Blazers News: Where Portland Stands in NBA Cup Wildcard Race

Ricardo Klein | 4 Hours Ago

Nov 29, 2024; Portland, Oregon, USA; The Portland Trail Blazers cheer team perform before a game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Sacramento Kings at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images / Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

The Portland Trail Blazers captured their eighth win of the season on Friday night when they defeated their Western Conference foe, the Sacramento Kings. 

The Blazers won by a final score of 115-106 against the Kings on Friday night in front of a crowd of 17,565 at Moda Center. 

Portland is now 8-12 overall, 5-4 at home, and 2-1 in NBA Cup West Group A play.

The Trail Blazers are still very much alive in NBA Cup play; however, they have some hurdles to climb. Portland entered the game with a -14 point differential; their current point differential is -5, putting them behind all the other 2-1 teams — Dallas, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City — in the race for the “wildcard” spot with one game remaining in group play. 

Casey Holdahl explained what the Trail Blazers need to do in order to advance. 

An NBA Cup-date with one game remaining in group play

(I misspoke at the end, Blazers need the Jazz, not the Thunder, to win Tuesday) pic.twitter.com/7iJAfkcKea

— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) November 30, 2024

The NBA Cup matters to the Blazers, and it brings a different perspective to a team that may not be heading anywhere in the grand scheme of things. 

“I’m used to all those things because I came from Europe and I’m used to all the point differential,” said Deni Avdija. “But like the guys, mostly the guys played in the NBA in college, I feel like they're just trying to win the game, which is important. But I knew it was a Cup game, so I knew we got to keep going and I told it to the guys at the huddle.”

Portland still needs to win on Tuesday and have those other teams lose on the final day of group play to secure the "wildcard" spot. If not, they'll need to beat the Clippers on Tuesday and beat them by a lot in order to advance to the quarterfinal round. 

Trail Blazers guard Dalano Banton said the NBA Cup brings new life to the team. 

“This in-season tournament, I think it's big for all players,” said Banton. “Not just our team, but I think everyone. It brings a whole different aspect to the game with the different court and the energy that it brings. I feel like it's amazing. And we really do want to qualify for the next round.”

The Trail Blazers treated Friday's game like a playoff game, and they got production from a multitude of key players. Blazers star center Deandre Ayton was huge in his second game back from a finger injury, recording 26 points on 11-for-19 shooting from the field.

The Trail Blazers will look to continue their winning ways. 

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