On Thursday night, the Denver Nuggets took a 121-120 win over the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center, and Blazers coach Chauncey Billups expressed his frustration with his team’s poor defensive performance following the loss.
“It was a really good shot, but I was disappointed,” Billups said after watching his players let Jamal Murray hit the game-winning three-pointer for the Nuggets.
According to some NBA betting sites, the Trail Blazers have the 17th-best odds to win the championship in 2023. Few sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks.
Chauncey Billups: “We’re down two. The worst shot you can give up is three. Two won’t beat us. We’re going to overtime. Terrible.”
— Sean Highkin (@highkin) December 9, 2022
“We didn’t execute the way we needed to in the last few minutes; Rather specifically at eight seconds. It wasn’t handled well,” Billups continued.
“We opened two. The last shot you can leave is three. One or two will not defeat us. We go into overtime. I’m not crazy. Did you miss a three-point shot? No, it’s too scary.”
Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups was disappointed with his players’ defense in their 121-120 loss to the Nuggets.
With Portland leading 120-118, Murray hit the game-winning shot from downtown with just 0.9 seconds left on the clock. It was bad defense by the Trail Blazers.
On the Blazers’ final possession, Judge Winslow tried to inbound the ball to Jusuf Nurkic, but the ball was deflected by Nuggets Kentavious Caldwell Bishop.
Damian Lillard led Portland with 40 points in 38 minutes. The guard shot 12 of 22 (54.5%) from the floor and made nine threes.
Additionally, the six-time All-Star collected 12 assists. It’s his fourth double-double of the season.
At one point, the Trail Blazers had an 11-point lead. Not only were they held to four technical fouls, but the Blazers were outrebounded in the paint 64-46. To add insult to injury, the Nuggets scored 21 points in this matchup.
Unfortunately, sad endings are nothing new for Portland fans. The loss dropped the Trail Blazers to 13-12 on the season. They are eighth overall in the Western Conference standings.
Portland ranks 23rd in the NBA, averaging 110.7 points per game. However, the team is allowing 111.4 points per game, which ranks 11th in the league.
For a team that is playing statistically better on defense, they’re not showing it. In addition to giving up 121 points against the Nuggets, they also gave up 111 to the Utah Jazz last Saturday.
Additionally, the Trail Blazers allowed 128 points to the Los Angeles Lakers and 118 to the Los Angeles Clippers last week. They are in the same position as many other competing teams. Portland needs another superstar. Lillard needs help.
