If the Portland Trail Blazers’ game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday night could be summed up with one sound, it would be a rat being crushed by a wing. The Blazers came out with a terrible first quarter where they were outmatched, outshot and outclassed. From there it got even worse. The Memphis lead rose above 40 in the fourth quarter before settling to a final score of 134-89.

Here are some factors that characterized the action.

First quarter blues

For the second straight game, Portland dropped the first quarter hard. They shot 6-21 for the period, 1-10 from distance. They committed 9 turnovers, many of which are virtually inexplicable. Something just didn’t click right. A deficit of 31-17 is not the end of the world, but it does make winning more difficult.

Once upon a time, the Blazers would start games hot and then get settled in the third period. It looks like they’re starting to eliminate the middle man. Stay informed.

Start sharply

Shaedon Sharpe started the match in place of Deni Avdija. The rationale is pretty clear: Portland needs more offense and more explosiveness overall. Sharpe offers both.

The move didn’t seem to do either player any favors tonight. Sharpe started the match 1-4. Portland’s defense suffered. Avdija still couldn’t hit a shot when he came in, and his playmaking was less important with Scoot Henderson on the floor.

Sharpe finished the game with 7 points on 3-10 shooting, 0-5 from distance. Avdija had 0 points, 4 assists, a block and 2 turnovers in just 13 minutes of play.

Defense again

The mojo the Blazers once had on defense, especially on the interior, seems to have faded this week. The Grizzlies received the ball with impunity, often sliding into the lane with just one pass without any opposition. More and more teams are starting to pull Portland’s big men off the court. That robs the Blazers of their best defensive lineups. Those bigs aren’t mobile enough to get back in as soon as the ball moves. Portland’s small players are not at all intimidating when defending one-on-one in the paint. Ugliness ensues, along with high field goals for the opposition.

Memphis shot 47-85 from the floor tonight, 55.3%. They also had 58 points in the paint.

Augh my eyes

The goal of modern offenses is to generate open shots. Teams are much more agnostic about who is shooting than they once were. Space for the shooter is the ultimate goal.

In the case of Portland, that might not be a good idea. The Blazers used ball movement and overall athleticism to get open often tonight. Their shooting was indiscriminate at best. The number of shots that hit either the front iron or the back heel was astounding. We’re not talking about “ratchet-in-and-out” attempts. Just total bricks. They might as well have shot with a square ball.

It’s hard for me to understand how NBA players can suddenly become so cold. The Blazers shot 34.0% from the field tonight and a mind-numbing 9.5% from beyond the three-point arc. Less than half of it had to do with Memphis’ defense. It was just shaky marksmanship.

Turnover

Turnovers were also an ongoing problem for the Blazers, especially in the first half. If anything, this can be attributed to the Grizzlies’ athleticism. It can also be attributed to general discombobulation among Portland players. Maybe it was the new lineup. Maybe it was a case of the Soggy Sundays. Anyway, it seemed like the right hand didn’t know what the left hand was doing most of the time. But it didn’t matter much because the big toe was busy kicking the ball into the opponent’s hands anyway.

The Blazers committed 23 turnovers. They forced 22 from the Grizzlies, but a big whoops. Scoreboard.

Play effortlessly

Put all this together and the big question is, “Are the Blazers still trying?” It’s shocking to ask that things looked so energetic after the first three weeks of the season. The roster becoming healthier recently offered some hope. Instead, the team seems to have come to a standstill. They do not move their feet or anticipate play, either their own or that of the opponent.

The last two games were surprisingly similar to last season. That’s not a compliment, considering the team drafted third-line players in 2023-24 and tried (by all appearances) to have roughly no wins. Whatever’s going on, let’s hope they fix it soon. The season is not yet old enough for that.

If Head Coach Chauncey Billups doesn’t pull something new out of his bag on Tuesday for Portland’s next game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Blazers fans will likely start wearing bags over their heads to cover up the embarrassment.

Next

Box score

The Blazers welcome the Timberwolves on Tuesday night with a Pacific start at 7 p.m.