7 Ways for Portland Trail Blazers to Move Up in the NBA's Northwest Division

The Portland Trail Blazers ripped out of the gate this season. A win over the Los Angeles Lakers that moved them to 5-1 had national pundits talking about the Blazers as a surprise title contender come June.

After 13 games, Portland is 8-5 and fourth out of five teams in the Northwest Division.

Unlike years past, the injury bug hasn’t been the downfall of this year’s team. Other than an ankle injury to Marcus Camby, the Blazers have been relatively healthy thus far. (Not counting Greg Oden, because nobody considers him a Trail Blazer any more—just a bad Trail Blazer draft pick.)

Instead of injuries, it’s been an adjustment to a new backcourt. It’s been lackluster shooting. It’s been self-described fatigue from having to play so many games in such a short amount of time. Lately it’s been a road trip.

Portland is going to have to continue playing on the road. The team will be forced to keep playing a lot of games in not a lot of nights because the players and the league couldn’t agree on a settlement earlier in the summer. Those things are out of the players’ control.

There is a handful of things the players and their coaches can do to get back on track. If they follow these guidelines, the Blazers could find themselves making a deep postseason run for the first time since 2000. That year, as Portland fans remember all too well, ended with a catastrophic meltdown in the fourth quarter against the Lakers, a game that will never leave the collective conscious of Blazermaniacs because of the repeated replays of Shaquille O'Neal pointing to the crowd after throwing down a one-handed alley-oop from Kobe Bryant.

Some of the pieces from this year’s team look mightily similar to that 2000 squad: a power forward who can play inside or out; a point guard who can get up and down the floor in a hurry; a center who can pass the rock; and a stable of long, athletic wings.

By following these pointers, this year’s team could find itself playing Memorial Day weekend.

Turn Gerald Wallace Loose

Gerald Wallace is a freak. He’s averaging 1.5 steals a game and usually turns those into fast-break dunks. Let him roam the court and let the fans watch his braids sway as he thunders through the lane without considering the play that was called.

Shooting Practice for the Backcourt

Raymond Felton and Jamal Crawford are shooting a combined 34.4 percent from the field. That’s the same percentage that won an American League batting title for Magglio Ordonez in 2011. Your backcourt needs to shoot better than a slugger’s batting average.

More Looks for Nicolas Batum

Nicolas Batum is shooting better from three-point range (47.7 percent) than he is from two-point range (41 percent). Spot him up in the corner so he can catch and shoot when Raymond Felton drives and dishes or when teams double-team LaMarcus Aldridge in the post.

When he’s involved offensively, his defensive intensity will stay up and we’ll see more shots swatted.

More Three-Point Shooters

The three goggles took the basketball world by storm last year, showing up not only in the Rose Garden but in other NBA arenas, the NCAA tournament and high school gyms. This year Wesley Matthews has moved to holstering his three-shooter.

More Blazers need to fire their guns and see the excitement spread through the sellout crowds.

Get Chris Johnson in the Weight Room

The youngster from LSU is freakishly athletic. But at 6'11", 210, he’s going to get pushed around by divisional opponents like Kevin Love (6'10", 260) and Serge Ibaka (6'10", 235). If he can add 20 pounds of muscle he has the makings of a Jermaine O’Neal-type player.

And he can help remedy…

Rest Marcus Camby

The Blazers' woes at center are well-documented, with Marcus Camby and Kurt Thomas having roamed the earth for a combined 76 years. While both are still effective, they won’t hold up for the long haul if they have to play heavy minutes, as we’ve seen with Camby’s recent ankle injury.

Aldridge, Aldridge, Aldridge

The Blazers need to funnel every half-court possession through LaMarcus Aldridge. He’s averaging nearly 19 shot attempts a game, which is about where it should be. His assists (2.3 per game) should go up as he draws more double-teams and kicks it out of the post.