LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Eight minutes to play, Lakers up six and this—this—was where the Trail Blazers would crumble. A month-plus in the bubble, two weeks of grueling seeding games, a win-or-go home to end the resumed season and a play-in war with Memphis to earn the final playoff spot had taken a toll. Jusuf Nurkic stood doubled over in the paint. Damian Lillard breathed deeply from beyond the arc. The Lakers were rolling, LeBron James authoring a historic night. Timeout, Portland and this was where it would end.
Another team, another situation, maybe.