For a team that hasn’t missed the playoffs since 2013, the impending reality that this may not be their year can be hard to come to grips with. On nights like Tuesday — where the Boston Celtics defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 118-106 and pushed Rip City down to three games behind the eighth seed — swallowing that pill becomes even more difficult.
But consider for a moment the notion that Portland has been missing 80 percent of their intended starting lineup for a very large portion of the season, and they’re still within striking distance of the playoffs.