Portland Trail Blazers 2020-21 Schedule

[Yeseeka]

Overview

The following is the 2020-21 schedule for the Portland Trail Blazers.

Portland's 51st season schedule will look a little different this year. Due to complications of the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Basketball Association and its players voted to an abbreviated, 72-game schedule for the 2020-21 season. Included in the schedule is a later-than-usual start to the season which is a result of the finish of the 2019-20 season which didn't conclude until September after the league resumed the season following a four-month layoff.

The most significant change in the season is that it will be broken up into two halves with a six-day barrier between the first half and second half. The All-Star Break, which was scheduled to take place in Indianapolis this season, will not take place. Indianapolis will host the event during the 2023-24 season. Additionally, unlike past seasons, more attention has been paid to geography and having each team play opponents which are closer in proximity to one another. For instance, the Blazers play at the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 28, then stay in La La Land to play the Los Angeles Clippers two days later. There are other instances, four on average in the first half of the season for each team according to the NBA, where teams will visit an opponent for two straight games over what typically turns out to be a three days. Per the league, the schedule this season was designed to cut down on travel.

The first half of the season was released on December 4, and the second half will be released at a later time. Several games will be televised nationally on TNT, ESPN and NBATV. Those games will feature a flexible scheduling to provide what the league and networks describe as the "most compelling matchups to a national audience."

After a four-game pre-season, the Blazers open up the regular season on December 23 with a home date against Northwest Division rival the Utah Jazz. They conclude the first half on March 4 at home against the Sacramento Kings. The first half schedule includes a seven-game homestand, followed by a six-game road trip. Those are the longest streaks of their kind during the season's first half. The Blazers play 37 of their 72 games during the first half, including 19 at home and 18 on the road.

The second half of the season comprises 19 home games and 18 on the road. The Blazers make up three games in the second half which were postponed from the first half due to respective COVID-19 NBA protocols. It also features a six-game road trip in late April and early May. Portland faces six playoff-situated teams to round out the season with four of those coming at home. The regular season comes to a close with a May 18 date at home against the Denver Nuggets.

Portland finished last season in the "Bubble" in Orlando, Florida as the eighth seed in the playoff race with a 35-39 record. The defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in a play-in game which advanced them to a first-round matchup against the Lakers. The Blazers took game 1 only to be turned back in the next four games of the best-of-seven series by the Lakers, who went on to win the NBA Championship.

The Blazers return their core of guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, and center Jusuf Nurkic. During a brief, but active offseason, the team re-signed forwards Carmelo Anthony and Rodney Hood. Through trades, the Blazers brought in defensive stopper forward Robert Covington and center Enes Kanter, who was a key player for them during their run to the 2019 Western Conference Finals. They also signed free agents in forwards Derrick Jones, Jr. and center Harry Giles. Additionally, they drafted Washington St. guard CJ Elleby. Forward/center Zach Collins will start the season on injured reserve with a broken ankle, but is expected to be back shortly into the season. With the emergence of Gary Trent, Jr. in the "Bubble," and Anfernee Simons as a backup to Lillard, the Blazers are considered by many to be one of the deepest teams in the NBA. Nassir Little, last year's first round draft pick, could see some hustle minutes.

They will need that depth given potential injuries and the thread of players contracting COVID-19. Players, coaches and staffs will be regularly tested. The league will have a series of pandemic protocols in place. Several teams' arenas, including the Blazers, will be closed to fans to begin the season. Determinations will be made as the season and conditions about the pandemic evolve. Games which are postponed due to threats of COVID-19 will be evaluated on a case-by-case-basis by the league and will be made up during the second half of the season.

We at SCtoC provide major team news updates throughout the season in our Portland Trail Blazers 2020-21 News Tracker and fans can view the general history of the team with our team Vital Statistics page.

The Blazers play their home games at the Moda Center at the Rose Quarter in northeast Portland. For this schedule, all times are pacific time. Blazers games in 2020-21 will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Northwest, with the exception of some games being broadcast nationally on TNT, ESPN and ABC. National telecasts are noted in parenthesis below. Home games are listed in bold red. Updated results will appear bold for wins. Where applicable, click on the link of the final score to see the game's boxscore from nba.com.


