Stops Over Stars: Dame and Ja Take a Seat, Blazers Go 2-0
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POR | 27 | 32 | 44 | 25 | 128 |
| SAC | 33 | 31 | 26 | 30 | 120 |
NO GAME TODAY. The Blazers are off until Tuesday, when they visit the Lakers at 8 p.m. PT. That's a matchup of 2-0 teams, it's on NBC and Peacock, and the Blazers' broadcast schedule lists it as a national exclusive, so it won't be on BlazerVision or KUNP. First, one more look at Friday night in Sacramento.
The game in 60 seconds
Donovan Clingan picked up two fouls in the first 1:45, the Kings led by as many as 12 in the first quarter, and Portland trailed 64-59 at the half. Then came 44 points in the third quarter, including a 15-0 run, and a 103-90 lead going into the fourth. Rookie Darius Acuff Jr. (33 points) and Domantas Sabonis (27-19-10) got Sacramento within one possession twice late, but Portland closed it out, 128-120. Deni Avdija scored 26, and Toumani Camara added 19 on five threes. It's the Blazers' first 2-0 start since 2022-23, and only their fourth in the last 15 seasons, per Joe Freeman of The Oregonian.
Box score
Trail Blazers · 128
| Player | MIN | FG-FGA | 3P-3PA | FT-FTA | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toumani Camara * | 27 | 7-12 | 5-10 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 19 |
| Deni Avdija * | 38 | 8-16 | 1-5 | 9-12 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 26 |
| Donovan Clingan * | 21 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 8 |
| Damian Lillard * | 33 | 7-18 | 2-10 | 3-3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 19 |
| Ja Morant * | 27 | 5-13 | 1-5 | 1-2 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 |
| Robert Williams III | 18 | 6-6 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 |
| Jrue Holiday | 26 | 4-10 | 3-9 | 1-2 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| Vit Krejci | 3 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Scoot Henderson | 21 | 1-7 | 0-3 | 2-2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 |
| Sidy Cissoko | 26 | 5-8 | 2-5 | 3-5 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 15 |
| John Tonje | DNP | ||||||||||
| Micah Potter | DNP | ||||||||||
| Yang Hansen | DNP | ||||||||||
| TEAM | 240 | 46-96 | 14-48 | 22-30 | 45 | 30 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 21 | 128 |
Kings · 120
| Player | MIN | FG-FGA | 3P-3PA | FT-FTA | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domantas Sabonis * | 39 | 10-13 | 1-1 | 6-7 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 27 |
| De'Andre Hunter * | 25 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Keegan Murray * | 26 | 4-9 | 0-3 | 4-4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| Zach LaVine * | 39 | 6-15 | 3-9 | 7-7 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 22 |
| Darius Acuff Jr. * | 37 | 10-26 | 2-11 | 11-12 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 33 |
| Precious Achiuwa | 26 | 7-11 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 14 |
| Malik Monk | 12 | 0-6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Daeqwon Plowden | 20 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Nique Clifford | 2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Emanuel Sharp | 14 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Leaky Black | DNP | ||||||||||
| Alex Karaban | DNP | ||||||||||
| Jonathan Mogbo | DNP | ||||||||||
| TEAM | 240 | 42-91 | 8-31 | 28-30 | 42 | 21 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 23 | 120 |
* starter · Source: ESPN box score (event 401909852), updated Oct. 24 after overnight stat revisions
Stat-sheet note: ESPN's box changed overnight. Avdija is now 38 minutes and 7 rebounds, Clingan 21 minutes and 3 blocks, Morant 1-of-5 from three, and Portland 14-of-48 from deep as a team. Our box scores have been updated to match.
The scene
This is the moment worth remembering. In the last two minutes of a one-possession fight, Micah Nori subbed Damian Lillard and Ja Morant out for better defenders, as Jason Quick of The Athletic reported. With 28.3 seconds left, Clingan came in for Morant and Sidy Cissoko came in for Lillard. Thirteen All-Star selections walked to the bench, and nobody pouted. They smiled, slapped hands and leaned into each other.
