The Portland Trail Blazers have had quite a run in these 2019 playoffs, and they are on the cusp of the Western Conference Finals as they head into a Game 7 matchup against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
They are already in much better position today than they were a year ago. At this time last year, the Blazers were watching the rest of the playoffs at home after the New Orleans Pelicans swept them in the first round. Blazers coach Terry Stotts believes they would have already been in a similar position by this time if it weren't for the late-season acquisitions of Enes Kanter and Rodney Hood:
“At home watching television,” Stotts said, per Dwight Jaynes of NBC Sports. “Rodney and Enes, what they’ve given us in both the Oklahoma City series and this series, we wouldn’t be where we are without them.”
Hood and Kanter have provided huge contributions for the Blazers in their 2019 playoff campaign. It's amazing to see how much they have done considering they became after-thoughts with their previous teams: Hood with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Kanter with the New York Knicks.
Portland acquired Hood via trade, while Kanter was plucked off the waiver wire after the Knicks bought him out.
Kanter has filled in nicely for injured starting center Jusuf Nurkic, who shattered his leg late in the regular season. He is also giving Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic all he can handle in their grueling second-round matchup. So far in the playoffs, he is averaging 13.0 points and 10.4 rebounds while shooting 51.8 percent from the field.
Hood, likewise, has been a revelation for Portland in these playoffs, especially in their series against Denver. He has been on fire in this series, averaging 16.2 points on 60.4 percent field goal shooting and 57.9 percent shooting from deep.
The Blazers will definitely need both guys to play well once again to secure their ticket to the Western Conference Finals.
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