Avdija Impresses But Blazers Lose Lead At New York Knicks In 110-93 Defeat
750 The Game Staff
Despite Deni Avdija’s game-high 33 points and building a 14-point lead in the third quarter, the Trail Blazers lost 110-93 on the road to the New York Knicks on Sunday.
Portland led 58-50 at halftime and made it a 68-54 edge with 8:19 to go in the third period before the Knicks went on a 25-10 run to close the quarter and retake a one-point lead. New York outscored Portland 31-15 in the fourth quarter to seal the win.
Avdija went 14-25 from the floor with 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Portland also got a 4-for-6 three-point shooting performance from Toumani Camara on his way to 16 points with 8 rebounds (5 offensive), 4 assists and a steal. But the Blazers as a team struggled from beyond the arc, going 9-36 (25%). Anfernee Simons went 5-20 from the field, and 1-8 from three and was -16 in plus-minus, worst among the starters. Outside of Camara, the Blazers shot 5-for-30 from downtown (16.6%).
Seven games remain in Portland’s 2024-25 regular season. They’ve lost four in a row, and are 32-43 overall, 4-1/2 games back of the tenth seed and final play-in spot in the West, currently held by Sacramento. The Blazers have the ninth-worst record in the NBA, currently a half-game better than the 8th-worst San Antonio Spurs. Those teams play each other on Sunday in Portland.
First, the Blazers will wrap up their five game road trip with visits to Atlanta on Tuesday, Toronto on Thursday and Chicago on Friday.
After hosting the Spurs, Portland finishes at Utah, vs Golden State and vs the LA Lakers.