Déjà Vu All Over Again – How The 2015-16 Trail Blazers Are Similar To The 2013-14 Warriors
Saturday, March 12, 2016
One thing I have learned in life is, history always repeats itself. Take a look around, you will notice today’s youth reliving fashion trends from the 1980s or early 1990s. If you follow history closely you will also notice eerie similarities in the fall of Rome and where the United States of America is trending. This article is not a history lesson or fashion piece. It is, however, going to shed light on how today’s Portland Trail Blazers squad is a reincarnation of the 2013-2014 Golden State Warriors.
On the eve of Portland’s upcoming game with Golden State, I became very intrigued with how the Warriors have taken the league by storm. I started thinking of a recent article I wrote that compared Damian Lillard to Stephen Curry. That brought me to think about their running mates in CJ McCollum and Klay Thompson. Although there are a lot of similarities in how the two teams are constructed, I wanted a true apples to apples comparison. Lillard is 25 years old and McCollum is 24 years old; this means I had to look at Klay and Steph when they were at similar points in their careers. Ultimately it led me to the 2013 – 2014 Warriors team. Below you can find statistics that break down just how similar these two teams are.
2015 – 2016 Blazers
- Leading scorer is a 25-year-old point guard at 26.1 points per game in 36.1 minutes per game.
- Secondary scorer is a 24-year-old shooting guard at 20.8 points per game in 35 minutes per game.
- Currently sitting at second place in the Northwest Division.
- Team averages 103.8 points per game.
- 13 players on the roster have five years or less NBA experience including three rookies.
- Ten players in the rotation average at least 15 minutes of play per game.
2013 – 2014 Warriors
- Leading scorer was a 25-year-old point guard at 24 points per game in 36.5 minutes per game.
- Secondary scorer was a 23-year-old shooting guard at 18.4 points per game in 35.4 minutes per game.
- Finished second place in the Pacific Division.
- Team averaged 104.3 points per game.
- 12 players on that roster had five years or less NBA experience including three rookies.
- Ten players in the rotation averaged at least 15 minutes of play per game.
Golden State’s season ended with a first-round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Portland could suffer that exact same fate when it’s all said and done this season. When taking a look at the landscape of the NBA it is clear that today’s trend is to build a team around two players that can handle the ball, preferably backcourt players. The Golden State Warriors, the Washington Wizards, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Toronto Raptors, the Chicago Bulls and the Portland Trail Blazers all have this makeup. Most likely all of the aforementioned teams will be in this year’s playoffs. Of these teams, Portland’s tandem is the second-youngest and second-highest scoring duo in the league.
Although, I would be shocked if Portland kept up its trend in comparison to the Warriors, which would land a championship team next season, it is not as far-fetched as it may seem. Portland is ascending and four of the top five teams in the west seem to have a future that is descending. As you watch tonight’s clash between the Blazers and Warriors, keep in mind that Portland just may be looking at their future selves.
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