The Portland Trail Blazers head back home to host the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night at the Rose Garden after a tough road trip.
The team is coming off of a 99-92 loss to the Indiana Pacers and are just 4-8 on the road this season, including 2-5 during the last trip. The Blazers will stay home for a while though, as they kick off a six-game homestand against the Kings, who have the second-worst record in the NBA.
"I liked the way our guys finished the road trip, I liked the way we competed, got some of the young guys involved off the bench," coach Terry Stotts said to the Associated Press. "So I thought there were things that were good but I don't think any of us were necessarily satisfied being 2-5. You wanted to get one or two more on the road."
Rookie Damian Lillard had a team-high 23 points and six in the loss against the Pacers and has been the most impressive player on the team this season. The No. 6 pick in the draft has been the best rookie in the NBA, leading all first-year players in scoring with 19.3 points per game.
"Everything is going kind of smoother than I thought it would," Lillard said. "That's just what it is. I never really said I'm just going to come in and I don't know what's going to happen. I felt I was going to be productive, I just didn't know how productive."
Lillard has scored at least 23 points in the past three games and had a double-double of 24 points and 11 assists in Saturday's 118-117 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. He is shooting over 50 percent in December and is averaging nearly nine assists per game.
Portland is ranked 12th in scoring this season, but are allowing over 100 points per game, the third-worst in the league. Lillard has been solid moving the ball, but he's the only one--the Blazers are ranked 28th in the league with 19 assists per game.
Power forward LaMarcus Aldridge had 18 points and 10 rebounds in the loss against the Pacers. He scored at least 21 in points in the previous three games and scored 25 points with 13 assists in Monday's 118-112 win over the Charlotte Bobcats. He is shooting over 47 percent in the past 10 games and is leading the Blazers with 20.7 points per game.
J.J. Hickson is the top rebounder for the Blazers and had a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds in the loss against the Pacers. Forward Nicolas Batum is dealing with a back issue but may play on Saturday.
The Blazers opened the season with only two wins in their first seven games, but the team rebounded to win four of five games, including a 102-94 victory over the Chicago Bulls. The latest road trip got off to a tough start with losses to Brooklyn, Detroit, Washington and Boston, but the Blazers rebounded with a 118-117 overtime win over the Cavaliers last Saturday.
The Kings have been one of the worst teams in the league and has yet to win a game on the road this season.
Sacramento is coming off of a 91-82 home win against the Orlando Magic, but might be shorthanded on Saturday/ Point guard Tyreke Evans is dealing with a sore knee and may miss his fourth game in the last five contests.
Evans is scoring a career-low 15.5 points per game and has averaged over 20 points during the last seven games. Although he missed Friday's contest, Evans scored 23 points with two rebounds and two assists in Wednesday's 107-100 win against the Raptors.
The Kings will rely heavily on center DeMarcus Cousins, who had a double-double of 17 points and 14 rebounds in the win against the Magic. He is leading the team in scoring and rebounding with 16.6 points and 10.0 rebounds and has scored in double-digits in four of the past five games.
The last time the Kings and Blazers played, Cousins was forces to miss the game due to a suspension. Lillard had nine assists in the game as he Blazers won 103-86. Sacramento used a fast lineup against the Magic on Friday, but will likely push out more size and strength against the Trail Blazers.
"The lineup that Orlando used allowed me to do that rotation tonight," coach Keith Smart said. "They didn't look to post up their guards. In tomorrow's game, Portland will post up their twos and threes, so there may not be a situation like that."
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