Schedule

PRE-SEASON

Fri., Dec. 11 - Sacramento Kings (W 127-102)
Sun., Dec. 13 - Sacramento Kings (L 106-121)
Wed., Dec. 16 - at Denver Nuggets (L 95-126)
Fri., Dec. 18 - at Denver Nuggets (L 96-129)

FIRST HALF

Wed., Dec. 23 - Utah Jazz (L 100-120)
Sat., Dec. 26 - Houston Rockets, (W 128-126)
Sat., Dec. 28 - at Los Angeles Lakers (W 115-107)
Wed., Dec. 30 - at Los Angeles Clippers (L 105-128)

Fri., Jan. 1 - at Golden St. Warriors (W 123-98)
Sun., Jan. 3 - at Golden St. Warriors (L 122-137)
Tue., Jan. 5 - Chicago Bulls (L 108-111)
Thr., Jan. 7 - Minnesota Timberwolves (W 135-117)
Sat., Jan. 9 - at Sacramento Kings (W 125-99)
Mon., Jan 11 - Toronto Raptors (W 112-111)
Wed., Jan. 13 - at Sacramento Kings (W 132-126)
Thr., Jan. 14 - Indiana Pacers (L 87-111)
Sat., Jan. 16 - Atlanta Hawks (W 112-106)
Mon., Jan. 18 - San Antonio Spurs (L 104-125)
Wed., Jan. 20 - Memphis Grizzlies, 7 p.m. - POSTPONED (April 23)
Fri., Jan. 22 - Memphis Grizzlies, 7 p.m. - POSTPONED (April 25)
Sun., Jan. 24 - New York Knicks (W 116-113)
Mon., Jan. 25 - Oklahoma City Thunder (L 122-125)
Thr., Jan. 28 - at Houston Rockets (L 101-104)
Sat., Jan. 30 - at Chicago Bulls (W 123-122)

Mon., Feb. 1 - at Milwaukee Bucks (L 106-134)
Tue., Feb. 2 - at Washington Wizards (W 132-121)
Thr., Feb. 4 - at Philadelphia 76ers (W 121-105)
Sat., Feb. 6 - at New York Knicks (L 99-110)
Sun., Feb. 7 - at Charlotte Hornets, 10 a.m. - POSTPONED (April 18)
Tue., Feb. 9 - Orlando Magic (W 106-97)
Thr., Feb. 11 - Philadelphia 76ers (W 118-104)
Fri., Feb. 12 - Cleveland Cavaliers (W 129-110)
Sun., Feb. 14 - at Dallas Mavericks (W 121-118)
Thu., Feb. 16 - at Oklahoma City Thunder (W 115-104)
Wed., Feb. 17 - at New Orleans Pelicans (W 126-124)
Sat., Feb. 20 - Washington Wizards (L 111-118)
Mon., Feb. 22 - at Phoenix Suns (L 100-132)
Tue., Feb. 23 - at Denver Nuggets (L 106-111)
Fri,. Feb. 26 - at Los Angeles Lakers (L 93-102)

Mon., March 1 - Charlotte Hornets (W 123-111)
Wed., March 3 - Golden St. Warriors (W 108-106)
Thr., March 4 - Sacramento Kings (W 123-119)

March 5-10 - ALL-STAR BREAK (Atlanta)
Sun., March 7 - Skills Challenge: Champion - Domantas Sabonis, Indiana Pacers
Sun., March 7 - 3-point Contest: Champion - Stephen Curry, Golden St. Warriors
Sun., March 7 - Slam Dunk Competition: Champion - Anfernee Simons, Portland Trail Blazers
Sun., March 7 - All-Star Game: Team LeBron 170, Team Durant 150

SECOND HALF

Thr., March 11 - Phoenix Suns (L 121-127)
Sat., March 13 - at Minnesota Timberwolves (W 125-121)
Sun., March 14 - at Minnesota Timberwolves (L 112-114)
Tue., March 16 - New Orleans Pelicans (W 125-124)
Thr., March 18 - New Orleans Pelicans (W 101-93)
Fri., March 19 - Dallas Mavericks (W 125-119)
Sun., March 21 - Dallas Mavericks (L 92-132)
Tue., March 23 - Brooklyn Nets (L 112-116)
Thr., March 25 - at Miami Heat (W 125-122)
Fri., March 26 - at Orlando Magic (W 112-105)
Sun., March 28 - at Toronto Raptors (W 122-117)
Wed., March 31 - at Detroit Pistons (W 124-101)

