none of them were particularly good either. PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS 2014-15 SCHEDULE LaMarcus Aldridge probably counts as Portland’s best defensive player, but while DATE OPPONENT TIME Aldridge will never get embarrassed by an Oct. 29 Oklahoma City 10:30 opposing power forward, he’s not really a game-changing defensive force either. Oct. 31 at Sacramento 10:00 The same could be said of Robin Lopez, Nov. 2 Golden State 9:00 whose defense was fine for the most part Nov. 4 Cleveland 10:00 but struggled against tough opponents like Dwight Howard. Nov. 6 Dallas 10:30 Meanwhile, Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Nov. 8 at Los Angeles 3:30 Batum both rated as below-average wing Nov. 9 Denver 9:00 defenders. According to ESPN’s Real Plus- Minus, Matthews graded out as a -1.08 while Nov. 11 Charlotte 10:00 Batum was a -0.95. Reserve wings Will Barton Nov. 12 at Denver 9:00 and Dorell Wright were equally poor. With Nov. 15 Brooklyn 10:00 Portland returning the same group of wings as last year, defensive improvement will have Nov. 17 New Orleans 10:00 to come from within. Nov. 21 Chicago 10:30 Another problem is that the bench simply didn’t provide any defensive specialists. Nov. 23 at Boston 6:00 Nobody had to change their offensive game Nov. 24 at Philadelphia 7:00 plan to account for players like Meyers Nov. 26 at Charlotte 7:00 Leonard, Mo Williams, Will Barton, or Thomas Robinson. If anything, opponents would attack Nov. 28 Memphis 10:00 these players, making substitutions a dicey Nov. 30 Minnesota 9:00 proposition for a relatively thin Portland team. Dec. 2 at Denver 9:00 It’s also unlikely that help on defense will come in the form of offseason additions Dec. 4 Indiana 10:00 like point guard Steve Blake or big man Dec. 7 at New York 7:30 Chris Kaman. Those players will improve Dec. 9 at Detroit 7:30 Portland’s bench, but if the Trail Blazers want to truly contend for a Western Conference Dec. 10 at Minnesota 8:00 championship, they’ll have to improve Dec. 12 at Chicago 7:00 defensively. That improvement will need to come from the starting five, but it’s difficult to Dec. 13 at Indiana 7:00 see anybody in that unit emerging as a great Dec. 15 San Antonio 10:00 rim protector or defensive specialist. Dec. 17 Milwaukee 10:00 Offense Dec. 19 at San Antonio 8:00 Dec. 20 at New Orleans 7:00 The Blazers made up for their relatively Dec. 22 at Houston 8:00 poor defense with an offensive renaissance. Portland finished with an offensive rating of Dec. 23 at Oklahoma City 8:00 111.5, second best in the NBA behind only the Dec. 26 Philadelphia 10:00 Clippers. This was accomplished thanks to Dec. 28 New York 9:00 a starting five in which all five players could score and two of them—Damian Lillard and Dec. 30 Toronto 10:00 LaMarcus Aldridge—could take over games. Jan. 3 Atlanta 10:00 Aldridge’s development of a midrange jump shot was a point of much debate throughout Jan. 5 Los Angeles 10:00 the season. While midrange shots are generally Jan. 8 Miami 10:30 considered less efficient than three pointers Jan. 10 Orlando 10:00 or shots near the basket, coach Terry Stotts believed that Aldridge’s shooting could Jan. 11 at Los Angeles 9:30 give Portland some much needed spacing. Jan. 14 Los Angeles 10:30 By shooting from range, Aldridge forced Jan. 16 at San Antonio 8:30 opponents to draw a big man away from the basket, opening up driving lanes for the guards. Jan. 17 at Memphis 8:00 DATE OPPONENT TIME Jan. 19 Sacramento 10:00 Jan. 21 at Phoenix 9:00 Jan. 22 Boston 10:00 Jan. 24 Washington 10:00 Jan. 26 at Brooklyn 7:30 Jan. 28 at Cleveland 7:00 Jan. 30 at Atlanta 7:30 Jan. 31 at Milwaukee 8:30 Feb. 3 Utah 10:00 Feb. 5 Phoenix 10:30 Feb. 7 at Dallas 8:30 Feb. 8 at Houston 7:00 Feb. 11 Los Angeles 10:00 Feb. 20 at Utah 9:00 Feb. 22 Memphis 9:00 Feb. 25 San Antonio 10:30 Feb. 27 Oklahoma City 10:30 Mar. 1 at Sacramento 6:00 Mar. 4 at Los Angeles 10:30 Mar. 5 Dallas 10:30 Mar. 7 at Minnesota 8:00 Mar. 11 Houston 10:30 Mar. 13 Detroit 10:00 Mar. 15 at Toronto 7:00 Mar. 16 at Washington 7:00 Mar. 18 at Miami 7:30 Mar. 20 at Orlando 7:00 Mar. 21 at Memphis 8:00 Mar. 24 Golden State 10:30 Mar. 25 at Utah 9:00 Mar. 27 at Phoenix 10:00 Mar. 28 Denver 10:00 Mar. 30 Phoenix 10:00 Apr. 1 Los Angeles 10:00 Apr. 3 at Los Angeles 10:30 Apr. 4 New Orleans 10:00 Apr. 8 Minnesota 10:00 Apr. 9 at Golden State 10:30 Apr. 11 Utah 10:00 Apr. 13 at Oklahoma City 8:00 Apr. 15 at Dallas 8:00 * All Times Eastern.
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