Tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN the reeling San Antonio Spurs (34-22) will head to Portland to face the Trailblazers (36-19) in a Western Conference tilt that can be live streamed free by clicking this link. Spurs fans can listen to the radio broadcast on 1200 WOAI, while Blazers fans may do likewise on Fox Sports 620.
The Spurs' famed motion offense was sputtering their last time out, when they dropped a 90-81 game in Utah against the Jazz, tying a season-low. The Spurs' rhythm has deserted them lately, and coach Gregg Popovich thinks the team is settling for bad shots.
"I thought we took a lot of contested shots that we didn't need to take," Popovich said following the defeat. "I don't think we played very smart in that regard."
The Blazers are not exactly tearing it up of late either. They come into this matchup losers of two straight, and 11 of their last 17. Portland's lead in the Northwest division remains comfortable, but no team in the West should feel as if their spot in the postseason is safe.
"We need every win," Blazers shooting guard Wesley Matthews said. "Every game is important. Every game is even more so important when we are playing teams that are above us or next to us."
They need to watch their backs as well for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are surging behind MVP-caliber play from Russell Westbrook and added a scoring center at the trade deadline in Enes Kanter.
The Blazers also bolstered their offense at the trade deadline, making a deal for shooting guard Arron Afflalo. He scored eight points in his Portland debut, but expects bigger outings in the future.
"Obviously, I was a little passive," Afflalo said. "Out of respect for my teammates, you want to come out there and feel the game a little bit. But I see the potential, I see the opportunity there. I'll learn from Game 1 and become more aggressive with confidence moving into Game 2."
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