Fri., April 2 - Milwaukee Bucks (L 109-127)
Sat., April 3 - Oklahoma City Thunder (W 133-85)
Tue., April 6 - at Los Angeles Clippers (L 116-133)
Thr., April 8 - at Utah Jazz (L 103-122)
Sat., April 10 - Detroit Pistons (W 118-103)
Sun., April 11 - Miami Heat (L 98-117)
Tue., April 13 - Boston Celtics (L 115-116)
Fri., April 16 - at San Antonio Spurs (W 107-106)
Sun., April 18 - at Charlotte Hornets (L 101-109)
Tue., April 20 - Los Angeles Clippers (L 112-113)
Wed., April 21 - Denver Nuggets (L 105-106)
Fri., April 23 - Memphis Grizzlies (L 128-130)
Sun., April 25 - Memphis Grizzlies (L 113-120)
Tue., April 27 - at Indiana Pacers (W 133-112)
Wed., April 28 - at Memphis Grizzlies (W 130-109)
Fri., April 30 - at Brooklyn Nets (W 128-109)

Sun., May 2 - at Boston Celtics (W 129-119)
Mon., May 3 - at Atlanta Hawks (L 114-123)
Wed., May 5 - at Cleveland Cavaliers (W 141-105)
Fri., May 7 - Los Angeles Lakers (W 106-101)
Sat., May 8 - San Antonio Spurs (W 124-102)
Mon., May 10 - Houston Rockets (W 140-129)
Wed., May 12 - at Utah Jazz (W 105-98)
Thr., May 13 - at Phoenix Suns (L 117-118)
Sun., May 16 - Denver Nuggets (W 132-116)

Blazers 2020-21 Opening Night Roster




NBA Team Arenas (2020-21)

Atlanta Hawks - State Farm Arena; Atlanta, Georgia
Boston Celtics - TD Garden; Boston, Massachusetts
Brooklyn Nets - Barclays Center; Brooklyn, New York
Charlotte Hornets - Spectrum Center; Charlotte, North Carolina
Chicago Bulls - United Center; Chicago, Illinois
Cleveland Cavaliers - Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse; Cleveland, Ohio
Dallas Mavericks - American Airlines Center; Dallas, Texas
Denver Nuggets - Ball Arena; Denver, Colorado
Detroit Pistons - Little Caesars Arena; Detroit, Michigan
Golden St. Warriors - Chase Center; San Francisco, California
Houston Rockets - Toyota Center; Houston Texas
Indiana Pacers - Bankers Life Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, Indiana
Los Angeles Clippers - Staples Center; Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles Lakers - Staples Center; Los Angeles, California
Memphis Grizzlies - FedExForum; Memphis Tennessee
Miami Heat - American Airlines Arena; Miami, Florida
Milwaukee Bucks - Fiserv Forum; Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Minnesota Timberwolves - Target Center; Minneapolis, Minnesota
New Orleans Pelicans - Smoothie King Center; New Orleans, Louisiana
New York Knicks - Madison Square Garden; New York, New York
Oklahoma City Thunder - Chesapeake Energy Arena; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Orlando Magic - Amway Center; Orlando, Florida
Philadelphia 76ers - Wells Fargo Center; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Phoenix Suns - PHX Arena; Phoenix, Arizona
Portland Trail Blazers - Moda Center at the Rose Quarter; Portland, Oregon
Sacramento Kings - Golden 1 Center; Sacramento, California
San Antonio Spurs - AT&T Center; San Antonio, Texas
Toronto Raptors - Amalie Arena; Tampa, Florida (2020-21 only)
Utah Jazz - Vivint Smart Home Arena; Salt Lake City, Utah
Washington Wizards - Capital One Arena; Washington D.C.


- JJM


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[Yeseeka]

I thought I would share this video from the Blazers where Derrick Jones, Jr. comes out of nowhere to block LeBron James' layup attempt. This was from the December 28 game in L.A. that the Blazers won, 115-107.