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5 teams who need to make the 2017 NBA Playoffs

By Noah Strackbein

Feb 23, 2017; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forwards DeMarcus Cousins (left) talks Anthony Davis before their game against the Houston Rockets at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 23, 2017; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forwards DeMarcus Cousins (left) talks Anthony Davis before their game against the Houston Rockets at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports /
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3. Portland Trail Blazers

The best backcourt in the NBA may belong to the Portland Trail Blazers. But having as much talent as Portland does means nothing without results in the win column. For the Trail Blazers, they need to prove that last year wasn’t just a flash in the pan.

At 24-34, the Trail Blazers are nowhere near where they wanted to be at this point in the year. For a team coming off a conference semifinal run last season, being a game and a half out of eighth place is not what they were expecting.

You can’t go from a fifth seed in 2016, finishing with 38 losses, to 34 losses just after the All-Star break. If you plan to continue building from these young stars like Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, then you need to produce wins. No team can take a setback like Portland and continue to progress towards a Finals run. With the season they’re having, they’re desperate to begin turning this year around.

They have a lot of talent with Lillard and McCollum, but if they fall short of the playoffs, they’ll be taking a significant step back in development.

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