Injuries have been partially responsible for pushing the Portland Trail Blazers far down the Western Conference standings after a strong start to the season.
On too many nights, key players were out and not enough bench players compensated for their absence. That script had a chance to play out again Wednesday night in Utah when the Blazers took the court against the Utah Jazz without Anfernee Simons and Jerami Grant.
Usually, that would spell disaster. But not on this night.
Rookie Shaedon Sharpe started in place of Simons and Trendon Watford filled the void left by Grant. Both put forth the games of their young NBA lives to give Damian Lillard the support he needed and the Blazers won 127-115 at the Jazz and snapped a six-game losing stretch.
“What stands out is Shaedon,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups told reporters at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City. “His game was incredible. T-Wat continues to be consistent.”
Sharpe put together a dizzying array of dunks, drives and threes to set career highs with 24 points and nine rebounds. He shot 9 of 19 from the field while hitting 4 of 7 threes. He also had three assists and four steals.
“I felt like I played pretty good,” Sharpe told reporters. “I did what the team needed me to do, which was defend, lock up, score the ball and make plays for others.”
Watford, who fell out of the regular rotation at various points this season, had his best statistical game of the season with 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting and added nine rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots.
When the Jazz focused too much on the perimeter, Watford got loose inside and proved to be a tough matchup for Utah big men.
“He’s just a worker,” Billups said. “He works his butt off.”
That work ethic allowed Watford to attack the areas where Billups said he needed to improve to get back into the rotation. In his second season, Watford has periodically shown flashes as being a playmaking forward who could command playing time.
“Trendon is one of those glue guys that all teams need,” Billups said. “Aside from the numbers, he just impacts the team with his spirit at all times. So, when he gets the numbers, that’s just extra. So, I’m just very happy for him.”
While Watford, a 2021 undrafted rookie free agent, continues to make a place for himself in the league, Sharpe, the team’s promising first-round pick last year, is picking up steam.
Portland Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe (17) dunks against the Utah Jazz in the first half during an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Jeff Swinger) APAP
On Wednesday, he displayed as much confidence as he has all season. And the reason is simple.
“He is more confident because he knows more,” Billups said. “And those are things as a coach that, you can’t speed that process up without actual experience. I could talk to him until he’s blue in the face, but until he goes out there and fails in a few games here and there and learns from that, it’s just going to be tough. But he’s learned from a lot of those things now.”
Billups often talked to Sharpe during the game, telling him to be aggressive and play with confidence. Also, to not foul as much, Sharpe said. He finished the game with five fouls.
“I thought he put himself in some tough spots to foul a little bit too much,” Billups said. “But I was telling, he’s really, really strong and he’s physical. And sometimes you’re going to get some fouls like that. But just make those fouls count.”
Sharpe certainly made his shot attempts count.
“I just took what they gave me, whatever defense they were in,” Sharpe said.
Billups described Sharpe’s effort in greater detail.
“He was aggressive,” Billups said. “He looked for his shots early and often. They left him open a few times and he took them and knocked them down. I didn’t even care if he missed those shots. I just want him to be aggressive.”
It was just one night, but the Blazers got a good look at what games look like when both Sharpe and Watford show up on the same night.
— Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook). Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts