The Portland Trail Blazers get a decisive win against the LA Clippers

The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the LA Clippers on the road on Wednesday night in a back-and-forth game for both teams. When the smoke cleared in the crucial period, the Blazers were winners 106-105.

Portland guard Anfernee Simons led the Blazers with 25 points on 10-24 shooting and six assists. Fellow guard Scoot Henderson led a young Revolution that played fast and gave Portland momentum after a lackluster start. Henderson scored 14 points on 5-8 shooting (2-3 from distance), six assists, three rebounds and one steal in 24 minutes, marking another strong, controlled performance in his early-season catalog. Blazers starting center Deandre Ayton also contributed 15 points, 12 rebounds and a key offensive rebound near the end, which he converted into a hard hook shot.

For the Clippers, former Blazers guard Norman Powell led all scorers with 30 points. Star guard James Harden added 19 points on 6-for-18 shooting – we call this difficult shooting night the Toumani Effect.

With the formalities out of the way, let's talk about how it all played out in the recaps for Wednesday night's Tinsel Town thriller.

A revival of young people

The Blazers came out of the gate in LA lethargic and cold. The Clippers took an early 8-0 lead while Portland started 1-8 from the field. Fears grew that the Blazers might be in for a long night on the road — at least in the Blazer's Edge Slack chat. When Henderson checked in at 7:37 and Portland trailed 10-4, the momentum of the game began to change. Henderson scored seven points in the first quarter and sparked a burst of activity and performance from Portland's younger players that turned the game around.

Kris Murray provided great defense, a rebound and a buzzer-beating tip-in in the first quarter. He also managed a respectable one-two from a distance. Donovan Clingan provided impact in the lane with that size. Both Toumani Camara and Jabari Walker provided the usual buzz and excitement (Rayan Rupert also joined the party late when he single-handedly went on a 7-0 run in the fourth quarter). With the young guys, the Blazers played faster, moved the ball with more momentum and got more floor burners diving for loose balls. After the starters found their rhythm, the early 8-0 deficit turned into a 54-43 lead for the Blazers late in the second half.

This trend continued in the second half. When the Clippers jumped out to a nine-point lead in the third quarter and another nine points early in the fourth, it was Henderson and the younger second unit who led Portland's offense back into the game.

Crunch time offense

With the game still close and approaching winning time, Portland head coach Chauncey Billups turned the key back over to the older starting lineup. That meant putting the ball in Simons' hands at the top of the key and letting him shoot or play off screens. The plan started wonderfully. Simons grabbed seven straight points to give Portland a 104-103 lead with 2:44 left. Then it came to a standstill. Simons missed his last three throws – a 3-pointer and two straight-line drives – although the missed 3s were saved by an ugly but effective putback from Ayton in a straitjacket by the Clippers defenders. Then, with less than 30 seconds left to play and Portland defending a one-point lead, Simons worked from the top of the key to whip a pass to Ayton in the corner to make it 3-0. Ayton was open, he had hit one before, and (I'm not going to lie) it looked pretty clean when he held it in his hand, but it didn't fall down. I'm excited to see what Billups thinks of the final looks for Portland, but they left a lot to be desired.

Despite poor execution late in the game, Portland rallied with great defense, aided by missed free throws from the Clippers. The Blazers handed Harden a double-team on a play. On another play, Deni Avdija had a crucial chase-down block on Powell with 30 seconds left. Ayton then intercepted a pass intended for Ivica Zubac deep in the goal crease on LA's final possession. It didn't always look pretty, but the Blazers somehow pulled out the win.

The little things

The Blazers fought back several times in this game and they deserve applause for that. They really didn't make it easy for themselves. Over the course of a 48-minute basketball game, the Blazers team encounters more and more small mistakes that would make you want to marvel. They're not big! It's just the little things, and they come in a varied package: bizarre turnovers, slightly off-target passes that throw the shooters out of rhythm, missed layups, leaving good shooters wide open in zone defense and giving up a 7-0 lead Run with about a minute left in the first half. This game takes place in an interesting environment where, in my opinion, both the Blazers and Clippers should have won by 10 points.

Norman Powell, the former Blazer/Blazer Killer

When I talked about the Blazers leaving good shooters open in the last section, Powell was usually the guy who played the “open shooter” role. The former Blazer overwhelmed his old team by going 5-for-10 from deep on 30 players. He also delivered his usual “Stormin' Norman” attacks to the rack, shooting a total of 11-for-22 from the field. He was the only Clipper to score more than 20 points. LA ended up putting that play away, but it wasn't because of Powell.

Clingan against the speed of Kai Jones

Clingan did a lot of good things in his 11 minutes of action. He provided a boost on offense (six rebounds, three on offense), got a block and a steal, completed several shots from deep and even sank a much-needed three-pointer in the fourth quarter. However, the Clippers' backup center Kai Jones caused some problems for the rookie. Jones is a 6-foot-2 athletic demon who makes his NBA money by flying across the floor. That's difficult coverage for a big defenseman like Clingan, especially five games into his career.

Defending without fouling is something Clingan did very well early on for a rookie center, but Jones' quick activity was one of the main reasons Clingan committed three fouls in the first quarter. On the third whistle, Jones caught Clingan flat-footed at the 3-point line and fired him for an and-1 dunk. Clingan handled the task better in the second half, picking up just one foul in his few minutes in the second half. Watching how Clingan handles faster centers will be an interesting development to watch over the course of his career.

Next

Box score

The Blazers will be back at the Moda Center on Friday night to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder. The advisory is scheduled for shortly after 7:00 p.m. PST.