When the Portland Trail Blazers welcomed back star guard CJ McCollum for his first game since Dec. 4, the more-than-likely expectation was that their 11th-ranked offense would hum as it previously had. Instead, the Blazers clamped down on defense in a wire-to-wire 98-88 victory over the Orlando Magic. In the process, they tied season-bests in points allowed and their second-best defensive rating of the year.
In his return, McCollum chipped in an efficient 16-point performance on 7-of-13 shooting, playing a secondary role behind Jusuf Nurkic, who pieced together a 21-point, 22-rebound, four-steal, two-block masterpiece.