Trail Blazers Play Great Behind Grant, Clingan, Fall to Pelicans

The Portland Trail Blazers came oh so close to their first win of the 2024-25 season tonight, dominating the New Orleans Pelicans for three quarters before slipping behind in the fourth, only to lose 105-103. Jerami Grant put on a strong performance with 34 points on 8-17 three-point shooting. Anfernee Simons scored 24 but couldn’t convert on back-to-back possessions down the stretch to save the game. Jordan Hawkins led the Pelicans with 24 off the bench, many of which came in the decisive fourth quarter.

Despite the loss, Portland demonstrated many admirable qualities in the game. Among them were the following.

Controlled Tempo

After losing a sprint-a-thon to the Golden State Warriors Wednesday night, the Blazers did what they needed to do tonight, running out every possession but slowing down and setting up the halfcourt offense when the break buckets weren’t available. They got rid of the bad quick shots that plagued them two days ago. Instead they penetrated and dished, occasionally adding in a pick and roll or off-ball cutting action. They had great success finding shooters on the weak side. It was actually kind of smart and beautiful? I’m not sure those words have been used to describe Portland’s offense since the Terry Stotts/Damian Lillard era.

The Blazers shot 41.1% from the field, 35.5% from the three-point arc with 12 fast break points and a 42-30 advantage in the paint. Those are modest numbers by NBA standards, but Portland will take them and run…judiciously.

Jerami Grant

Nobody benefited from the halfcourt passing more than Jerami Grant, who feasted on three pointers, salted with the occasional drive. His shot was quick and decisive. One of the unfolding features of this new season is how Grant has assumed a true #1 scoring option role. He’s like a fine wine that has come into its peak years.

For all those who ding the Blazers’ coaching staff, fair enough most nights. But putting Grant on the weak side was a stroke of genius against the big, fairly slow, and over-pursuing Pelicans. Their guards aren’t defensive threats. As soon as Grant caught, the shot was as good as sunk, the drive open. That would not have happened if JG had occupied his usual spot on the strong side of the court. Nice move against this opponent.

Drawing Fouls

Three-pointers weren’t the only way the Blazers rang up the scoreboard. Penetration led to foul shots, the secret sauce to Portland’s offensive Big Mac. The Blazers shot 80% from the charity stripe, with Anfernee Simons drawing 11 foul shots and hitting 10. It’s impossible to overstate how free throws transform a rather pedestrian offensive attack into a decent one.

Forced Turnovers

The Pelicans playing big and thriving in isolation let Portland’s defense set up against them. Portland’s size was adequate to counter their opponents. Their quicker hands and feet showed up in forced turnovers. The Blazers helped the Pels to 19 miscues. That trimmed New Orleans’ scoring ability, a huge advantage. At the half, Portland had only scored 47 points (approximately one quarter of production for the Boston Celtics). But New Orleans had just 37, in part because Portland limited their opportunities. It was a dream half in that way, just how the coaches drew it up. Too bad it couldn’t last for all 48.

Simons Recovers

In the second half, the part of weak-side scorer Jerami Grant was played by Anfernee Simons, who worked off the ball in open space to create threes and layups. He looked like a bona fide Big Deal in the third period. Once he got rolling, he took over ball-handling duties, drew Pelican defenders to him like flies, and then dished to teammates. Things cooled down a bit when Simons went one-on-everybody though. He also got tied up on the penultimate play of the game and swatted clean when trying to tie it at the buzzer, both attempts coming on penetration. It’s a work in progress.

Simons finished with 24 points, 7 assists, and 4 turnovers but shot only 6-20 from the field, 2-9 from the arc.

Annoying Scoot

Scoot Henderson came off the bench with 3 steals, 6 assists, and 15 points on 7-9 shooting. He was a bother on defense all night, a strong contrast to Game 1. His confidence looks sky high right now. He also did an impressive (for him) job of getting the ball to teammates at the rim and arc. With multiple lobs to centers, Henderson was a valuable player and passer tonight, not just a showcase scorer. That’s a welcome sight in Portland.

Ayton at the Rim

Deandre Ayton didn’t have a standout game, scoring 10 with 15 rebounds and 2 blocks. But his rim attack in the halfcourt, aided in part by Henderson, was exciting to see. Ayton finished with authority off of lobs and offensive rebounds. If Portland can get Ayton 3-4 super easy shots per game, his scoring could creep up to 20 without too much trouble. An aggressive Ayton would help transform the Blazers attack into true nastiness.

Ayton was less successful outside of three feet, however, particularly in the fourth quarter. The Blazers’ halfcourt offense really needs him.

Toumani Camara Defense

Toumani Camara came out the gate ready to defend and continued throughout the entire game. It’s almost scary how easily he stays in front of his man and stands him up on penetration. (Deni Avdija has similar capabilities, by the way.) Camara’s one issue is fouling, but frankly that appears to be a result of being relatively unknown in the league as much as any hacking on Toumani’s part. If he were Draymond Green, he’d have three fewer fouls and three more forced turnovers. If he keeps up the great “D”, that day may come.

Clingan the Stopper

Donovan Clingan is not yet the ideal center for every situation, but in some circumstances he shines. New Orleans brought a host of big men with the single-minded purpose of getting to the rim one-on-one. That brought those bigger, slower players right into Clingan’s wheelhouse. And no matter how big you are, Donovan is bigger. He compiled 4 blocked shots and forced three or four times that number of misses all by his little…uh, big…self. If you freeze any frame of Clingan next to other NBA players, you’ll see how massive he is. If the opponent doesn’t make him move, that size and his natural defensive instincts are going to pay dividends. DC did capital work tonight.

Fourth Quarter Follies

All of the above happened in the first three periods of the game. In the fourth quarter, the Blazers Flagged somewhat. They got back on defense slower. Their halfcourt offense lost its aggressiveness. Grant and Ayton missed open shots that they had hit earlier and Simons could not save them. Pelicans guard Jordan Hawkins playing like Steph Curry did not help. New Orleans outscored Portland 30-19 in the final frame. That was just enough to secure the victory.

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Boxscore

The Blazers face these same Pelicans on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM, Pacific.