PORTLAND, Ore. — On Sunday night, Damian Lillard returned to the Portland Trail Blazers starting lineup after missing the previous five games with an abdominal issue. Portland also switched up its starting group, inserting Larry Nance Jr. and Nassir Little at the forward spots.
The more things change, the more things stay the same as the Blazers lost their fifth straight game to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 116-111. There were some fun bright spots from Anfernee Simons and Ben McLemore, but the final seven minutes saw the Blazers blow a lead and come up short in the clutch.
That's enough bad news for one episode so this one closes with a Moment of Joy shared by a listener about falling in love with Blazers basketball.
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About Locked On Blazers
Mike Richman has covered the Portland Trail Blazers in various capacities since 2014 as a beat writer for The Oregonian, a reporter at NBC Sports Northwest and now in the form of the only daily Trail Blazers podcast, Locked On Blazers. The Pass First Point Guard will get you closer to the team with reports from inside the Moda Center and by unpacking the statistics to know and about your favorite team. You will also find regular guests and can get your questions answered with weekly mailbag shows.
If you would like to participate in the weekly mailbag show, submit your questions to @mikegrich on Twitter or email lockedonblazerspod@gmail.com.
Locked On Blazers is the best way to stay up to date on the latest happenings in the Portland basketball world. It’s available wherever you get podcasts and on YouTube with new shows every weekday.
