The Portland Trail Blazers are about to put their spotless start back on the line, this time against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Moda Center.
And if you want a read on where Memphis stands entering the matchup, the early answer is pretty clear: the Grizzlies have found a formula that’s working, but they’re also walking into a game with some real obstacles.
Ty Jerome has been the loudest early spark for Memphis, and that hot start has helped drive the Grizzlies to 4-0. But the bigger story, according to Memphis Grizzlies On SI contributor Landon Speck, is the way the whole rotation has come together.
He pointed to the group effort as the real “secret,” noting that through four games, none of the rotation players has had a truly bad outing. Cam Boozer has had trouble with efficiency, but Speck said he has still been very impactful.
Jaylen Wells and Cedric Coward have been “absolute nails” to start the year, while Scotty Pippen Jr. and Cam Spencer have supplied quality minutes. With everyone healthy so far, Tuomas Iisalo has been able to open up his vision of an NBA offense, and early on, it has paid off.
Jerome’s production, Speck said, is not built on smoke and mirrors. He may not keep scoring 30 a night, but the efficiency is real and should hold up.
Since his time with the Golden State Warriors and, more notably, the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jerome has been close to a 50/40/90 player. The per-100 numbers have always popped; the difference now is that he’s getting starter minutes instead of coming off the bench or dealing with injuries.
The bigger question, Speck said, is health. If Jerome stays on the floor, he sees him settling in around 22-24 PPG on something like 47/40/88 shooting splits.
Then there’s Zach Edey, who Speck described as a player whose value goes way beyond the box score. Last season, Memphis was +26.7 points per 100 possessions with Edey on the court, though he only appeared in 11 games.
This season, through a three-game sample, the Grizzlies are sitting at a +26.1 NET rating with him. The numbers are small, but the effect is obvious: Edey is taking away scoring at the rim even without racking up blocks, and he’s turned Memphis into an elite rebounding team.
Portland, though, has answers of its own. The Blazers may be dealing with a Ja Morant and Damian Lillard backcourt that isn’t exactly built around defense, but they still have pieces that can make Memphis uncomfortable.
Donovan Clingan gives them as strong an Edey matchup as there is, while Toumani Camara and Jrue Holiday are ideal bodies to throw at Jerome. And then there’s Deni Avdija, whom Speck called simply the best player between the two teams.
In his view, Portland is also the more talented roster overall.
That talent edge matters, especially when paired with what Portland can bring on both ends. Between the defensive ceiling and the scoring punch from Lillard, Morant and Avdija, Speck sees real reasons to like the Blazers. Memphis is also in the fourth game of a West Coast road trip, which only adds to the challenge.
Speck did note that two straight off days should help Memphis recover some of the wear and tear, but he still doesn’t think it will be enough. Add in Portland’s matchup advantages, plus the extra edge from Morant playing his first game against the Grizzlies, and his pick is clear: the Trail Blazers get the win.
In Other News...
Deni Avdija Is Giving Blazers Fans A Real Rotation Debate
Deni Avdija keeps making it harder for the Trail Blazers to think of him as anything less than a central piece of what they are doing. In Portlands 112-90 win over Utah, he led the team with 24 points and was right in the middle of a defensive effort that turned the game into a comfortable road victory, the clubs third away win of the season.
The Blazers forced 20 turnovers and held the Jazz to 37% shooting, the kind of performance that usually reflects more than just one hot night from a scorer. With Micah Nori starting Scoot Henderson in place of the injured Ja Morant and managing minutes for veterans Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard, Avdijas all-around impact only sharpened the question of where he fits when the rotation gets tighter and the games start to matter more. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Win Offered A Telling Early Look At Portlands Rotation
The early-season road trip has already given Portland a clearer picture of how its rotation might take shape, and the latest stop only sharpened that view. In a 112-90 win over Utah, the Trail Blazers moved to 3-0 away from home and 4-1 overall, with Scoot Henderson stepping into the starting group in place of the injured Ja Morant and logging the most minutes on the team. He finished with 14 points and three steals, part of a night when Portlands depth and defensive energy stood out from the opening stretch.
Deni Avdija again looked like one of the most important pieces in the mix, pacing all players with 24 points while posting a plus-minus of plus-32. Jakub Krejci also showed some encouraging signs after a slow start to the season, another small but useful development for a team still sorting out who fits where. For a roster trying to find its identity early, wins like this can be about more than the final score. [Read more 🡒]
Damian Lillard Sees Something Real In This Blazers Start
The Trail Blazers early surge has started to look less like a hot opening and more like something sturdier, and Damian Lillard noticed it after Portlands 112-90 road win over the Jazz. The victory pushed the Blazers to 4-1 and kept them tied for the fourth seed in the Western Conference, with Lillard leading the way with 22 points while pointing to the teams preparation and defensive effort as the biggest reasons for the fast start.
For a Portland team trying to establish an identity early, the encouraging part is not just the record but the way the wins are coming together. Lillards comments suggested he sees real substance in the groups approach, and with the Blazers already stacking results away from home, the next question is whether this level of play can hold once the schedule starts asking more of them. [Read more 🡒]