Portland Trail Blazers out to end play-off drought, face Phoenix Suns in play-in round

PHOENIX – Phoenix coach Jordan Ott is confident about the Suns’ mindset entering their National Basketball Association (NBA) play-in tournament game against the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on April 14 (April 15 morning, Singapore time).

“We’ll be juiced and ready to rock,” he declared as the Suns look to return to the post-season after missing out in 2025.

Portland will not be sitting ducks however, even if they have not made the play-offs since 2021 – and they have not won a play-off series since 2019, when they fell to the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals.

Trail Blazers interim coach Tiago Splitter’s advice to his players comes from his seven seasons of NBA experience as a player, including five in the post-season.

“Play free,” said Splitter, who won an NBA title with San Antonio in 2014.

“You know, you can play that game super tense. It’s a balance between playing hard and playing free a little bit. You cannot be in fear. You just have to play hard and enjoy that.”

The seventh-seeded Suns and eighth-seeded Trail Blazers begin the two-for-one round of the NBA extra season on April 14.

The winners advance to the eight-team play-offs, with Game 1 set for April 19 at the second-seeded San Antonio Spurs.

The losers have another chance – they will host a second play-in game on April 17 against the winners of the Los Angeles Clippers-Golden State contest that tips off on April 15.

Phoenix won two of three in the season series, winning twice in Portland but losing at home in the most recent meeting on Feb 22, a 92-77 win for the Blazers with both teams missing key pieces.

Suns leading scorers Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks did not play, while Blazers leading scorer Deni Avdija left 59 seconds in after suffering a recurrence of a back injury.

Ott held out Booker, Brooks and his other starters in the regular-season finale, a 135-103 win over the Thunder at Oklahoma City on April 12. Booker and Brooks were rested, but questions surround the availability of Jalen Green (knee) and Jordan Goodwin (ankle).

“Whoever’s available, we’ll make it work,” Ott said. “We know we are a competitive group. We have more than enough to go out there and play and play as hard as we possibly can.”

The Blazers have won five of seven and seven of 10. The Suns have won six of the last 16, many of those without Brooks (fractured hand).

“They’ve been playing well lately,” Ott added of Portland. “It’s a really good defence. They are super active, long on the wings, play super physical. Offensively they play fast in transition and they drive the basketball. It’ll be a challenge, the same challenge that we’ve seen with them before.”

Splitter took over when Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups was placed on administrative leave after being arrested in October in a federal illegal gambling investigation.

“Stuff happens,” he said. “I think we went through everything you can imagine. Of course it is going to be a tough game. Jordan Ott is a great coach. A lot of pressure. You just have to enjoy that, knowing it is going to be part of their lives now, playing these important games.”

Over in the East, the No. 9 seeds Charlotte Hornets host 10th seeds Miami Heat on the same day.

The Hornets (44-38) finished with their largest single-season win total since 2015-16 and have been one of the league’s best teams since Jan 1, going 33-16 to end the season.

Miami (43-39) won the season series against Charlotte 3-1, but the Hornets won the last meeting 136-106 at home on March 17. 

In other news, Lakers star Luka Doncic is expected to return to Los Angeles on April 17 after receiving specialised treatment for his Grade 2 left hamstring strain in Europe, ESPN reported on April 13, although when he will return to game action remains unknown.

The 27-year-old reportedly spent a week in Spain receiving multiple injections for the injury suffered in a 139-96 loss to Oklahoma City on April 2. REUTERS, AFP