Trail Blazers’ Anfernee Simons sends Nuggets home with Kiss Off Glass

Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons surveyed Russell Westbrook and the Denver Nuggets from the top of the Moda Center key on Thursday night. When Simons made his move in the final seconds of a tied game, Nuggets guard Jamal Murray threatened a double-team that never came. So Simons accelerated to the right and sent the Nuggets home with a hovering kiss on the glass as the buzzer sounded.

“Once you finally get those opportunities one-on-one,” Simons said of the game-winning play. “You think, ‘Okay, I have to take advantage of the opportunity.’

Simons took it. And the shot gave the Blazers a 126-124 victory, their first since November 29th. It wasn’t easy Thursday night, but the Blazers’ long losing streak – which felt even longer due to disruptions in the schedule – is dead after six games.

“It definitely stopped the bleeding,” Simons said.

Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups told reporters that the games that break up defeats aren’t usually steps out of nowhere in the right direction; The teams work towards this form in the games before the breakthrough. Billups said that was the case with this series. He felt that his players had performed well in the last few games, but this time they managed to achieve victory.

“This is a good confirmation for our guys to continue to play the right way and trust each other,” Billups said.

Before winning the game, Portland blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter during a drought that left the home crowd breathless. The appearance was good, they just didn’t fall off. Thoughts wandered to just six days ago when the Blazers gave up a 17-point fourth-quarter lead in a 118-116 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the same building. Denver even took a 122-120 lead with less than a minute left.

Still, the Blazers stayed the course and “didn’t get upset,” to quote Simons. They made just enough plays and caught just enough breaks to secure the win, despite 34 points and eight assists from three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.

“We persevered,” Billups said. “I was proud of our group for that.”

“We showed tremendous composure in the last two minutes,” added Simons.

Aside from the buzzer-beater and the determination Portland showed against Denver, there were plenty of other things to like about the game. Portland forward Deni Avdija continues to play like a revelation after a slow offensive start to the season. He has been Portland’s most consistent player over the last 10 games and changes. On Thursday he prevailed again with 19 points on 6:9 shooting in 21 minutes. He’s off to a 5-5 start, hitting his first three triples, as his confidence and willingness to shoot the ball seem to increase with each game.

“I think it’s mostly because he’s more comfortable with his teammates and vice versa,” Billups said of Avdija’s growing confidence. “Those are the things that really make you take off.”

The Blazers had 29 assists. That number probably should have been closer to 34 or more, but six Blazers still scored at least 13 points, a testament to how the offense kept the Nuggets in shape all night long. Before the fourth quarter drought slowed the momentum somewhat, the Blazers reached the 100-point mark for CHA-LU-PAS – Sorry, I mean McNuggets– End of the third quarter. One possession later, Simons drained a three-pointer at the buzzer to put the Blazers up 104. A man sitting courtside in a full Grinch costume hugged a man next to him, embodying the joyous scene that surely made their hearts expand three sizes at the sight of everything.

Perhaps most importantly, Simons and Shaedon Sharpe played the way dynamic backcourt players had hoped they would this season. Sharpe scored 27 points on 9-for-18 shooting, while Simons barely topped him with 28 points on 11-for-20 shooting. He also dropped 10 assists.

“Every time the ball swung to one of them, they were just aggressive to make the right play and not necessarily the shot,” Billups said.

On the last play, when the double team didn’t come, the right play was crucial. Simons managed to give the Blazers the win and add another game-winner to his catalog. Afterward, Simons was greeted in the locker room with neither water bottle showers nor the game ball – the lack of excitement suggested everything was business as usual.

“That’s a compliment,” he said. “This isn’t my first rodeo.”