2-1). Portland’s 25-point lead was the largest for any team in a game it lost this season, and the Blazers continue to lead the league in losses (they’re 16-11) in games led by double-digits.

Overall, the Blazers are 4-12 (tied for the league’s second-worst record) over the last five weeks, even though they’ve been outscored by only 15 total points over those 16 games. The four wins have come by an average of 18.5 points, while nine of the 12 losses have been within five in the last five.

The Blazers have four games left on their six-game homestand (their longest of the season), with a visit from the Jazz on Wednesday being their next big game in regard to the standings (if this team still has hopes of competing for a Play-In spot). The road team has won both meetings this far, and both were within two points in the final minute."

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Pacers at No. 24 and ahead of the Magic at No. 26.

Kyle Wood from Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, eight spots down from last week.

"Portland was on the verge of .500 last week following back-to-back surprising wins over Dallas. The Trail Blazers went in the wrong direction with three losses in a row to the Nuggets, 76ers and Lakers, all by at least nine points, and they led by 25 at the half in the loss to Los Angeles. The Blazers are 4–10 over the last month and have the third-worst record in the West. Despite&nbsp;Damian Lillard’s best efforts, Portland is going backward."

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Jazz at No. 21 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 23.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 23, one spot up from last week.

"Yeesh. It looked like the Blazers might start to gain some semblance of momentum, winning two straight against the Mavs before losses to the Nuggets and 76ers -- then they were hit by a Lakers freight train on Sunday as they watched a 25-point halftime lead disappear. Damian Lillard is going nuts, but Portland is still 2-8 in its last 10 games."

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers behind the Raptors at No. 22 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 24.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, four spots down from last week.

"Damian Lillard and Jerami Grant. Might as well write in Lillard’s name on the list in marker because the coaches love him and he’s deserving. The interesting idea is whether Grant can shoehorn his way into the frontcourt reserves. He probably won’t make it over the favorites, but his numbers and play are really good. Anfernee Simons is a couple years away from true consideration, but he hasn’t even reached McCollum level yet, and McCollum hasn’t made it yet.

We know we’re getting Shaedon Sharpe in the dunk contest, and he’s going to put on an incredible show. He’s got to be the favorite to win it, and it will put his name into far more households. Simons won the dunk contest in 2021, but he’s not headed back there. Could we get Grant in the 3-point contest or skills challenge? I’d actually love to see 38.2 percent 3-point shooter Jusuf Nurkić in the contest, but that’s just me wanting some chaos."

Harper has the Trail Blazers at behind the Bulls at No. 21 and ahead of the Wizards at No. 23.

Enzo Flojo from Clutch Points has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, six spots down from last week.

"Earlier this season, the Blazers were firing on all cylinders. Now, however, they’re just firing blanks. They haven’t put together a three-game winning streak since mid-December, and they’ve lost eight of their last 10 games. That includes their most recent loss, where they allowed the Lakers to climb back from a 25-point hole."

Flojo has the Trail Blazers behind the Clippers at No. 21 and ahead of the Mavericks at No. 23.

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POWER RANKINGS >> A Winless Week 15 Sees Drop In Ranks For The Blazers

After a rough week 13, the struggles continued for the Portland Trail Blazers to begin week 14 of the NBA regular season. Dropping to the Magic on Tuesday and the Cavaliers on Thursday, the Blazers found themselves losers of five straight for the first time this season before a much-needed weekend series sweep of the Mavericks on Jan. 14 and 15 to finish the week 2-2.

Fourteen weeks into the season, the Trail Blazers hold a record of 21-22. Looking forward to week 15, Portland will take a quick trip to Denver on Tuesday, Jan. 17 before returning home for six straight, starting with the 76ers on Thursday, Jan. 19 and the Lakers on Sunday, Jan. 22.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 20, two spots up from last week.

"At one point this season, the Blazers were 5-1 in clutch games, with game-winners in the final 10 seconds of four of those five wins. But clutch is fleeting, and Portland has lost its last eight games that were within five points in the last five minutes, falling to 9-14 in the clutch for the season. Over those eight close losses over the last four weeks, the Blazers have scored a paltry 34 points on 53 clutch possessions (64.2 per 100), with Damian Lillard and Jerami Grant a combined 6-for-23 on clutch shots, including 0-for-12 on clutch 3-pointers. Grant, Jusuf Nurkic and Anfernee Simons all missed 3s for the tie on the Blazers’ final possession against Orlando on Tuesday, and the Blazers had as many turnovers (3) as scores (3) on a nine-possession stretch that turned a late, five-point lead into an eight-point deficit against Cleveland two nights later.

The offense was good over the weekend, when the Blazers registered two of their three most efficient offensive performances of the season, scoring an amazing 141 points per 100 possessions as they swept a two-game series with Dallas. Lillard (who had 50 in the loss to the Cavs) totaled 76 points over the two wins, shooting 21-for-37 (57%) from the field and 26-for-26 from the line.

The two wins have the Blazers back within a game of .500 and also with a game in the loss column of the fifth-place Mavs. The lone road game on this stretch where they’re are playing 10 of 11 at home is Tuesday in Denver. Prior to Saturday, the Blazers’ most efficient offensive game of the season (135 points on 96 possessions) was against the Nuggets, back in October. But the Nuggets have won the last two meetings, even though the Blazers led both at the half."

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Jazz at No. 19 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 21.

Kyle Wood of Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 14, one spot up from last week.

