San Antonio Spurs at Portland Trail Blazers
Time: 10:35 EST (ESPN)
Spread: SAS -7.5
Total: 204
Betting odds c/o Bovada
The Portland Trail Blazers were expected to be among the NBA’s worst teams, but thus far that approximation has not held true.
Damian Lillard and mates are 4-4 and will seek to move above .500 as it hosts the San Antonio Spurs on ESPN tonight. Early NBA odds shows the Spurs as 7.5-point favorites in the game which has an under/over of 204.
Damian Lillard was given the sixth-best odds at winning the scoring title this season, and thus far he has hardly disappointed, ranking No. 5 in the NBA in points per game. The talented third-year guard is averaging 27.5 points and 7.3 assists per game while posting a PER of 26.2.
Lillard has been aided heavily by another mid-major NCAA talent in C.J. McCollum, a legitimate second option posting 20.9 points per game. Lillard is knocking down 42.9 percent from three-point range and McCollum is good for 41.7, giving the Blazers a hot shooting tandem of guards that has helped it keep pace this season.
Another big contributor has been small forward Al-Farouq Aminu. Billed mostly as a defender, this year he has raised his scoring average to 12.9 points per game. His energy and defensive abilities make it easier to swallow that the team gave up on Nicolas Batum for a prospect in Noah Vonleh, who has played minimally.
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Big man Mason Plumlee stepped up in Brooklyn and seems to have found a home in Portland with 10.1 points and 7.8 rebounds in 26 minutes of play per night.
The Blazers have also nurtured the growth of Myers Leonard and Maurice Harkless, both of whom average eight points per game. Portland as a team averages 103.8 points per game, and is clearly not a team as devoid of talent as some tried to insinuate.
Yes, it is early, but the Blazers do not look like a cellar dwelling group poised only for a high draft pick and free agents. Lillard is a talent who could make All-NBA first team, and if he continues this current play it will be hard to bet against that chance.
The San Antonio Spurs are 5-2 on the season after downing Sacramento 106-88 Monday night. Kawhi Leonard is playing like a max contract player statistically now, seemingly breaking out of the Spurs’ effect of having lower offensive numbers. Leonard is averaging 22.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.1 steals/blocks per game in 33 minutes a night. He is the only Spur to see more than 30 minutes per game, as Gregg Popovich rests his players to keep them fresh for the postseason.
Even prized free agent acquisition LaMarcus Aldridge has seen his court time drastically reduced from his time in Portland. He’s averaging 29.4 minutes per game and averaging 15.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
Aldridge, Tim Duncan and Leonard make up arguably the best frontcourt in the NBA. Duncan is nearly averaging a double double with 10.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per game in addition to his 1.29 steals/blocks.
Manu Ginobili has eased off the gas a little, but he is still an effective player off the bench. He is averaging 10.6 points per game while shooting 40.7 percent from three-point range. Tony Parker has been highly efficient in shooting 54 percent from the floor to average 11.3 point per game on just nine field goal attempts per contest.
The Spurs are an aged team and it has to catch up eventually, but we always write that and it seemingly never happens.
Popovich makes the most of his deep roster and the Spurs have a true nine-man rotation with veteran David West rounding it out with further experience. This team has been tried and tested, and the regular season will again be a tune up for what this team can do, just two years removed from its last NBA title.
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