The Portland Trailblazers are off to a great start this season in the western conference. With 8 wins and only 2 losses, Portland is sitting in second place in the conference right behind the defending western conference champion San Antonio Spurs. Portland opened the season with a loss to the Phoenix Suns, but the next 2 games were much more important for the Blazers.
Portland defeated the Denver Nuggets by double digits in the next game. Denver is a team that many thought would make a run at the top spot in the west, but Portland dominated them. On the following day the Trailblazers faced off against the Spurs. Nicholas Batum recorded a triple-double and the Blazers beat the Spurs by 10 points. The Spurs were not happy with Batum, who made a 3 pointer at the buzzer giving him a triple-double. Many players for the Spurs said that what Batum did was disrespectful. Batum later apologized for his actions.
After a loss to the Houston Rockets, the Blazers went on a 6 game winning streak beating teams like Detroit and Boston. Much of the early success this season is because of second year point guard Damian Lillard from Weber State. Lillard won the Rookie of the Year award last season and has improved his game in many areas this season. His player efficiency rating has gone up, along with his rebounding numbers. The question for this Portland team is whether they can sustain this success over a long 82 game regular season.