"Damian Lillard went on a tear last week, but it netted his team only two wins in four tries. He went for 30 in a three-point loss to the Magic then a season-high 50 against the Cavaliers. Even that wasn’t enough and Portland dropped its fifth in a row. Over the weekend, the Trail Blazers teed off on the Mavericks, lighting them up for 136 and 140 in convincing wins. Lillard went for 36 and 40 and Portland won back-to-back games for the first time in a month. The Blazers head to Denver on Tuesday barely hanging on to a half game lead for the final play-in spot in the conference."

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Pacers at No. 13 and ahead of the Clippers at No. 15.

Zach Harper from The Athletic has the Trail Blazers at No. 18, unchanged from last week.

"Stop me if you’ve heard this before. The Trail Blazers have an excellent offense, and their defense is keeping them from being a lot better. While the Blazers seem more well-rounded thanks to Jerami Grant, they still have to find a way to get stops. The offense is probably going to carry them because I don’t know how much more you can squeeze out of this personnel defensively. They shoot the ball well and get to the free-throw line a ton, so they’ve just got to cut down on turnovers to help them climb and stay above a .500 record.

Prediction update: Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons combine to average at least 50.0 points per game. … This crazy scoring stretch from Lillard put the duo back over 50.0 points per game combined (50.7) for the season. Lillard is at 28.8 and Simons is at 21.9, but I don’t feel confident in this one."

Harper has the Trail Blazers behind the Thunder at No. 17 and ahead of the Bulls at No. 19.

Enzo Flojo from Clutch Points has the Trail Blazers at No. 16, three spots up from last week.

"The Blazers are coming off back-to-back wins over the Mavs. As such, they’ve also returned above .500 and inside the West’s top 10 again. We feel like this current roster’s ceiling isn’t high enough to place them among the elite. That’s also why we feel they need to make a big move by the time the trade deadline rolls along."

Flojo has the Trail Blazers behind the Pacers at No. 15 and ahead of the Warriors at No. 17.

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POWER RANKINGS >> A Week Of Ups And Downs For The Blazers Results In Minimal Change In Ranks

The road struggles continued for the Portland Trail Blazers in week 13. With trips to Minnesota, Indiana, and Toronto, Portland finished the week 0-3 dropping each game of the road trip and falling under .500 for the first time this season.

Thirteen weeks into the season, the Trail Blazers hold a record of 19-20. Looking forward to week 14, the Blazers return home to Moda Center starting Tuesday, Jan. 10 with the Magic, then the Cavaliers on Thursday, Jan. 12 before hosting a weekend two-game series against the Mavericks on Jan. 14 and 15.

John Schuhmann at NBA.com has the Trail Blazers at No. 22, seven spot down from last week.

"The Blazers rank sixth defensively over the last three weeks and have climbed out of the bottom 10 on that end of the floor for the season, even though they’ve been without Justise Winslow for the last seven games and had Gary Payton II for just 13 minutes before he sprained his ankle. But they’ve lost seven of their nine games over that three-week stretch, with only two of the nine coming against teams that currently have winning records. The two wins (over Charlotte and Detroit) have come at home, while the seven losses have come on the road, where the Blazers have struggled offensively.

They’ve scored just 108.1 points per 100 possessions over those last seven road games, with a ton of turnovers (18.2 per 100 possessions) and with their three most prolific 3-point shooters – Damian Lillard, Anfernee Simons and Jerami Grant having combined to shoot 56-for-177 (31.6%) from 3-point range. The Blazers were 0-for-13 from the field (with two turnovers) over the final 7 1/2 minutes in Indiana on Friday, their league-leading ninth loss in games they led by double-digits.

The 2-7 stretch has dropped the Blazers below .500 for the first time this season and into 10th place in the Western Conference. The good news is that they’ve had the league’s most road-heavy schedule to date, with only 14 of their 39 games at the Moda Center. They’re 9-6 (with four straight wins) at home, where they’ll play 10 of their next 11. They’ll have a rest advantage against the Magic on Tuesday, but the five games after that will be their toughest stretch between now and the All-Star break."

Schuhmann has the Trail Blazers behind the Timberwolves at No. 21 and ahead of the Thunder at No. 23.

Kyle Wood of Sports Illustrated has the Trail Blazers at No. 15, two spots down from last week.

"The Trail Blazers went winless on the road last week to fall below .500 for the first time this season. The offense was largely limited in losses to the Timberwolves, Pacers and Raptors and Portland is now holding onto the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. The Blazers return to the Moda Center to host the Magic, Cavaliers and Mavericks (twice) over the next several days."

Wood has the Trail Blazers behind the Clippers at No. 14 and ahead of the Warriors at No. 16.

Colin Ward-Henninger from CBS Sports has the Trail Blazers at No. 18, seven spots down from last week.

"Rough week for the Blazers, whose only win came against the Rockets while losing to the Mavs and dropping consecutive one-possession games to the Thunder. Damian Lillard averaged 23.3 points but shot just 40 percent from the field, while Anfernee Simons added 17.5 points per game on 39 percent 3-point shooting. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander beat them with an unguardable game-winner in the first OKC loss, but still, Portland isn't playing its best basketball on either end."

Ward-Henninger has the Trail Blazers behind the Heat at No. 17 and ahead of the Hawks at No. 19.

Enzo Flojo from Clutch Points has the Trail Blazers at No. 19, one spot down from last week.

"The struggles continue for the Blazers. Right now, Portland is on a three-game slump. Prospects are not looking that well for Damian Lillard & Co. as they are now in 10th place in the West. They badly need a bounce-back win this week, and they can do that against the Magic."

Flojo has the Trail Blazers behind the Wizards at No. 18 and ahead of the Suns at No. 20.

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POWER RANKINGS >> Portland's Road Struggles Lead To Drop In Rankings

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