The Portland Trail Blazers hope to head home for Thanksgiving on a happier and healthier note when they conclude a five-game trip Wednesday night against the Indiana Pacers.
The Trail Blazers stagger into Indianapolis after a short-handed 123-98 drubbing at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday. Five regulars — Scoot Henderson, Kris Murray, Matisse Thybulle, Donovan Clingan and Deandre Ayton — all sat out with injuries.
Things went from bad to worse when Portland lost two starters — Jerami Grant and Robert Williams III — during Monday’s loss. Grant injured his left knee while Williams suffered a concussion.
It’s possible the Trail Blazers, playing for the fifth time in eight days on the road, could be as many as seven players down for the trip finale.
Not having Grant might be the biggest blow. He went for 34 and 37 points when the Trail Blazers, who only won 21 games last year, shockingly swept the season series from the Pacers.
Following Monday’s defeat, Portland coach Chauncey Billups practiced a speech he might have to give again in Indianapolis.
“We hung in. Couldn’t make shots,” he lamented. “We just, at the end of the day, didn’t have enough bodies.”
The Trail Blazers did have two of their brightest prospects – Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe – together for just the seventh time this season against the Grizzlies. However, they were not able to duplicate the success of their previous game at Houston, when they teamed for 49 points, as they combined to shoot just 6-for-26 and total 20 points against the Grizzlies.
Portland figures to need to have all guns blazing against the high-powered Pacers, who have scored 111 or more points in seven straight games, including 115 and 114 in their last two outings: wins over the Washington Wizards and New Orleans Pelicans, respectively.
One game after balanced scoring led the way in the victory over the Wizards, Tyrese Haliburton surged out of a recent slump with 34 points and 13 assists.
The positives for Haliburton are doubly good news for the Pacers. His 12-for-23 night from the field was a welcome relief after he’d shot just 32.9 percent over his previous five games and found himself addressing a possible slump.
“It’s part of basketball,” he admitted. “I’ve just gotta keep trusting myself, working hard. I’ll figure it out. Just put my head down, keep working. I’ll figure it out.”
Not slumping in the least, Pascal Siakam contributed a total of 36 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists during the two-game winning streak. He made 13 of his 27 shots (48.1 percent) in those games.
The Trail Blazers haven’t seen the Pacers since the night Siakam made his Indiana debut in Portland last January. He had 21 points.
Portland’s win that night was its 12th of the season. The Trail Blazers went just 9-32 the rest of the way.
Thanks in large part to Siakam, the Pacers rebounded from its loss in Portland to finish 23-17 and reach the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Pacers haven’t swept Portland in a season series since 2008.
