Blazers Survive Kings in Wild OT Finish, But Lessons Loom Large
Let’s be clear: the Portland Trail Blazers aren’t sending out apology cards for their 134-133 overtime win over the short-handed Sacramento Kings on Thursday night. And frankly, they don’t need to. It wasn’t pretty - in fact, it was downright chaotic - but in a season where wins have been hard to come by, Portland will take this one, warts and all.
Yes, they nearly fumbled away an 18-point lead in the final minutes. Yes, the game ended on a controversial whistle that left the Kings fuming and Moda Center buzzing.
And yes, it was the kind of win that leaves you shaking your head more than celebrating. But for acting head coach Tiago Splitter and his squad, the bottom line is simple: they got the win.
And in a league where the standings don’t care how you got there, that’s what matters.
“The good part about this is you can learn about the situations and you still won the game,” Splitter said postgame, summing up the mood in the locker room.
A Comfortable Lead Turns Into Chaos
With five minutes left in regulation, Portland looked like it was finally going to enjoy a stress-free night. They led 113-95, having overcome a shaky start that saw them give up 40 points in the first quarter and allow far too many paint and transition buckets to a Sacramento team missing Domantas Sabonis and Zach LaVine.
Even with those early defensive lapses, the Blazers had found their rhythm. Fans were heading for the exits. One even high-fived an usher near press row, confident the job was done.
But then came the unraveling.
Up 113-98 with 2:28 to go, Portland proceeded to go ice cold. The Kings rattled off a 16-1 run to close regulation, fueled by a cascade of Blazer miscues. Portland went 0-for-5 from the field, missed four free throws, committed a shot clock violation, turned the ball over on a botched inbounds pass, fouled a three-point shooter, and surrendered a wide-open game-tying three to DeMar DeRozan with eight seconds left.
Their final possession? A rushed, off-balance three from Jerami Grant that never had a chance.
“I think we stopped playing,” Splitter said bluntly. “We didn’t manage the clock right, we were rushed. We turned over the ball, taking bad shots, and they were scoring on us every time.”
Overtime Redemption - Almost
To their credit, the Blazers regrouped in overtime. They built a 132-126 lead with 33 seconds remaining and looked like they might finally put the game away. But once again, the door was left open.
After a turnover led to a Kings three, Portland opted to foul up three - the right call in theory. DeRozan calmly hit both free throws.
Out of a timeout, the Blazers inbounded to 7-foot-2 center Donovan Clingan, who was 5-for-11 from the line on the night. Sacramento immediately fouled him.
Clingan missed both.
DeRozan then buried a tough turnaround jumper with four seconds left, giving him 33 points and Sacramento its first lead since the third quarter.
With no timeouts left, Portland had to go the length of the floor. They inbounded to Deni Avdija, who sprinted upcourt, barreled through Russell Westbrook and Keon Ellis, and flung up a wild floater as the buzzer sounded. It clanged off the front rim - but the whistle blew.
Referee Marc Davis called a foul on Westbrook. The arena froze. Even Avdija looked stunned.
“I didn’t expect to get [the foul call], especially, it’s like one second left and I tried to bump Russ and threw up a shot,” Avdija said. “But when you watch the replay, I did get bumped off my spot, so you can say it was a foul, but not a lot of referees would call it.”
Foul or not, the call stood. Avdija, who finished with a game-high 35 points on 12-of-19 shooting, stepped to the line with 1.5 seconds left and calmly knocked down both free throws. A Kings half-court heave missed, and just like that, the Blazers had escaped.
Relief, Reflection, and a Chance to Respond
In the locker room, the mood was more exhale than celebration.
“Just a breath,” said Grant. “Like a breath of relief that we won the game, but also we understand that we almost threw that game away.”
“That’s not the way we want to win basketball games,” added forward Toumani Camara. “So that’s definitely a little bit frustrating. But I’m happy we won the game.”
The message from Splitter was measured. No yelling.
No finger-pointing. Just a clear directive: learn from this.
“It was a nice tone,” he said. “Just, ‘Guys, we gotta be better. We gotta learn from this.’”
And they’ll get their chance soon - very soon. The Blazers face the Kings again on Saturday, this time in Sacramento.
Splitter admitted before Thursday’s game that he doesn’t love playing the same team twice in a row during the regular season. But after this wild finish, he’s ready for the rematch.
“Now I want to play them again and play better,” he said.
The Blazers got the win. But they know they can’t afford many more like this.