"Neither one of us, you know, are probably used to that," Lillard told The Athletic. Morant's version: "I told him, 'We got it done.' And that's our ultimate goal." Nori's line after the game: "it's not that anyone gets it right … it's that we get it right." Lillard and Morant combined for 31 points on 3-of-15 from three. They didn't have to be the story, and that might be the point.
Knockout punch
Camara won the team's new postgame boxing gloves, the coaches' pick for whoever lands the "knockout punch," per Quick. Lillard won them on opening night. Camara earned them with 19 points, two fourth-quarter dagger threes, and full-court defense on Sacramento's best player. "He is the reason why we were so good down the stretch," Clingan said. At season's end, whoever has won the gloves most gets a pair signed by Floyd Mayweather Jr., courtesy of team athletic trainer Dr. Courtney Watson.
Depth for days
Seven Blazers scored in double figures and eight had an assist (Freeman, The Oregonian). Portland's bench outscored Sacramento's 44-22 (Sahal Arwo, Blazers On SI). Robert Williams III went 6-for-6, all five dunks and a tip-in per Quick, and kept Portland alive with nine first-quarter points while Clingan sat in foul trouble. Cissoko put up a career-high 15, 10 of them in the second quarter, and drew a charge. Team reporter Casey Holdahl's tip for when the opponent doesn't start a traditional center: take Rob's over on points and rebounds.
Nori was honest about the start, telling Blazers On SI, "We lost our composure a little bit, started worrying about the refs, myself included."
The road gets real
Freeman points out that six of Portland's first eight games and 12 of its first 17 are on the road. Nori promised better clutch play after last season's 21-22 record in clutch games, and Friday counted. Acuff's three with 4:51 left cut it to 118-113, and Clingan's tip-in plus free throws from Avdija and Lillard closed it out.
Standings
Six Western teams are 2-0: Portland, the Lakers, Minnesota, Oklahoma City, Memphis and Houston. Sacramento, Golden State, San Antonio and New Orleans are 0-2 (ESPN standings).
Injuries
Confirmed Shaedon Sharpe is out after August surgery on a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee, with a six-month re-evaluation. Branden Carlson (concussion protocol) and Chris Youngblood (left ankle) were out Friday. The first official report for Tuesday hasn't come out yet.
Arena watch
Confirmed Mayor Keith Wilson told KGW the in-person talks with Tom Dundon are encouraging but the "sticking points" remain: the lease's first-class standard, rent and union labor. He also said the Blazers still haven't answered the city's term sheet with a written counteroffer, and the city is aiming for a council vote in December. Confirmed Co-owner Sheel Tyle told KATU's Guillermo Motta, "The goal is to win, and the goal is to stay in Portland, unequivocally." Dundon holds the controlling stake.
Rumor Mill
Rumor Heavy's Sean Deveney calls Jrue Holiday (two years, $72 million with a player option) Portland's best realistic trade chip if the backcourt gets too crowded. That's analysis, not a report of talks. Earlier this month Jake Fischer floated a scenario where Portland rebuilds Morant's value and then trades him, though he said that's not necessarily the plan. Friday's bench scene is the best evidence so far that this backcourt can coexist.
Next up
Tuesday, Oct. 27 · Blazers at Lakers · 8 p.m. PT · Crypto.com Arena · NBC/Peacock. The Lakers beat Golden State 127-105 and the Clippers 125-117, and they play at Utah on Sunday. Our full preview and uniform matchup will be up on game day.
Sources: ESPN box score, play-by-play, standings and schedules; Jason Quick, The Athletic; Joe Freeman, The Oregonian; Sahal Arwo, Blazers On SI; Casey Holdahl, Trail Blazers; KGW (Evan Watson); KATU via Blazer's Edge; Sean Deveney, Heavy; Jake Fischer via BBall Rumors; Trail Blazers injury announcements via RotoWire.