C.J. McCollum's Return Reminds Of Trail Blazers' Problems To Come Defensively

C.J. McCollum struggled on defense in his return, a reminder that re-integrating he and Jusuf Nurkic will be a whole new challenge.

The first couple minutes of C.J. McCollum's long-awaited return to the floor on Tuesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans made it seem like he'd missed no time at all. 

His first points in two months came at the free throw line, after using a high screen from Enes Kanter to get Lonzo Ball on his hip and draw contact while meandering toward the rim. McCollum caught a kickout from Damian Lillard on the Trail Blazers' next trip down, quickly rising to shoot before Ball could completely recover. Splash.

Portland's first five points all belonged to McCollum. He blocked Eric Bledsoe's attempted finger roll in isolation defense mere seconds after his three, too, leading to a pull-up triple for Lillard on the other end. 

Unfortunately, McCollum's performance on Tuesday was otherwise forgettable. The adrenaline that helped him to such a fantastic start quickly wore off, as McCollum fell victim to the expected perils of a player stepping on an NBA floor for the first time since January 16.

He finished with 10 points, four rebounds, two assists and four turnovers on 3-of-11 shooting, mostly playing bystander from the bench during the Blazers' stunning fourth-quarter comeback.

"The foot feels good, which I'm happy about," McCollum said after the game. "From a movement standpoint I felt pretty good. The rhythm is coming. It's not here, but it's coming slowly and surely."

That's the most important takeaway here – McCollum's post-game confidence in the health of his foot. The promise he showed early in Portland's improbable victory over New Orleans was always bound to dissipate; expecting otherwise was foolish.

Understandable as McCollum's struggles were, they still played a major role in the Blazers requiring another heroic effort from Lillard to not just steal a win against the Pelicans, but avoid being blown out. McCollum's shooting struggles weren't nearly as debilitating as his influence on the other side of the ball, either.

The whims of shot-making and New Orleans suddenly failing to feed Zion Williamson contributed to Portland's late-game defensive success. It's also no coincidence that McCollum watched crunch time from the bench until the game's final six seconds, though. He was out of sorts defensively from the opening tip of Tuesday's game.

Sometimes McCollum was just a step too late closing out to shooters, absent the urgency needed to compensate for his lack of size defensively.

More damaging for the Blazers were possessions when McCollum simply seemed to fall asleep.

Portland isn't playing zone in the clip below. McCollum just forgets to guard Ball mid-possession, coaxing a rotation from Derrick Jones Jr. that results in Williamson nearly taking Covington's head off while finishing.

McCollum didn't fare much better in the Blazers' 2-3 zone. Clearly still getting comfortable moving in concert with his teammates, McCollum was exploited by New Orleans on multiple occasions when Portland went zone. 

On one third-quarter possession, he offered no help to Covington on Williamson's strong-hand drive from the top of the floor. McCollum adjusted his positioning on the Pelicans' next trip down, an overreaction of which Williamson took immediate advantage.

Sometimes he just failed to match up in semi-transition.

McCollum, to be clear, was hardly the Blazers' only porous defender on Tuesday. 

Carmelo Anthony and Enes Kanter were targeted all night. Lillard was sometimes too casual in the half court and transition. Gary Trent Jr. missed a couple simple rotations. Covington made Williamson's life easier by opening his hips to the latter's left hand. Nassir Little was overactive rotating in the zone.

Lillard's epic play in the clutch, basically, saved Portland from some tough conversations about yet another dispiriting effort on defense. At least McCollum has an excuse.

"I just felt flat, generally," he said. "That's my first time playing 5-on-5 since January 16. So, I just felt flat."

It will take awhile for McCollum to re-acclimate to the speed of full-tilt NBA basketball. The same goes for Jusuf Nurkic, and he's no panacea in the first place.

Recent comments by Covington and Terry Stotts about Portland playing like a top-10 or league-average defense over the season's remainder always seemed wildly optimistic. As McCollum's play made clear on Tuesday, the inevitable realities of adding two starters back into the mix after so much time away from the game are among many reasons why.

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