The Portland Trail Blazers walked into a rough spot and came out of it looking even rougher. Their 125-103 loss to the San Antonio Spurs was, by the way it played out, probably their worst performance through nine games this season.
Yes, the Blazers were on the second night of a back-to-back. Yes, they didn’t get back home until 5 a.m. after losing to the Los Angeles Lakers the night before. But Micah Nori wasn’t interested in hearing that as a shield for what happened against San Antonio.
“I mean, told the guys, you know, everybody. If you want to find an excuse, you can find an excuse.
But it's a big boy league. They're on a back-to-back.
We're on a back-to-back. These are going to happen.
We're going to have guys out. I don't care who's out.
We got to make sure we compete and and be who we are,” Nori said postgame.
“And tonight, I thought was the first time that we kind of got away from that. And I know that they were doing some things with their physicality that got us frustrated. And, so, I guess there's a lot that bothered me, quite honestly.”
That’s the right tone. The schedule was the schedule.
Portland had to play through it, and San Antonio had the same travel situation coming into town. The Spurs simply handled it better, bringing a level of effort and physicality the Blazers couldn’t match.
San Antonio did have a little more health on its side and rolled out its usual starting group, but that only sharpened the contrast. The Spurs looked like the team with more structure and more readiness. Portland looked like a group that had slipped from its standard.
That’s really the story here. You can chalk this up as a scheduled loss if you want, but the bigger takeaway is that the Blazers weren’t close to where they needed to be.
Nori made that clear, and he should have. Fans don’t need a coach explaining away a bad night when the team simply didn’t compete at the level required.
Now Portland has to absorb the hit and move on. The back-to-back losses have already cost them ground in the Western Conference, and the only way forward is to clean it up.
The next test comes Tuesday against the first-place Oklahoma City Thunder. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. PT at the Moda Center, with the game airing on NBC and streaming on Peacock.
In Other News...
Blazers Loss Stings Less After One Encouraging Backcourt Update
The loss to San Antonio was a rough one on the floor, with the Spurs rolling to a 125-103 win at Moda Center and handing Portland its second straight defeat, the first time this season the Blazers have dropped back-to-back games. Victor Wembanyama set the tone for the visitors with 29 points, seven rebounds and three assists in just 24 minutes, leaving Portland to sort through a lopsided night and the bigger-picture questions that come with it.
Still, there was at least one encouraging note for the Blazers' backcourt. Coach Micah Nori said injured point guard Ja Morant had a recent medical consultation that went well, and his return could come sooner than originally expected. For a team that needs stability and playmaking after a frustrating stretch, any sign that help is moving closer matters, even if the exact timeline remains unsettled. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Just Watched Another Smart Wing Move Pass Them By
A wing with some real long-term intrigue is on the move again, and this one will sting a little for teams still hunting for playable size on the perimeter. The Kings sent Nique Clifford to the Thunder for two second-round picks, a swap that underscores how quickly a young player can go from a draft asset to a movable piece when the fit and the minutes never quite line up.
For Portland, it is another reminder of how thin the market can get for smart, versatile wings once a player starts drawing attention around the league. Clifford had limited run in Sacramento this season, but he showed more productivity in his rookie year, which is part of why other teams had checked in on him. Now the Thunder get another developmental swing, while the Blazers are left watching a name they might have had reason to monitor land somewhere else. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Homecoming Exposed A Problem Fans Know Too Well
The Moda Center homecoming turned into a rough reminder of how far the Trail Blazers still have to go, as San Antonio rolled to a 125-103 win and controlled the night almost from the moment the game settled in. Victor Wembanyama set the tone for the Spurs with 29 points, seven rebounds and three assists, while Deni Avdija led Portland with 15 points in a game where the home team never found a sustained answer.
The Spurs did most of their damage in the second and third quarters, stretching the margin to as many as 35 points and turning the fourth into little more than cleanup time. For Portland, the loss fit an all-too-familiar pattern for fans who have watched this team struggle to keep pace when an opponent starts dictating the game, and it leaves the bigger question hanging over nights like this: how quickly can the Blazers turn home court into something more than a backdrop for someone elses run? [Read more 🡒]