Washington Wizards vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Postgame Grades and Analysis
The Portland Trail Blazers fell behind early but battled back to topple the Washington Wizards 103-96 Saturday at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
LaMarcus Aldridge netted a game-high 26 points, while Damian Lillard added 20 points and seven assists for the winners.
Washington raced out to a 13-2 advantage before the Trail Blazers made a shot from the field, holding a 32-20 after one quarter thanks to an off-balance, buzzer-beating floater from John Wall.
Starting at 1:07 remaining in regulation, Meyers Leonard, Aldridge and Lillard combined to go 9-of-9 from the free-throw line and seal the victory. Portland was a perfect 20-of-20 from the charity stripe.
The Blazers managed to overcome a significant injury excuse, since Nicolas Batum (wrist), Robin Lopez (hand) and Joel Freeland (shoulder) were all unavailable.
| John Wall | B- |
| Bradley Beal | C |
| Paul Pierce | C+ |
| Nene Hilario | B |
| Rest of Team | D+ |
| Damian Lillard | B+ |
| LaMarcus Aldridge | A |
| Wesley Matthews | B |
| Dorell Wright | A- |
| Rest of Team | B |
Washington Wizards
John Wall: B-
Washington pulled away early because its All-Star guard dominated the court during the first quarter. He converted open looks for 10 points, found unguarded teammates for four assists and held Lillard to just four points.
After halftime, however, Wall started pressing. He settled for too many contested jumpers, committed a couple of unnecessary turnovers and inexplicably abandoned Lillard—who subsequently connected on a triple—to double-team Aldridge with less than three minutes remaining.
Bradley Beal: C
"Beal throws it down in transition on NBATV. #NBARapidReplay http://t.co/IMf6PRv3vC
— NBA (@NBA) January 25, 2015"
Although he scored 16 points, Bradley Beal had a relatively quiet game. The league's No. 5 three-point shooter missed three of his four attempts from long distance. Beal chipped in five rebounds and five assists.
Paul Pierce: C+
Following a porous 2-of-9 performance from distance his last time out, Paul Pierce rebounded to bury a trio of three-pointers. But he disappeared on both ends during the final five-plus minutes, was held scoreless and was somewhat lost defensively.
The swingman tallied 19 points and six rebounds in the loss. Pierce became the fourth player in NBA history to amass 2,000 career triples.
Nene Hilario: B
The power forward erupted for 11 points during the first quarter and 15 overall. Nene waited for the Washington guards to occupy his defender then attacked vacated spaces for open looks when Portland rotated to help.
However, Nene was whistled for three fouls in less than a minute and eventually fouled out with 67 seconds left. He finished with 15 points, four boards and four assists.
Rest of Team: D+
Marcin Gortat was held to a season-low four points while using most of his energy battling Chris Kaman for rebounds. Granted, Nene's emergence and Wall's mistakes affected Gortat's lack of offense, too.
Rasual Butler didn't provide his typical off-the-bench shooting impact, however minimal that may seem. Butler misfired on his two shots, Martell Webster went 1-of-4 and Washington canned just five of 15 attempts from outside.
Portland Trail Blazers
Damian Lillard: B+
Lillard wasn't as aggressive as expected, attempting just 13 shots in 36 minutes. The Blazers' star guard spent most of his night defending Wall, too, so his customary explosive displays were a rarity.
Nevertheless, Lillard scored nine points and dished two assists down the stretch, coming up clutch for Portland when it needed him the most.
LaMarcus Aldridge: A
Though Aldridge was expected to miss six to eight weeks due to a thumb injury, he elected to forgo surgery and play Saturday.
Aldridge was tentative early—likely while he adjusted to a new brace—but bounced back to nail five jumpers in the first frame alone. The power forward went 9-of-22 from the field, tallying 26 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Wesley Matthews: B
Unsurprisingly, Matthews took it upon himself to fill the offensive void Batum left, hoisting 19 shots and 11 threes. The shooting guard was off-target for most of the game but hit consecutive threes to give Portland a late lead that it never relinquished.
Matthews chipped in 19 points (5-of-11 from three), three rebounds and three assists.
Dorell Wright: A-
The Blazers needed a reserve to step up since Kaman started—as he has been since mid-December—and Batum was sidelined. Dorell Wright registered 10 points, six rebounds, three assists and a team-best plus-16 rating off the bench.
Rest of Team: B
Kaman tried to establish himself as a difference-maker in the post but was largely unsuccessful. However, his biggest value was as a rebounder, where he snagged double-digit boards for the seventh time this season.
In addition to his three late free throws, Leonard drained a pair of triples and netted nine crucial points for the Blazers.
Before Saturday, Allen Crabbe had logged just five minutes during Portland's last eight outings. Crabbe was a non-factor despite starting in place of Batum, and he didn't play in the second half.
What's Next?
Washington (29-15) continues its West Coast trip with a quick turnaround, taking on the Denver Nuggets (18-25) on Sunday, Jan. 25, at the Pepsi Center. CSN Baltimore will televise the matchup at 8 p.m. ET.
Portland (32-13) heads across the country to battle the Brooklyn Nets (18-26) on Monday, Jan. 26, at 7:30 p.m ET. NBATV will broadcast the game nationally, while CSN Northwest will show it locally.
Follow Bleacher Report NBA writer David Kenyon on Twitter: @Kenyon19_BR
