The Trail Blazers fought out of the play-in tournament and made the playoffs this season for the first time since 2021. It made Portland one of the best stories in the NBA heading into the postseason considering how this campaign kicked off—with the arrest of coach Chauncey Billups on federal charges.
Such a shocking turn of events could have derailed the Blazers’ year entirely, and it would have been hard to blame anybody on the team for letting that distraction impact their play. Instead, Deni Avdija made a superstar leap as the roster came together under interim coach (and former NBA center) Tiago Splitter; it didn’t make for a perfect season but they stuck together, battled hard and beat the Suns in a road playoff environment to earn a playoff berth. After Game 2 against the Spurs on Tuesday night the series is tied 1-1 heading back to Portland. With all the above context there should be plenty to talk about around the team’s performance on the court and the adversity they faced.
