Trail Blazers vs. Suns Prediction and Odds for Friday November 4 (Portland is Desperate for Offense Without Dame)
By Josh Yourish
The Portland Trail Blazers are off to a great start to the year and have even weathered an injury to Damian Lillard as well. Portland is 5-2, but could have a tough time tonight against the Phoenix Suns with Lillard still on the shelf.
The Suns are 6-1 to start the year. Many people thought that this team was left for dead after the Game 7 debacle last year, but seven games into the 2022-23 season and they look like one of the best teams in basketball. Will they keep it rolling against the Blazers tonight? Let’s check the odds.
Trail Blazers vs. Suns Odds, Spread and Total
Trail Blazers vs. Suns Prediction and Pick
The Trail Blazers have been such a pleasant surprise this season. It looked like Lillard was back to his top form after missing most of last season with a core muscle injury. Through five games he was averaging 31.0 points before a calf injury. Anfernee Simons seems to be taking another step as well, averaging 22.0 points alongside Dame. However, this team does have a glaring flaw that will show up even more if their top two isolation scorers are out.
The Blazers are 26th in the league in assists per game. They only average 21.9 and Lillard is their leading playmaker with 4.6 assists per game. That is just not enough creation for others for this to be a sustainable model when Lillard is injured. Josh Hart is second on the team in assists, and that is a serious concern when you are relying on a 3-and-D player to be a secondary creator. This team is in desperate need of another playmaker if they want to survive Lillard’s injuries and advance in the playoffs even with a healthy Dame.
Tonight, they are going up against the ultimate creator, Chris Paul who is averaging 11.0 assists per game this season.
Pick: Suns -10.5 (-110)
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change