Warriors Vs. Blazers Preview: What to Watch for and Betting Odds

The Golden State Warriors take on the Portland Trail Blazers coming out of the All-Star break. Here's what to watch for.

The Warriors may have lost four of their last five games heading into the All-Star break but after eight days away from regular season games, Golden State will look to rediscover its winning ways Thursday night.

In a Western Conference showdown, Golden State (41-17) will take on the Portland Trail Blazers (25-34) at Moda Center in Portland to resume the final quarter of the regular season. Currently, the Warriors hold the second-best record in the Western Conference behind the Phoenix Suns while Portland clings on to the final play-in spot for the playoffs.

While the Warriors have been on a downward trend, blowing double-digit leads in three of their last four losses, the Blazers have won four straight — despite trading veteran guard CJ McCollumn to the New Orleans Pelicans at the deadline.

In addition, the Blazers have been without star point guard Damian Lillard, who underwent surgery to repair an abdominal injury earlier this season. In likelihood, Portland had its eyes set on next considering its current state of the roster.

This all comes as good news for Golden State. As mentioned earlier, blown leads and poor defensive alignments have been the root cause for the recent skid.

For now, the Warriors will continue to be without its defensive general, Draymond Green — who continues to rehab a lingering back injury — but will benefit from facing a Blazers roster without a true No. 1 scoring option.

Center Jusuf Nurkic has also been ruled out for the next four weeks according to the Blazers after he was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis.

Coming off of a 50-point All-Star game performance, Warriors star guard Stephen Curry will look to carry that momentum into a non-exhibition game. Curry’s numbers have been down since his hot start to the season, becoming the early front-runner for the league MVP award.

In two of Golden State’s last three losses combined, Curry shot just 2-for15 from behind the arc. While he did sandwich an 8-for-13 effort against the Clippers between those two games, his shooting will need to pick up if the Warriors hope to maintain their spot as one of the top teams in the West.

How to watch

Matchup: Golden State Warriors (41-17) Vs. Portland Trailblazers (25-34)

Date: Thursday, February 24

Time: 7:00 PM PT

Venue: Moda Center, Portland, OR

Betting Info

Spread: Warriors -10

Moneyline: Warriors -500, Blazers +385

Over/Under: 227

Odds courtesy of Fanduel Sportsbook