PORTLAND, Ore. — It was a busy week for the Portland Trail Blazers.
The week started with two wins, including the most impressive victory of the season, a 117-107 win against the Rockets. But the Blazers couldn't sustain the momentum from the Houston win, dropping their next two games against the Mavericks and Thunder.
Portland's front office also agreed to a trade on Saturday, sending Kent Bazemore, Anthony Tolliver and a couple second-round draft picks to the Sacramento Kings for Trevor Ariza, Caleb Swanigan and Wenyen Gabriel. It was primarily a financial move as the deal will save the Blazers more than $12 million in luxury tax payments.
The Blazers (18-26) have slipped three games behind the eighth-place Memphis Grizzlies for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The schedule remains challenging for the Blazers, with eight of their next 10 games against teams with winning records.
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Here’s a look at where the Blazers fall in the latest batch of NBA power rankings:
Sports Illustrated: Blazers rank No. 19 (no change)
Carmelo Anthony certainly delivered in his revenge game against the Rockets on Wednesday. Anthony dusted off his vintage self at the Toyota Center, burying seven of 10 shots en route to 18 points. Anthony remains steady as Portland climbs back into the playoff race. His year-long absence from the NBA is shocking in retrospect. – Michael Shapiro
ESPN: Blazers rank No. 20 (down 2)
The Portland locker room was an odd place Saturday, barren and quiet with only eight players in it after a 13-point loss to the Thunder. With more injuries and now a trade made to shed salary, the Blazers might be coming to grips with the reality of this season. Even if they can turn it around, the best they can likely achieve is the seventh or eighth seed. So the priorities are shifting to trimming the most expensive roster in the league and possibly setting the table for a better 2020-21. – Royce Young
NBA.com: Blazers rank No. 20 (no change)
On Wednesday, Kent Bazemore played a not-insignificant role in holding James Harden to his lowest scoring game in almost two years as the Blazers got one of their best wins of the season, a 117-107 victory in Houston. Three days later, the Blazers reportedly agreed to send Bazemore to Sacramento in a trade that was more about the luxury tax than it was about basketball. (It can't officially go through until Tuesday.)
The Blazers have the league's most home-heavy remaining schedule, with 22 of their final 38 games at the Moda Center. Jusuf Nurkic will eventually be back in uniform, and Bazemore was almost as much of a negative on offense as he was a positive on defense. Maybe Trevor Ariza will be better.
But the Houston win was not the start of a turnaround; The Blazers followed it up by allowing the Mavs and Thunder to score more than 120 points per 100 possessions in a pair of weekend losses. And while the schedule is home-heavy, the next three weeks are tough. After they host the Warriors on Monday, the Blazers will play eight of their next nine games against teams with winning records. – John Schuhmann
The Athletic: Blazers rank No. 20 (up 3)
All-Star(s) in the mix: Damian Lillard. Despite the fan voting efforts to get Carmelo Anthony into the starting frontcourt, Lillard is the only All-Star option for the Trail Blazers. The Blazers have been an absolute mess this year. They’re hoping Trevor Ariza saves them even half as much on the court as he’s saving them in luxury tax penalties after moving Kent Bazemore. But the constant has been Lillard balling out. He’s averaging a career-high in points (27.1) and assists (7.6). His true shooting is a career-best 60.4 percent. Lillard has been great for the Blazers, and he’s just not getting the requisite help out there. He’s an All-Star, especially because coaches won’t want that snub revenge tour.
Why is this team here? Things looked great in the first half of the week. Portland took out Charlotte and had a great victory in Houston. Finished out the week dropping two against Dallas and Oklahoma City. I think they’re playing better basketball, as of late, than they were a couple of weeks ago. The Blazers still lack consistency with stringing victories together, but Dame has them within shouting distance of the No. 8 seed. – Zach Harper
CBS Sports: Blazers rank No. 20 (up 4)
Portland started the week with consecutive wins over the Hornets and Rockets, but then dropped games to the Mavericks and Thunder. The Blazers made a trade to provide some salary cap relief, a possible sign that they're not looking to make a "win now" move before the trade deadline. CJ McCollum suffered an ankle injury against the Mavs which kept him out of the Thunder game as well – the last thing the Blazers need at this point. – Colin Ward-Henninger
Jared Cowley writes about the Trail Blazers and other topics for KGW.com and is the co-host of KGW's 3-on-3 Blazers podcast. Have questions or comments for the 3-on-3 Blazers team? Email them here.
