The Portland Trail Blazers are still perfect.
Portland outlasted the Lakers 136-129 in Los Angeles in a game that had just about everything: whistles, heat checks, flopping calls and a whole lot of shot-making. The win moved the Blazers to 3-0, and they had to earn every bit of it.
For long stretches, Portland was playing from behind. The Lakers opened fast, jumping out to a 14-7 lead before Micah Nori burned a timeout. Portland trimmed that gap to 25-22, but Los Angeles kept control through the first quarter and finished it with a 38-32 edge behind Luka Doncic, who had 16 points by then.
The free throws started piling up immediately. Both teams spent much of the first half at the line, combining for 40 attempts before intermission - 19 for LA and 21 for Portland.
The Blazers stayed in range by knocking down seven threes in the opening half, even while missing six free throws of their own. By halftime, they had cut it to 73-68.
Doncic kept rolling in the third. He added three more threes in the period and reached 36 points going into the fourth.
Portland answered with shot-making of its own. Toumani Camara drilled two more triples, Donovan Clingan added another, and Robert Williams III kept delivering impact plays on both ends.
Williams’ work late in the third was huge. He blocked a Doncic three-point attempt, sprinted the floor and finished with a dunk to pull Portland within one possession.
Then, in the final seconds of the quarter, Jrue Holiday forced a turnover on Doncic, the ball got loose in the paint, and Holiday found Williams for another slam at the buzzer. That made it a 103-102 Lakers lead entering the fourth.
Portland took control early in the final period. Clingan blocked back-to-back Lakers attempts to spark a transition sequence that ended with Damian Lillard finding Deni Avdija cutting to the rim. Avdija missed the first try and converted the second, tying the game at 103 with 11:09 left.
From there, the Blazers grabbed their first lead in a while when Lillard buried an off-balance three off a screen to make it 108-106. After another stop, Avdija drove into the paint and kicked to Camara, who nailed his fourth three of the night for a 111-106 Portland edge and a Lakers timeout with 8:29 remaining.
Doncic returned and LA answered quickly, cutting it to 114-112 and forcing Portland to stop the clock with 6:44 left. The game stayed tight from there. Ziaire Williams briefly put the Lakers ahead with a three, only for Holiday to answer with one of his own.
Portland also had to deal with two flopping technicals in the fourth, one on Camara and another on Morant, though both were enough of a shrug that the game was still tied at 121 with 3:49 to play.
Then came the closing stretch. Lillard hit a three.
Doncic hit one back. Avdija followed with another to put Portland up 128-124.
Ziaire Williams pulled the Lakers within one at 128-127, but Morant scored twice in the paint around a pair of missed Walker Kessler free throws to push the lead to 132-127.
Doncic answered with a jumper. Lillard answered with a stepback three to make it 135-129, a shot that brought Dame Time back into the picture with his fourth triple of the night. Doncic missed on the other end, and Portland finished it at the line.
The Blazers shot 50 percent from three and got a balanced scoring night across the roster. Avdija and Morant led the way with 23 points apiece, with Avdija also handing out nine assists. Lillard finished with 21 points, Holiday had 22, Robert Williams posted 14 points and 10 rebounds, Clingan added nine points and 10 rebounds, and Camara scored 12 points on four made threes.
In Other News...
Blazers Sent A Message By Outmuscling Luka And The Lakers
The Trail Blazers did more than survive a shootout with the Lakers, they won the physical side of it. Portland's 136-129 victory came even with Luka Doncic pouring in 41 points and Austin Reaves adding 26, because the Blazers kept answering at the other end and repeatedly turned the game into a test of shot-making, effort and presence on the glass.
What stood out for Portland was not just the scoring, but the way it controlled the margins that usually decide games like this. The Blazers shot better, got to the line more often and won the rebounding battle, a combination that let them absorb the Lakers' firepower and still finish on top in a game that was never short on offense. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Exposed A Big Lakers Problem Even On Lukas Night
Luka Doncic gave the Lakers exactly the sort of explosive scoring night they hoped for, piling up 40 points against the Trail Blazers and adding another entry to a growing list of big performances in Los Angeles. It was his 20th career 40-point game for the Lakers, pushing him past LeBron James for sixth on the franchises all-time list in that category, a notable marker even in a loss.
But Portland still walked away with a 136-129 win, which is the part that should linger for the Lakers. When one of the leagues most dangerous scorers can post a night like that and it still isnt enough, it points to how much the rest of the roster has to hold up around him. For the Blazers, it was a reminder that they can absorb a star outburst and still find a way to finish the job. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers May Have Avoided A Giannis Problem Miami Couldn't
Giannis Antetokounmpo briefly loomed as an offseason possibility for the Trail Blazers, but Portland never got to the finish line on a deal. His hesitation about a long-term commitment and preference to stay in the Eastern Conference helped shape that outcome, along with a desire to keep his championship pursuit aligned with staying closer to Greece. For a Blazers team trying to map out its next era, it was the kind of star swing that could have changed the franchises direction overnight.
Miami is now living with the realities of that kind of move after landing Giannis, and the opening stretch has not exactly looked like the instant contender blueprint the Heat hoped for. A poor start has already raised questions about how quickly the roster can support a title push, which only adds another layer to Portlands what-if. The Blazers may not have landed the biggest name in the conversation, but they also avoided the immediate pressure that comes with trying to make a championship timeline work from day one. [Read more 🡒]