Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija absorbed the news that guard Anfernee Simons and center Donovan Clingan were out with illnesses before hosting the Denver Nuggets on Friday night at the Moda Center the best way possible.
He didn’t dwell on their absence or the fact that the Blazers were also without Deandre Ayton, Jerami Grant and Robert Williams III.
Instead, Avdija thought about how those in uniform had to pick up the slack.
“You’re thinking about, you got to be more aggressive,” he said. “You’re thinking about next man up, and just play simple, play together.”
With Avdija leading the way, the Blazers defeated the Nuggets 128-109 to remain two games out of 10th place in the Western Conference with 11 games remaining.
Denver (44-27) played without star center Nikola Jokic, but that didn’t lessen the team’s performance given that they were missing three regular starters and two key backups.
Advija scored a season-high 36 points and had eight rebounds and seven assists. The Blazers (32-39) outrebounded Denver 38-31 and converted 15 offensive rebounds into 26 second-chance points compared with 10 for the Nuggets. Denver guard Jamal Murray was held to 10 points and Portland forced the Nuggets to commit 21 turnovers.
“Our team chemistry is good and it shows on the court, even when our main guys are out,” Avdija said.
Denver Nuggets v Portland Trail Blazers
Head coach Chauncey Billups of the Portland Trail Blazers gestures during the third quarter of a game against the Denver Nuggets at the Moda Center on March 21, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Rio Giancarlo/Getty Images)Getty Images
Believing in each other, Avdija said, allowed the Blazers to get the job done.
“We’ve got a lot of confidence in each other,” he said. “We’re in the same boat. Defensively, we’re talking. Offensively we’re sharing the ball, we’re moving it. I think we really don’t care anymore who we play against. We care about ourselves. We care about how we play, how we share the ball, how we’re talking. How aggressive we’re going to be coming out the locker room.”
Denver still had Murray, Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr., Christian Braun, and Russell Westbrook available, but the Blazers' defense kept them mostly under wraps.
“I love the fact that we don’t care about those types of things,” Billups said regarding Denver’s lineup. “We respect it all, but we don’t care about none of that. All we care about is how we want to play. We want to try to put a lot of pressure on teams. We want to try to play fast.”
Once the ball goes up, Billups said, the Blazers only care about how they perform and want to play unselfishly.
“You just never know who is going to have a big night for us,” Billups said. “I think that makes us difficult to guard because you can’t just key on one person or two people.”
To that point, Avdija’s been rolling lately, while Dalano Banton has not. He scored 19 points against the Nuggets after scoring just 11 over his previous eight appearances. But before that, he scored 23 on Feb. 28 during a win at the Brooklyn Nets.
Denver Nuggets v Portland Trail Blazers
Dalano Banton #5 of the Portland Trail Blazers looks on during the second quarter of a game against the Denver Nuggets at the Moda Center on March 21, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Rio Giancarlo/Getty Images)Getty Images
“We feel like we’ve got a lot of talent and if we keep playing unselfishly, that’s just the way it’s going to be,” Banton said.
Playing this way is what Billups has preached since arriving in Portland in 2021. It’s also how the Detroit Pistons team he led to the 2004 NBA Finals played.
“That’s how I believe basketball should be played,” he said. “You have to embrace your role. You’ve got to embrace whatever night is your night.”
It took a bit to reach this point, however. Earlier in the season, the Blazers experienced some issues with players not always accepting their roles.
Not anymore. When one or two guys are on, Billups said, the rest of the team embraces and celebrates their success, accepts their role and waits for their time to shine.
“I think the best teams play that way,” he said. “They are very unselfish. We care about one another. We care about one another’s success. We hold each other accountable. And if you’re not doing your job, we will get after you. And if you’re doing your job, we have your back.”
Losing Friday would have pushed the Blazers to three games behind Dallas (34-37) and Phoenix (34-37), tied for 10th. Both teams won on Friday.
Banton said reaching the play-in would mean a lot to the young Blazers.
“I feel like just getting that little piece of that 10 seed, that play-in game, would go a long way for us,” he said. “Just that hunger, that grit, knowing we’re almost there. That’s what keeps us going. Keeps us motivated.”
-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)