Victory is Sweet

By Katie Jackson

The Portland Trail Blazers (31–26) are no strangers to defeat, but as of February 14th they may have had the sweetest victory of the season. Going into the all-star break the Trail Blazers needed a big win, and a big win is what they got when they beat the Golden State Warriors 123–117 at home.

You cannot talk about the Trail Blazers without talking about Damian Lillard and this game was no different. The All-Star scored 44 points, three rebounds and eight assists, but what made this game different is that this time he was not alone. CJ McCollum was right behind him with 29 points, five rebounds and two assists. A name that sometimes goes unmentioned, Jusuf Nurkic, might have been a difference maker with 17 points, 13 rebounds and no turnovers.

This game was a testament to how solid the Trail Blazers can be when they step up and evolve as an offense instead of leaving one man (namely Lillard) to do the job on his own. However, if the win itself is not enough evidence that the Trail Blazers can be a force to reckon with when their players step up offensively, one particular play effectively demonstrates it.

In the second quarter, after a step out-of-bounds turnover by Shaun Livingston of the Warriors, Lillard brought the ball down the court as Nurkic set up a pick for Lillard to drive to the basket. After the pick, Nurkic rolled to his right and shuffled to the basket, and Lillard looked as if he was going to take the layup per usual. Instead, he drilled it to Nurkic who went up for the dunk with ease pushing the Trail Blazers lead to 51–36 with just over six minutes left in the quarter.

Victory is sweetest when you’ve known defeat. The Trail Blazers get to bask in their win over the Warriors for nine days where they will then face the Utah Jazz. With the western standings still tight if the Trail Blazers offense can continue to evolve they could write their own playoff destiny.