Another mediocre projection for the Portland Trail Blazers. This news should come as almost no surprise. But almost none of these projections go as low as FiveThirtyEight‘s most recent one.
According to them, the Blazers will win 39 games and miss the playoffs as the West’s ninth place team. This prediction puts them 2.5 games below where Vegas placed their over/under.
After finishing 49-23 and third in a very tough West last year, a result like FiveThirtyEight’s prediction would be a disaster for the players, coaches, and fans alike. Of course, last year’s third seed should have an asterisk next to it, as Portland won only three more games than the ninth placed Nuggets.