Of Robert Williams sit outside and Deandre Ayton sidelined by a finger injury, Trail Blazers lottery choice Donovan Clingan had its best performance of the season on Wednesday in a win over Minnesota. In 31 minutes, Clingan scored 17 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks.

‘I like defense’ Clingan told Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report. “It gives energy to the team. That’s how you win ball games.”

Shaedon Sharpe also had a big night with 33 points in 36 minutes. Coach Chauncey Billups was delighted with Sharpe’s assertiveness.

“Shae is such a teammate and he doesn’t want to step on anyone’s toes and just fit in,” Billups said. “And I tell him, ‘No, you have to go.’ I have to force him. But he’ll get used to it. He loves that we depend on him for some of those things. The more that happens, the more he will get used to it.”

Sharpe will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

• Deni Avdijawho now comes off the bench for the Trail Blazershad a remarkable performance against Minnesota on Tuesday. He collected 17 points, four rebounds and five assists in 25 minutes. In Wednesday’s win, Avdija added seven points and six rebounds in 18 minutes. According to Aaron Fentress of Oregonlive.com, Billups believes Avdija is well suited for a bench role. ‘Deni is tough’ Billups said. “He plays with a lot of fire. And we need that. We have a lot of relaxed, laid-back guys, and his mentality, we need that.”
• The Timber wolves have a 6-6 record after those back-to-back losses to Portland. Rudy Gobert told Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he blames himself for the latest defeats. ‘Those two matches were mainly focused on me defensively’ Gobert said. “I have to set the tone for the team, and I haven’t done that in the last two games.”
• Jazz center Walker Kessler hasn’t played since Saturday and will miss Thursday’s game against the Mavericks, Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune tweeted. The team labels the condition as right hip bursitis. Kessler is averaging 9.2 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.8 blocks.