NBA: Depleted Trail Blazers wrap trip vs. struggling Pelicans

The injury-plagued Portland Trail Blazers will aim to finish their five-game road trip on a positive note when they visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.

Portland has been away from home since the start of December and holds a 1-3 record on the trip following a 119-96 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.

Key players were sidelined against Memphis, including starters Jrue Holiday (calf), Donovan Clingan (lower leg), center Robert Williams III (illness), and defensive specialist Matisse Thybulle (thumb). Point guard Scoot Henderson (hamstring) has yet to make his season debut, while nine-time All-Star Damian Lillard (torn Achilles) will miss the entire 2025-26 season.

Despite the setbacks, team morale remains strong.

“I think mentally we're at a good space,” said Toumani Camara, one of only two Portland players—along with Deni Avdija—to play in all 24 games this season. “We're still very together, very connected. Just focusing on us. I think we have a lot of things going against us this year. Being able to fight those things and overcome adversity, I think that's what we need for the stage we're at right now.”

The Blazers’ struggles and streaky performance were evident in Memphis, where they were outscored 40-20 in the first quarter, bounced back to win the middle two periods by six points, and then fell 27-18 in the fourth quarter.

“I think we need to figure out a way to be more consistent,” Camara added. “We show a lot of good things in certain games, and in some other games we just go completely away from it. That’s the main thing for us. We know what we're capable of doing. We've beaten good teams, we're in the game almost every time. We just have to be able to close games and avoid bad quarters.”

The Trail Blazers will face a New Orleans team stuck in a seven-game losing streak, though the Pelicans have remained competitive. Five of those losses came by single digits, and two were decided in overtime.

New Orleans erased a 20-point halftime deficit before falling 135-132 to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday. Rookie big man Derik Queen starred with a season-high 33 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and four blocks.

“A special night for him,” said Pelicans interim coach James Borrego. “Second half, he was great. He did a really good job defensively, on the boards, and controlled the offense. We ran a lot of our stuff through him. I thought he was fantastic.”

Queen expressed pride in achieving his first career triple-double.

“It means a lot,” he said. “It's pretty good for a person who didn't have a preseason and was hurt. A lot of people doubted me. I even had a little bit of doubt in myself after being injured.”

Portland has dominated recent matchups, winning the past four meetings against New Orleans, including a 125-117 victory in New Orleans on Nov. 12. The Pelicans had previously won seven consecutive games before that streak.

-Field Level Media/Reuters