Evanson: The Blazers are hot, but what’s to make of the team’s recent surge

Published 7:00 am Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Have you heard of iron pyrite? It’s commonly known as “Fool’s Gold.”

How about cubic zirconia? It’s a man-made diamond that while looking like the real thing, lacks the durability of the genuine product.

I bring these things up because as I sit here, the young and mostly disheveled Portland Trail Blazers have won seven of their last eight games, find themselves just four-and-a-half games outside the play-in portion of the postseason (a pre-playoffs tournament tasked with finding the eight playoff participants), and appear to have potentially turned a corner in the process of building a winner.

Sunday night in an impressive win over Phoenix, the Blazers played clean, together, and in an overall manner that looked far closer to a team that belongs in the postseason discussion, than the one that hasn’t for the bulk of the 2024-25 season.

But while fun to see, exciting for the fans and encouraging for those who’ve been keeping the team at arm’s length since Damian Lillard was traded a season-and-a-half ago, I think it’s fair to ask if even this iteration of the Trail Blazers’ rebuild is legit opposed to low-grade?

Harsh? Maybe, but I’d call it an educated response to what my two eyes have seen since the team started anew.

For the better part of his limited tenure in Portland, 2023 first round draft pick Scoot Henderson has disappointed.

Has he been better this season and especially over the past couple months? Yes, but he’s still struggling to meet the expectations that come with the No. 3 overall pick.

Shaedon Sharpe, 2022 first round pick, until recently has had trouble staying on the floor. The 21-year-old has suffered eight different injuries during his tenure with the team, one of which — a labral tear in his left shoulder — forced him to miss 50 games in his sophomore season with the Blazers.

It may be becoming unfair to continue harping on the third-year-player’s injury history, for he’s played in 41 of the team’s 49 games thus far this season, and missed just two games in his rookie season. But as someone who’s seen this franchise’s history of injury misfortune, I believe my skepticism is warranted.

And Chauncey Billups, who many have had on the first train out of town for the better part of the last year, seems to be getting THIS team to play HIS way, and — at least over the last couple of weeks — it’s hard to argue with the results.

Lest we forget that Anfernee Simons is again having a solid season; rookie center Donovan Clingan has shown flashes; second-year forward Toumani Camara was just invited to the “Rising Stars” game; and 24-year-old Deni Avdija — who was acquired via trade last summer — continues to improve and at times has looked like the team’s best player.

Then you have veterans like Jerami Grant and Deandre Ayton who when on the floor, have mostly done what they do.

Sound good? It doesn’t sound bad. At least not now.

But while optimism continues to rear it’s pretty little head with every win, the darker side of me and those refusing to turn a blind eye to how things have been are not-so-anxiously waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I love how this team is built and dependent on winning with the sum of their parts. That’s how basketball was meant to be played opposed to the way it is and how teams often succeed in the NBA.

Like it or not, stars matter and this team doesn’t have any.

Sure, they have talent and the hope is that one or two of those guys can ascend to the necessary level of stardom, or at the least build an attractive enough product to lure a difference-making free agent. But “hope” is all they have at this point, and while growing with every win, remains a creaky leg to stand on.

The Blazers are hot and I’m here for it. It’s not just that they’re winning, but also how they’re doing it that has people within and beyond the team taking notice. But while I’m happy to cheer them on, happier to see the recent results, and am ready to rejoice if and when we see this team come together, I’m not there yet.

Are they fool’s gold? Maybe.

Cubic zirconia? Maybe that too.

But maybe that’s enough for now — until it’s again not.