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The Portland Trail Blazers will play the Phoenix Suns at their homecourt Footprint Center in Arizona on Wednesday (November 10).
The Valley of the Suns had a slow start to the season but seem unstoppable now. They will host the Blazers with a five-win streak behind them. Meanwhile, Portland will head to Arizona after a loss (109-117) against the LA Clippers.
Phoenix has an offensive rating of 108.1 (ranked 15th in the league) and a defensive rating of 107.2 this season. They have managed to score 110.1 points per game of which 31.2 points came from three-pointers.
However, the Suns have also allowed their opponents to score 109.2 per game. An issue that has emerged for the squad this year is that they have been defensively weak around the arc. The Suns are allowing their opponents to score 14.3 three-pointers every night.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers have been disappointing so far this season. Their three-point specialist Damian Lillard has been abysmal from downtown. He has landed only 2.5 out of his 10 three-point attempts so far with a success rate of 25.5%.
The Trail Blazers also have a defensive rating of 108.8 which is ranked 22nd in the league.
Portland Trail Blazers Injury Report
The only good news coming in from the Portland Trail Blazers camp is their healthy roster. They have no injured players at the moment. Their preferred starting five players have been able to play most games.
Norman Powell, who missed two games earlier in the season, has remained healthy since. However, there is an urgent need for coach Chauncey Billups to improve his team's defense.
Phoenix Suns Injury Report
The Phoenix Suns have played their last two games without Deandre Ayton. The 6'11" University of Arizona graduate was one of the key players for the Suns in their run to the 2020-21 NBA Finals.
Ayton has managed to average 14.2 points and 11.3 rebounds in the ongoing season. However, the Valley of the Suns center is sidelined for the upcoming game against the Trail Blazers as well.
Meanwhile, Landry Shamet, who shot four three-pointers against the Houston Rockets on November 4, is doubtful for Wednesday. Shamet is recovering from a right foot contusion and will most likely sit out this match.
Dario Saric will remain out of the squad indefinitely on account of his ACL tear in July.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Phoenix Suns: Predicted Lineups
Portland Trail Blazers
Although Damian Lillard has been unlucky from beyond-the-arc, he is still the second best scorer in the Portland Trail Blazers. He will unarguably start on the backcourt along with CJ McCollum, who is the top scorer for the team.
Their frontcourt will be handled by Norman Powell, Robert Covington and Jusuf Nurkic. Nurkic is currently the best rebounder on his team with an average of 11 rebounds per game.
Phoenix Suns
With Ayton sidelined, JaVale McGee will start as the Phoenix Suns' center. McGee is averaging 9.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, which will make him a decent replacement for Ayton. He will be joined by Mikal Bridges and Jae Crowder on the frontcourt.
The backcourt will be handled by Chris Paul and Devin Booker. Both Booker and CP3 have been phenomenal this season. Paul is averaging 11.3 assists per game while Booker is averaging 23.8 points per game.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Phoenix Suns: Predicted Starting 5s
Portland Trail Blazers
Point Guard - Damian Lillard | Shooting Guard - CJ McCollum | Small Forward - Norman Powell | Power Forward - Robert Covington | Center - Jusuf Nurkic.
Phoenix Suns
Point Guard - Chris Paul | Shooting Guard - Devin Booker | Small Forward - Mikal Bridges | Power Forward - Jae Crowder | Center - JaVale McGee.
