OAKLAND, Calif. — Wednesday night's 125-121 conference semifinal loss to the Golden State Warriors marked an end for the Portland Trail Blazers.
But this young team, having just completed a playoff run years ahead of schedule, should think of it more like a beginning. A good beginning—one absolutely nobody foresaw and one the young roster can use to propel itself forward in the future.
But first: the past.
Modest projections abounded before the season, ranging between 18 and 34 wins but never including the word "playoffs" unless directly preceded by some variation of the qualifier "Portland has no chance to make the." I had them slotted 25th in the preseason edition of Bleacher Report's power rankings.
It's easy, even now, to defend the dearth of optimism.
The Blazers lost four of their five starters over the summer. LaMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Matthews, Robin Lopez and Nicolas Batum were gone—replaced by inexpensive youth. The trade that sent Batum to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for the teenaged Noah Vonleh was the clearest signal short-term success was low on the pr ...
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Article written by Grant Hughes
Trail Blazers’ Ceiling Is High Despite Series Loss to Warriors
May 12th, 2016 by Grant Hughes Leave a reply »
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