The Portland Trail Blazers (32-40) aren’t trending too high or too low these days. This past week, the franchise took care of the Memphis Grizzlies and Denver Nuggets (winning teams both missing their best player) and then succumbed to a powerhouse Boston Celtics squad on Sunday.
That 2-1 mark was enough of a showing for Portland to keep its No. 19 spot in NBA.com’s power rankings, one spot behind the Orlando Magic and one spot in front of the Chicago Bulls. In the write-up accompanying Portland’s ranking, NBA.com writer John Schuhmann spotlighted an effective three-piece combo for the Blazers and the sparkling play of forward Deni Avdija.