The current Blazers are a playoff-level team.
Under the leadership of Lillard and CJ McCollum, they have achieved a 5-2 record this season.
Lillard, officially 192cm tall and weighing 88kg, is an extremely strong point guard with precise shooting, strong penetration, but his defense is a weakness and easily targeted.
Lillard entered the league in 2012 as the sixth overall pick in the first round. In his rookie season, he played all regular-season games for the Blazers, averaging 19 points, 6.5 assists, 3.1 rebounds, and 0.9 steals. He broke the rookie season three-point record with 185 threes in a single season, previously held by Stephen Curry (166 threes), and was unanimously selected for the All-Rookie First Team.
Since then, his stats have increased every year. Last season, he was among the players with 1700 points and 500 assists in a single season; the other three were Stephen Curry, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook.
This season, his average stats have risen to 26 points and 9 assists per game, making him undoubtedly at an All-Star level.
CJ McCollum, 1.93 meters tall and weighing 91kg, is also a scoring guard with long-range shooting and strong post-pick shooting capabilities. Last season he averaged only 6.8 points, but this season he has been heavily utilized. In the first six games of this season, he averaged 23 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds per game. He and Lillard are hailed as the "Blazers guns" duo.
Both have ambitious goals: to lead the Blazers to win the championship.
Lillard and CJ McCollum are paying significant attention to this game.
The Nuggets are considered a team outside of the Western playoffs; they are a team the Blazers have planned to capture.
The competition in the West is very fierce; if they can’t beat these must-win weaker teams, they need to fight hard against stronger teams.
The Blazers are currently on a three-game winning streak, and they want to use this victory to continue boosting the team’s morale.
The Rose Garden Arena, the stands are packed with fans.
It’s known as a formidable away court, and Blazers fans seem very crazy.
When they appeared, the Nuggets faced a chorus of boos.
"Zeng, go back to Denver, this isn’t your territory."
"Rookie, you’ll get wrecked by Damian."
Zeng Xingyang became the visiting player targeted by Blazers fans.
No way around it, he’s the most popular player.
This rookie has recently sparked discussions across the league.
Lillard also focused his attention on Zeng Xingyang.
In the Blazers’ scouting report, Zeng Xingyang is a player the Nuggets need to watch out for.
After observing Zeng Xingyang for a while, Lillard shook his head, unimpressed.
"Damian, are you worried about his three-point shot?" CJ McCollum asked.
"What a joke, why would I worry about a rookie?" Lillard didn’t admit to his previous concern.
"Even though he’s just a rookie, we can’t be careless," CJ McCollum was very cautious.
The Nuggets currently hold a 3-3 record. Not bad, but certainly not great either.
This season’s Nuggets are different from last season’s; their bench is very strong, and the Blazers’ bench may not be able to handle them.
Not long after, the game began.
Blazers starting lineup: Lillard, CJ McCollum, Harkless, Ami Nu, Mason Plumlee.
The strongest on the Blazers are the two outside players; their other positions can only be described as average.
Harkless, 2.03 meters tall small forward, with an unstable three-point shot, occasionally cuts to the basket, with decent defense.
Ami Nu, 2.06 meters tall power forward, also capable of shooting threes.
Plumlee, 2.11 meters tall, a rough-technique blue-collar center, with decent defense but almost zero offense.
Nuggets starting lineup: Foye, Harris, Galinarli, Faried, Hickson.
The previous Nuggets center Lavine performed poorly, frequently getting exploited on the court. Mike Malone could not tolerate it, so he was sidelined, and JJ Hickson was promoted to the starting lineup.
Mike Malone is constantly adjusting the starting lineup in the new season, trying to make this team play as effectively as their bench so that the Nuggets won’t frequently fall into passive positions on the court.
JJ Hickson is 2.06 meters tall and weighs 110 kg, having averaged 7 points and 6 rebounds last season, a decent performance.
The Nuggets now have a congested frontcourt, but the combination is somewhat problematic.
Galinarli, originally a power forward at 2.08 meters, has been moved to small forward, while the 2.06 meters Hickson is playing center.
Of course, Mike Malone mainly arranges positions based on players’ technical characteristics, not just height and weight.
Can Galinarli play small forward? He can, just not as fast as the opposing small forward, which makes him easy to get past.
Can Hickson play center? He can, too, just don’t count on him much for offense. He can crash and grab, but his rim protection isn’t great, his help defense is weak, and he doesn’t block much.
Nuggets’ traditional starting center Nurkic is still on the injured list, so Mike Malone relies on quantity to stockpile height.
Jokic pairs well with Zeng Xingyang in the second unit, so he didn’t deliberately disrupt this combination.
After the game began, the home team Blazers didn’t take off immediately. Lillard’s constant penetration and passing to teammates went unconverted.
Harkless and Ami Nu’s shooting touch was somewhat poor.
The Nuggets, meanwhile, steadily organized half-court set offenses.
However, as usual, the Nuggets’ starters lack clear offensive focal points, basically whoever gets the ball tries to play a bit.
Nelson shoots from the arc, Galinarli drives inside from outside the three-point line for a layup, Hickson turns and hooks in the paint.
The result of playing is low offensive efficiency for the team.
After around three minutes, Mike Malone couldn’t watch anymore. He substituted Barton for Faried, moving Galinarli back to power forward.
Lillard, seeing his teammates unreliable, decisively entered personal attack mode, aggressively driving inside and shooting from outside.
Lillard’s three-point shot was precise, hitting consecutively, then driving inside for an and-one play.
Barton’s firepower clearly couldn’t withstand the Blazers’ duo; the score gap quickly widened.
The momentum in the Rose Garden Arena grew stronger, and the Blazers’ players’ defensive enthusiasm continually increased.
Zeng Xingyang and Jokic appeared in the last two minutes of the first quarter. However, facing the unstoppable Blazers, Zeng Xingyang didn’t immediately find his rhythm, missing two three-point attempts.
Playing on the road is a bit tough; the noisy music, unfitting climate, and even the lighting of the arena can affect one’s rhythm.
Of course, Zeng Xingyang never makes excuses; if he misses, he misses. He always believes his next shot will go in.
At the end of the first quarter, the score became 19-35, and the Nuggets were trailing by 16 points on the road.
The Blazers’ scoring burst was too fast; Lillard exploded for 18 points in a single quarter!
Zhang Weiping said: "When Lillard’s outside shooting gets hot, the Nuggets must be careful; he can be very crazy."
Su Qun said: "The offensive firepower of the Lillard-McCollum backcourt duo is second only to the Splash Brothers. The Nuggets will have a tough night, and unless Xingyang starts heating up, the score gap will continue to widen."
Both commentators were not optimistic that the Nuggets could leave the Blazers’ home unscathed; tonight’s Blazers looked too powerful.