Blazers' Current Success Could Pay Off Massively Down The Line

The Trail Blazers trying to make the playoffs this year could pay off down the line in a big way.

Feb 24, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) brings the ball up the court against the Utah Jazz during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

The Portland Trail Blazers surprised everyone around the league when they made the decision to try to make the playoffs right before the trade deadline. They did so despite being 13th in the Western Conference standings.

While they haven't changed their spot in the West since then, they have been playing better basketball. They are now just 4.5 games behind the tenth spot in the West, which is the final play-in spot.

Portland has now won three straight games as they continue their pursuit of making the playoffs. They are beating bad teams, which is what they have to do if they want to have any hope of playing in the postseason.

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The Trail Blazers have one of the easiest schedules in the second half of the season. That is their hope to make the playoffs.

Their recent success could end up putting them in a good position down the road. This Blazers team is very young.

Getting these young guys in a scenario where they are essentially playing in the playoffs for two months before the actual playoffs start could be a very valuable experience.

That experience for players like Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe, and Scoot Henderson is invaluable. These are guys who haven't played in a meaningful game.

This playoff run could be their meaningful stretch of games, even if they don't end up being able to make it. This is the situation that these players aspire to be in every year.

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It's still unlikely that Portland is able to make the playoffs. They have a lot of ground to make up with not a lot of time to do it.

If they are able to pull this off, it could end up being the best thing for these young players and this franchise. That's why they are trying to get as healthy as possible.

If they are able to get healthy, they feel confident enough that they can make a good enough run to make the play-in. After that, it's whether or not they can win that play-in game.

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For more news and notes on the Portland Trail Blazers, visit Portland Trail Blazers on SI.