In a game that looked like a sure loss for the Portland Trail Blazers, it ended up coming down to the final shot.
The Chicago Bulls led 109-88 with just over nine minutes remaining in the game, but needed some last second heroics to come away with the 122-121 win over Portland.
A monumental comeback attempt for the Blazers was ripped away from them when Nikola Vucevic hit a three-pointer as time expired to earn the win for Chicago.
Despite the loss, Portland had some incredible performances from Deni Avdija, Donovan Clingan and Jerami Grant down the stretch. Avdija ended with a 32-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple-double. Clingan finished with a career-high 21 rebounds, which included 10 offensive rebounds. Grant led the team in scoring with 33 points.
The Bulls were led in scoring by the 27 points of Vucevic and Coby White’s 25 points off the bench.
Here are some takeaways from the game.
The Blazers have made the offensive glass a key part of their identity this season and their ability to create extra possessions has helped them survive some rough shooting nights. The 26 offensive rebounds by Portland is tied for the third-most by a team this season and helped force Chicago to the absolute limit despite the Blazers shooting just 41% from the field and 29% from three.
Clingan especially was a monster on the glass with his 10 offensive boards. He was followed by Grant and Kris Murray who each had four of their own. During Portland’s massive comeback, the offensive glass was instrumental in the effort. Forcing the Bulls to stop the Blazers from scoring two or three times every possession is what allowed Portland to finally take back the lead at the end of the game.
Although being able to rely on snagging offensive boards is nice, at some point the ball has to go in the basket. As mentioned before, Portland shot just 41% from the field and 29% from deep. Compare that to the 48% from the field and 41% from downtown that Chicago shot, and it becomes easy to see how the Bulls built their massive lead in the first place.
Portland shot 11 more shots than Chicago, but made two less, including nine fewer three-pointers. At some point the Blazers have to start making shots consistently, but it has proven to be one of their biggest weaknesses this season time and time again.
In a game where Portland was missing Jrue Holiday and Shaedon Sharpe from the starting lineup, Avdija stepped up in a major way with a triple-double to fill the gaps left by the pair. He scored 32 points and added 11 assists and rebounds to his totals. He was the main offensive catalyst behind Portland’s late run and totaled 15 points in the fourth quarter alone. On the defensive end, he snagged a pair of steals and came away with a block.
I’ve mentioned it a few times already in this recap, but it can not be overstated how impactful Clingan was down the stretch. For a few minutes it felt like it didn’t matter if Portland made or missed a shot because Clingan was gobbling up rebounds (21 total on the night) at a ridiculous rate. He was creating second chances for minutes at a time, and added a few assists off of rebounds as well, including an absurd bounce pass from a seated position to Murray.
Clingan also added 17 points, four dimes, and a pair of blocks to his gaudy rebounding numbers in one of the best games of his career.
The Blazers are heading back on the road to take on the Golden State Warriors in the third game of the Emirates NBA Cup on Friday, Nov. 21 at 7pm Pacific.
