Blazers' Chauncey Billups 'Proud' of Team Despite Season-High 24 Turnovers

Portland's win streak ends at three games.

Nov 8, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups returns a ball during the third quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images / Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The Portland Trail Blazers fell to a middling-but-unsurprising 6-9 record on the young 2024-25 season after a spirited 109-99 effort against one of the Western Conference's most elite squads, the 12-4 Oklahoma City Thunder, on Wednesday night.

Head coach Chauncey Billups indicated in his postgame comments that he was still ultimately encouraged by his young Portland squad's energy, but felt that the team's carelessness with the ball ultimately proved fatal, writes Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.

“I was proud of us,” Billups said to a gathered group of journalists after the clash. “We played hard. We really did. End of the day, 24 turnovers is hard to overcome. Especially against a really good team.”

A three-game Portland win streak came to an abrupt end in the bout. Full of youthful, athletic wings and big men plus some seasoned trade chip veterans, the Trail Blazers have been a surprisingly fun League Pass squad thus far. Portland even got up to as much as a 10-point lead in the first quarter, abetted by 5-of-11 shooting from long range. They kept things pretty close for a while, too.

Halfway through the contest's fourth frame, a Toumani Camara bucket shaved Oklahoma City's margin to a single point, 87-86. Portland's shooting then went cold, as the club went ice cold, shooting 1-of-7 from the field while the Thunder went on a decisive 16-5 tear over the next several minutes. The Thunder went up by double digits, 103-91, with 1:50 left in regulation.

Four of the Trail Blazers' five starters scored in double figures — the lone exception, Scott Henderson (in for normal starting point guard Anfernee Simons), departed the game earlier than he would have with a left quadriceps injury.

Read More: Scoot Henderson Exits Thunder Game with Concerning Injury

Off the bench, wings Dalano Banton and Deni Avdija (who's already been demoted after being Portland's prized trade acquisition this summer) also both notched double-digit scores.

Portland enjoyed a significant advantage in 3-point shooting over Oklahoma City. The Trail Blazers went 15-of-38 from beyond the arc (39.5 percent), while the Thunder shot a relatively middling 9-of-31 from distance (29 percent). Starting Thunder center Jalen Williams, all 6-foot-5 of him, led all players in scoring with 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field (5-of-9 from deep) and 3-of-3 shooting from the foul line. He also chipped in eight assists, seven rebounds, two steals and a pair of blocks.

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