The Portland Trail Blazers seemingly did everything they could Wednesday night to spoil a no-doubt-about-it victory.
But they had one impenetrable force going for them: The pitiful Indiana Pacers.
The Blazers did just enough down the stretch to avoid disaster against the worst team in the NBA, earning an uncomfortably close 127-119 win over the Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t always pretty, but when it was all said and done, the Blazers (34-36) won for the second time in 72 hours — marking the first time they’ve won consecutive games since Feb. 9 — to leapfrog the Golden State Warriors (33-36) for ninth place in the Western Conference standings.
With 12 games left in the regular season, Portland now trails the eighth-place Los Angeles Clippers (34-35) by just one-half game for homecourt advantage in the play-in tournament.
“It’s getting really close to the play-in, so we’re paying attention to it,” Robert Williams III told reporters in Indianapolis, referring to the standings. “But, honestly, we’re just trying to stay focused on ourselves, keep driving, keep putting wins together, and hopefully win a lot of these last 12.”
They almost ruined No. 13.
The Blazers appeared to be cruising to another lopsided win early in the fourth quarter, when they sported a 22-point lead and all the momentum. Donovan Clingan was nearing the end of a career night, Deni Avdija was in the midst of his most prolific performance in weeks and the Pacers were limping toward the final buzzer. Or so it seemed.
Out of nowhere, Jalen Slawson looked like a man possessed, Taelon Peter started swishing threes and the Blazers devolved into a mess of turnovers, bricks and shaky defense. Before you knew it, Indiana had whittled the lead down to single digits. When Slawson and Kobe Brown swished back-to-back three-pointers, the Pacers had reeled off a 19-5 burst to inch within 120-117 with less than two minutes remaining. Inexplicably, a Blazers blowout had morphed into a back alley brawl.
“We relaxed, had three or four bad shots and they just ran at us, hit threes,” Blazers acting coach Tiago Splitter told reporters, referring to the late-game collapse. “You’ve got to keep focused, (bring) energy. You can’t just relax. The NBA has too many good players to relax.”
Luckily for the Blazers, the Pacers (15-55) — who own the longest-active losing streak (15 games) and the worst record in the NBA — didn’t have enough good players to complete the comeback.
Indiana had the ball once in a one-possession game over the final 90 seconds, but Jarace Walker flubbed a driving layup. On the ensuing possession, Jrue Holiday swished a clutch three-pointer in front of the Pacers bench to push the lead to 123-117, and Avdija and Jerami Grant iced the game with four free throws down the stretch, rescuing the Blazers from a collapse.
Clingan had the most impressive game of his two-year career, scoring a career-high 28 points along with 13 rebounds, two blocks and two assists. He opened the game with dominance, torching Ivica Zubac and Jay Huff with 14 points and five rebounds via a barrage of rebound put-backs, and-ones and three-pointers. Clingan went on to make 10 of 19 shots, including 3 of 5 threes.
“I’m proud of him,” Williams told reporters. “He’s taken a major, major step this year.”
Avdija, meanwhile, took another meaningful step away from his lingering back ailment. The All-Star forward had his highest-scoring performance since Jan. 7, finishing with 32 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. He didn’t shoot all that well — Avdija made 9 of 21 field goals, including just 1 of 6 threes — but he zoomed his way to the basket relentlessly and effortlessly, completing eight shots in the lane and finishing 13 for 16 from the free throw line.
Toumani Camara added 17 points and Holiday recorded 15 points and eight rebounds as the Blazers dismissed their second also-ran in three days near the end of a five-game trip.
“We were a little sloppy with the ball, we were turning it over a little bit and we were just missing some shots,” Clingan told reporters. “But we were able to pull through and get a W.”