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Carmelo Anthony Helps Rescue Trail Blazers From Bad Loss To Timberwolves

The Trail Blazers, up double-digits early, narrowly avoided an ugly loss to the Timberwolves behind an awesome performance from Carmelo Anthony.

Notes, analysis, observations and clips from the Portland Trail Blazers' 125-121 road win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday.

Carmelo Anthony passed Hakeem Olajuwon for 11th on the all-time scoring list in this game, a monumental achievement made all the sweeter because it came in arguably his best overall performance as a Trail Blazer. Team-highs of 26 points and a +9 plus-minus don't quite tell the story. 'Melo was the catalyst – well, along with Damian Lillard – behind Portland avoiding an embarrassing loss, first helping bring his team back from a sudden deficit and then finishing off the Timberwolves in crunch-time. He even had a pair of fourth-quarter steals and a block in isolation. The cherry on top of Anthony's performance wasn't a quick-trigger pull-up three or timeless turnaround jumper, but a bullet from the top of the floor to Derrick Jones Jr. that officially put the Timberwolves away – one of his many extra passes in a six-assist night. Bravo, 'Melo.

Anthony wasn't without his foibles defensively, of course, but neither were the rest of the Blazers. Their lack of communication and engagement on that end of the floor was obvious from the jump. Minnesota didn't start taking full advantage of those many mistakes until after halftime; Portland would have lost on Saturday otherwise. The Blazers were sometimes too slow to switch and sometimes didn't switch at all. Their transition defense was lazy even when they were actually in position down the floor, and there were a couple damaging possessions that Lillard didn't get back at all. It occasionally appeared as if Portland hadn't read a scouting report. Karl-Anthony Towns, predictably, abused Enes Kanter, finally forcing Terry Stotts to finish the game small. There were times Portland did well defensively in crunch time, with Covington aggressively fronting Towns, effectively loading to the strong side on the catch and zoning up on the backside of the play. But one of the reasons that cohesion and effort stood out so much is because it was so frequently lacking for the vast majority of this game. Earlier this week, Covington suggested the full-strength Blazers could function like a top-10 defense by season's end – a development that seemed highly unlikely before Saturday, and seems virtually impossible now.

Chris Finch began the game with Towns on Jones and the live-wire Jarred Vanderbilt on Enes Kanter, hoping to keep his defensively-challenged big man from being exploited by Lillard. It only took Portland two possessions to solve that gambit, using Jones as a screener in place of Kanter. The result was Lillard picking apart the 'Wolves overzealous yet slow-moving defense to the tune of seven first-quarter assists, a season-high. Jones and Kanter scored 17 of the Blazers' first 20 points, feasting at the rim off direct pocket passes and hockey assists from Lillard. Minnesota adjusted after halftime, toggling defensive matchups and sagging harder off Portland's streaky weak-side shooters to help muck up Lillard's driving and passing lanes. He persevered and figured it out eventually, of course, but the Blazers' offense stagnated enough in the second half to make you really, really miss C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic yet again.

In a game full of unproven young players with intriguing physical profiles, Nassir Little was among those who popped most. He brought his typical energy and activity on both sides of the ball, flying in for weak-side blocks and rising above the crowd to high-point rebounds. Little also spent a lot of time as Anthony Edwards' primary assignment defensively, even switching with Covington when Towns set screens on the ball – an indication of the coaching staff's confidence in Little's defense. But his contribution making most headlines, by far, was Little's powerful two-handed slam in traffic from the second quarter. There's a lot to be impressed by here, including Little's rare ability to finish with authority off his weak leg. But most encouraging for his long-term development is the decisiveness with which Little caught and immediately attacked. We've mentioned Little's ever-improved three-point shooting eventually opening up his game as a driver, but it's apparently already happening.

Stotts and the coaching staff definitely bear some culpability for the Blazers' defensive struggles. You can only drill so much edge and intensity into NBA players, but too many of Portland's errors were the result of simple confusion and lack of planning. It wasn't a bad night for Stotts from start to finish, though. With the Wolves selling out to trap Lillard ball screens late, Stotts threw in a wrinkle that started his superstar off the ball and got him sprinting into dribble hand-off action with Anthony. 'Melo's hot hand forced a switch, leaving Lillard to prey on Towns for one of the game's most important possessions. Good stuff.

Minnesota, remember, played without Malik Beasley and D'Angelo Russell. Maybe the Blazers have an easier time offensively with the Wolves' starting backcourt available, but it's hard to believe Portland would have been able to keep up on the scoreboard given its rash of defensive breakdowns. No one wishes injury on opponents in the NBA, but the Blazers are lucky to catch the 'Wolves short-handed. This back-to-back is the Blazers' softest two-game stretch of the season's remainder.