What to Make of Tiago Splitter Calling Out Blazers For Lack of 'Energy'

The Portland Trail Blazers are coming off one of their worst performances of the season in a 135-101 loss against the Atlanta Hawks.

After the game, Blazers acting head coach Tiago Splitter was not happy, and he called the team out for not having enough energy against the Hawks.

"I think readiness has got to be there. I talk about this every time. I thought that, like I said, we didn't have enough energy to play. Kris was kinda ill, Sidy was ill, DC, so the energy was not there. They were fighting, they were trying, and they were pushing themselves. They were getting IV's before the game and really trying to be there and fight for their team, but we couldn't find that energy," Splitter said.

Blazers Look Lethargic vs. Hawks

Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum drives past Portland Trail Blazers guard Matisse Thybulle. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

It was clear from the opening minutes of the game that the Blazers were several steps behind the Hawks during the game.

There are a few reasons behind this, and the players aren't exactly to blame. There is some virus that is making its way through the locker room and has plagued several players, including Kris Murray, who exited the game after just four minutes. Sidy Cissoko, who has been on the injury report recently, and Donovan Clingan, who missed the team's opening game of the road trip against the Chicago Bulls.

That is not something the Blazers should be too concerned about in the long run, but there is some smoke in the building.

While the team has been without Deni Avdija and Shaedon Sharpe, the players on the court that were healthy could have come up with a little bit of a stronger effort. It's getting to that point in the season where nobody is truly 100 percent, but that is the nature of an 82-game season.

Every team is struggling a little bit when it comes to the mileage of the season picking up, but there's a difference between the good teams and the great teams in that the great ones will figure out how to get past these second-half walls.

The Blazers may not be at that great level yet, and that's okay. They are slowly growing year over year, but this is the next obstacle for the team. They need to figure out a way to get through it in order to possibly get to the postseason for the first time since 2021.