Donovan Clingan and Jerami Grant help Trail Blazers roll past Pelicans

The Portland Trail Blazers quickly woke up from a moody start on Sunday afternoon, beating the New Orleans Pelicans 125-103 and picking up their first win of the season. Fueled by a small but hefty dose of minutes from Donovan Clingan and the usual reliability of Jerami Grant, Portland avenged Sunday's 105-103 loss to the same New Orleans squad.

“I really liked our determination,” Portland head coach Chauncey Billups told reporters after the win. “It was a tough defeat for us the other day. … I just loved how we came back.”

In stark contrast to Billups' quotes after Portland's opening loss to the Golden State Warriors, he said Sunday's win was marked by great individual performances. Among a list of names deserving praise, Billups mentioned “Big Donovan,” Portland’s rookie center. With every game, it looks more and more like the Blazers have snagged a gem at No. 7 in June's NBA draft. With the 7-foot-2, 280-pound giant blocking the rim like an eclipse and towering over other NBA centers, the impact is hard to miss.

Clingan played just 13 minutes off the bench on Sunday. That was enough time for him to make his mark throughout the game. The rookie scored nine points, nine rebounds and two blocks on 4-6 shooting from the field. Six Most of those rebounds came on offense, as Clingan proved to be too big to box out and had the drive to capitalize.

The impact on the defensive end goes far beyond the blocks in the penalty area. Early in his NBA career, Clingan excels at staying vertical to hit shots without fouling. If he doesn't get the block, he changes the shooting angles. Several times on Sunday, Clingan's presence in the paint prevented Pelicans players from even attempting a shot.

Pelicans star forward Zion Williamson — a battering ram with a basketball — felt the Clingan effect all weekend. On Sunday, Williamson shot 3-12 from the field while scoring just 14 points and three turnovers. During the two-game weekend series in Portland, Williamson scored 30 points on a pathetic 7-27 shooting from the field. Some of those issues were a result of Williamson shaking off offseason rust after missing the Pelicans' opener due to illness, but Clingan and Portland's defense also deserve credit.

On Friday and Sunday, Williamson went to Clingan in the paint and often ran into a wall. Clingan's verticality played a role in Williamson's last two turnovers on Sunday. The star threw his hands in the air at the final rally and waited for a whistle that never blew, reflecting a frustrating trip to Rip City.

“(Clingan) played great, even in the last game I thought he was great,” Anfernee Simons said. “He’s just a big body. He is able to absorb all of Zion’s size and make things difficult for him.”

“(Williamson) plays with so much power that sometimes it’s hard to stay there,” Billups added. “But I thought we did a good job of getting him to score over us and not through us.”

As mentioned above, Clingan only played 13 minutes, so others played a large part in the result being so one-sided. For the second straight game, Grant led the Blazers with 28 points on 9-17 shooting. In contrast to Williamson's weekend, Grant scored 62 points while hitting 50% of his shots from the field and making 10 3-pointers in the two games. He also impacted both games defensively with seven blocks and three steals. Sunday's four blocks were Grant's most since December 2021.

“He did everything right defensively,” said Simons. “Obviously he shot the ball well.”

Much of the narrative surrounding Grant revolves around trade rumors. Outside speculation has criticized the 30-year-old veteran's lack of alignment with Portland's rebuilding timeline and the size of his contract. With all the talk and Portland's general struggles, it almost feels like his steady and reliable play is underrated or taken for granted. As is often the case when Portland wins, Grant performed exceptionally well on Sunday.

“I think he's underrated, especially because we just didn't win,” Billups said. “If you’re not a Blazer fan, you don’t see it. We're never on national television, so he stays under the radar. But the people who know really know.”

Along with big contributions from Grant and Clingan, Simons played his best game of the young season. He scored 27 points on 47.1% shooting, six assists and five three-pointers. Deandre Ayton posted a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds and also received recognition from Billups after the game. The group effort helped the Blazers to a lead of 22 in the third quarter and 24 in the fourth quarter.

After blowing a double-digit lead in the second half on Friday, the Blazers didn't let the Pelicans come back this time. New Orleans head coach Willie Green waved the white flag by emptying the bench at 3:43 of the fourth quarter. The Blazers did the same and confetti rained down from the Moda Center ceiling as the buzzer sounded.

“Obviously it was heartbreaking the way we lost the other day,” Simons said. “But I’m pleased with the way we responded.”

More game notes

Scoot Henderson didn't have his best shooting game (2-12 for nine points, seven assists, five rebounds), but Billups was still pleased with the young guard's play.

I never judge Scoot based on whether he shoots well or not – not even Ant, not even Jerami. You can never control shots or shot execution. However, you can control which recordings you take. That's why I judge him based on that. and Scoot does a really good job with our range of shots. Sometimes he's forced into certain shots that he just takes, and we all have to do that sometimes. But I thought he had a really good ground game. More importantly, I think his defense has been great the last two games, which is a must every night. He has the gifts to do it. His ground game, I thought he was just finding people. I think we'll get to the game really well with him. Between him and Ant, there are two types of ball handlers – two guys who can make plays. It makes us a little different, a little more dynamic at this point in the game. I think Scoot played really well.