As the NBA season began, few would have expected the Portland Trail Blazers to get their 10th win before Thanksgiving, and perhaps fewer would have suspected how they did it. Portland’s hallmark? Defense.
The team currently boasts the NBA’s sixth-best defensive rating at 110.6. Compared to their dead-last rating in 2021-22 (116.9), this is spectacular.
Primarily due to changes in coaching and personnel, Portland’s improved defense has taken many off-guard. That’s why Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley lists it as the team’s biggest surprise thus far.
The Blazers have been largely successful throughout Damian Lillard’s tenure, but their position among the Association’s elites never really solidified because they were so imbalanced.