An altercation between Stephon Castle of the Spurs and the Trail Blazers‘ Deni Avdija at the end of Game 4 captured fans’ attention, less for the shoving that occurred after Castle made an and-one layup and handed Avdija the ball, and more for their different reactions following the game, Tom Orbsorn of the San Antonio Express-News writes.
The Spurs guard dismissed the incident as little more than two competitors facing off. However, the Blazers’ star forward took things a bit more personally.
“You can be tough, you can be, you know, physical, but there’s a level of disrespect I’m not going to accept,” Avdija said. “… At one point, it was just disrespectful. I’m not playing that.”
Avdija had previously spoken on the roughness of the series, noting that the two teams seemed to be trading off who set the tone in terms of physicality, Sean Highkin notes (via Twitter). Such a trend might have contributed to the escalating tension between the two players, both of whom tend to embrace contact in their playstyles.
“Game 1, they were more physical. Game 2, we were more physical. Last night, they were more physical,” the Israeli-born forward said. “… Next game, I expect to wear two mouth guards.”
We have more Blazers Notes:
- Portland suffered consecutive second-half collapses in Games 3 and 4, and now finds itself on the brink of elimination. But while the Blazers may have their backs against the wall, they’re not going to go down easily, Joe Freeman writes for The Oregonian. “We’re still alive,” coach Tiago Splitter said. “And we’re going to fight. This group is a special group. They’re going to keep fighting.” With the strong performances the Spurs have gotten across the board so far, though, Freeman wonders if the fighting spirit is enough to get back into the series, especially now that Victor Wembanyama is back.
- Given their struggles to hold the leads they’ve been able to build, it may be time to consider a lineup change, and the most obvious choice is to promote backup center Robert Williams III, Sean Highkin writes for the Rose Garden Report (subscriber link). Second-year big man Donovan Clingan has struggled, both against Wembanyama and in the minutes the Spurs’ star sits, while Williams has arguably been Portland’s second-best player through four games. When asked about a potential change, Splitter didn’t rule it out, nor did he confirm it. “We’ve got to see all the options,” he said.
- The Blazers’ stadium, Moda Center, is likely to get the funding the team has been seeking, as Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed Senate Bill 1501, which allows the state to contribute $365MM to renovations, Bill Oram writes for Oregon Live. Now the decision will go to the Portland City Council. “The state has done its part and we’re not done,” Kotek said. “We are going to stay at the table, we are monitoring. We are going to watch this thing all the way to the end because this is a significant investment for the state.”