Memphis Grizzlies: Who’s close to challenging for that eighth seed?
By Ethan Becker
No.3: Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers sit in the ninth seed in the Western Conference, and are currently the Grizzlies biggest threat to take the eighth seed from them, sitting just three games back.
Still, Portland has their own challenges with getting into the postseason, mainly, the injury to their star point guard Damian Lillard. He is expected to travel with the team on their upcoming three-game road trip, but he is expected to be out at least a “couple more games”, according to the Athletic.
The Blazers have lost two of the three games that Lillard has been out for, and if he’s going to be out for an extended period of time, that could cost the Trail Blazers a playoff seed.
On the bright side for Portland, CJ McCollum has played great over that stretch. He’s averaged 32.0 points, 10.7 assists, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.1 percent from the field, 45.2 percent from the 3-point range, and 66.7 percent from the free throw line. If he can keep up this high level of play when Lillard returns, Portland could be scary in the playoffs.