The Phoenix Suns will face the Portland Trail Blazers for some Friday night action as they continue their march to get over the hump this season after as disappointing a season finale as one could imagine in the desert. It’s time to make another prediction and choice in our NBA odds series for the Suns-Blazers game.
The Suns were forced to play Game 7 in their own arena, but they humiliatingly came up short in a 33-point drubbing at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks. Chris Paul’s career is running out of time, and the Suns’ window of opportunity to win a title could be shutting before our very eyes. Nevertheless, Phoenix has been a title contender for the majority of the last two seasons and enters this season as one of the NBA’s top teams. The Suns will try to build on their recent success against the Mavericks, winning 107-105 to move to 1-0, as they take on Portland today.
The Trail Blazers missed the postseason by a significant margin in the 2021–2022 regular season under Chauncey Billups’ direction as Portland’s head coach, as they concluded the campaign with a record of 27–55 and took 13th place in the Western Conference. Portland is anxious to demonstrate that they are one of the league’s most improved teams going into the season after a strong road performance that ended in a 115-108 victory over the Kings.
NBA odds for Suns vs. Blazers, provided by FanDuel
NBA Odds: Suns-Blazers Odds
Arizona Suns: -5 (-114)
Trail Blazers of Portland: +5 (-106)
Over: 223.5 (-110) (-110)
Under: 223.5 (-110)
Why The Suns Could Cover The Spread
The Suns nearly had PTSD treatment after their season-opening loss to Dallas left them trailing by as many as 22 points and undoubtedly brought back painful memories of their humiliating Game 7 playoff defeat from earlier this year. Phoenix just responded to the turmoil that the Mavs caused by outscoring Dallas 62-43 in the second half, sending the Suns supporters home satisfied. This demonstrated Phoenix’s composure and resiliency.
On the other hand, vengeance is best served cold, and that is exactly how the Suns started their game against Dallas on Wednesday. Phoenix must get off to a stronger start to avoid digging themselves too big of a hole in order to cover the spread in their first road test of the season in Portland. The Suns would be able to control the tempo and hold the Blazers at bay if they got out to a strong start.
Phoenix also needs to find a way to play with aggression without fouling a lot. Two days ago, the Suns were assessed over 29 fouls, and as a result, Phoenix was unable to make the necessary adjustments due to foul issues. Despite being a little more aggressive on the court, Phoenix completely outclassed the Mavs there, and this was the one area where it paid off. After everything was said and done, the Suns amassed an incredible 56 points in the paint. Expect Phoenix to feed Deandre Ayton in the paint because he should have the upper hand against Portland centre Jusuf Nurkic.
Why The Trail Blazers Could Cover The Spread
The good news is that star point guard and sharpshooter Damien Lillard has finally returned to the Blazers’ starting lineup after missing 9 1/2 months due to a nagging abdominal ailment. This is despite the fact that the team had a terrible year last season. Lillard occasionally appeared like his old self after his comeback, however there were also occasions when it was clear he was still trying to shake the rust off. Lillard concluded his 37 minutes of play with 20 points on 5-18 shooting and an uncharacteristically poor 1-8 from beyond the arc.
Fortunately for himself and the Blazers, the tenacious 32-year-old floor general drove to the basket and gained access to the free-throw line using his combative demeanour. Simply simply, Lillard having a breakout game and inflicting harm upon the Suns with a hot shooting hand will be the best-case scenario for Portland when it comes to covering the spread.
Not to add, the Blazers would adore to keep getting the ball to recently acquired forward Jerami Grant in transition and in open areas. Grant has already given Portland a tremendous amount of efficiency since Portland made a move for him during the offseason. Grant’s Trail Blazers debut on Wednesday couldn’t have started any better as he scored 23 points on 5/11 shooting from the field. Grant undoubtedly improves this team considerably and should frustrate the Suns whenever he has the ball in his hands.
Final Suns-Blazers Prediction & Pick
To begin with, this Portland team is not the same one that suffered 52 losses a year ago. The Trail Blazers should be motivated going into their home opener of the regular season with the addition of Jerami Grant, Dame Time’s return, and other key playmakers.
Trail Blazers +5 in the final Suns-Blazers prediction and pick (-106)
Suns vs. Trail Blazers prediction, odds, and selection for the NBA game on October 21st, 2022 was the first to appear on ClutchPoints.
