Portland Trail Blazers vs. San Antonio Spurs Pick & Prediction DECEMBER 21st 2024
Preview and Prediction
The resurgent San Antonio Spurs have all their key players back and will look to continue their impressive run when they welcome the Portland Trail Blazers to town on Saturday for a showdown in the Western Conference.
Despite dealing with injuries to key players and the absence of head coach Gregg Popovich (due to a stroke) for the past six weeks, the Spurs have emerged as one of the most surprising teams in the NBA.
San Antonio's roster is a mix of young up-and-comers like Victor Wembanyama, Jeremy Sochan, and rookie Stephon Castle, as well as seasoned veterans Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes. The experienced duo has instilled a "win-now" mentality within the team, rather than focusing on a rebuilding process.
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A prime example of the Spurs' gritty play was seen in their thrilling 133-126 overtime victory against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday. Wembanyama put up an impressive 42 points, while Paul made a crucial four-point play in regulation and a game-winning 3-pointer in overtime to secure the win. This marked San Antonio's third win in their last four games.
"We have a really talented team, and I just hope we realize our potential," Paul stated after the game. "We don't have to wait for next year or the year after. We need to focus on winning right now."
Thursday's triumph also saw guard Devin Vassell make his first start of the season, contributing 23 points. Vassell had missed the first nine games of the season while recovering from foot surgery. This was also the first time this season that the Spurs' projected starting five - Wembanyama, Paul, Barnes, Sochan, and Vassell - took the court together.
The Trail Blazers come into this matchup on a high after snapping a six-game losing streak with a 126-124 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday. This was only their second win in their last ten games.
Anfernee Simons sealed the win for Portland with a game-winning layup at the buzzer. He led the team with 28 points and 10 assists, while Shaedon Sharpe added 27 points and Deni Avdija had 19 points off the bench in just 21 minutes. The Trail Blazers managed to hold on to the win despite blowing a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Like the Spurs, Portland is also considered to be in a rebuilding phase, learning from their losses and aiming to improve with each game. So, defeating a recent NBA champion like Denver must have been a confidence boost for a team that has been focused on staying the course and making progress.
"I can't predict the future, but I like the progress we make each day," Simons said. "We just need to keep working on our weaknesses and continue to improve."
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The Spurs have already won the first two games of the season series against Portland, with a 13-point victory at home on November 7th and a two-point win on the road last week. After Saturday's game, the two teams will face each other one more time on April 6th in Portland.
Portland vs. San Antonio Recap APR 16TH 2021
DeMar DeRozan's 21 points led seven San Antonio players in double-figure scoring as the Spurs made all the big plays in the fourth quarter to beat the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 108-103 on Saturday and capture their eighth straight victory.
The Spurs trailed by four points entering the fourth quarter but took an 89-86 advantage on a 3-pointer by Davis Bertans with 5:55 to play.
San Antonio never trailed again, with Bertans converting all three free throws after being fouled while shooting from behind the arc with 3:39 left. Bryn Forbes then hit a 3-pointer, and Derrick White canned a jumper to push the Spurs' lead to 100-92 with 2:11 remaining.
From there, San Antonio used free throws to keep Portland at bay for its 10th straight win at home.
The Spurs (41-29) are now a season-best 12 games over .500 and within a game and a half of Portland for fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
Rudy Gay and White added 13 points each for San Antonio, with LaMarcus Aldridge and Patty Mills scoring 12 points each. Forbes and Marco Belinelli both hit for 11 for the Spurs.
Portland's Damian Lillard led all scorers with 34 points (25 of them in the second half).
Jusuf Nurkic added 24 points and 16 rebounds for the Trail Blazers (42-27) while Rodney Hood scored 13 points. Maurice Harkless and CJ McCollum scored 11 and 10 points, respectively.
McCollum left the contest after injuring his left leg during a drive to the basket in the third quarter. He crashed to the court and immediately grabbed his knee in apparent pain. Teammates Skal Labissiere and Meyers Leonard helped him to the locker room, and McCollum did not return to the game.
The Trail Blazers led 50-48 after a back-and-forth first half that featured seven ties and five lead changes. San Antonio was up by as many as 11 in the half, but Portland swept to the front, at 46-45, on a jumper by Nurkic with 1:41 to play.
DeRozan's 14 points in the half led all scorers while Nurkic paced the Trail Blazers with 12 points.
Lillard scored 15 of his points in the third quarter, but the Trail Blazers were only able to expand their lead to four points, at 76-72, heading into the final 12 minutes.