PORTLAND - Guarding against an apathetic outing in the final game before the All-Star break is a tall order for any team.
But when you consider the Thunder is young and already lottery-bound, Wednesday night's game at Portland could have turned out much differently than it did. Oklahoma City fell 106-92 to the Blazers at the Rose Garden but hung tough until the fourth quarter against a likely playoff-bound Portland squad.
The loss dropped the Thunder to 13-40 at the break, but Oklahoma City can walk into this weekend's All-Star break with heads held high after competing hard in its two-game trip against the Western Conference-leading L.A. Lakers and the fourth-seeded Blazers.
The Thunder's next game is Tuesday at home against New Orleans. Wednesday night's game, however, indicated the Thunder could stand four days of rest and relaxation.
Oklahoma City shot just 39 percent from the field against the Blazers one night after shooting the same percentage in a 105-98 loss to the Lakers.
Kevin Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook combined to shoot 18-for-50 for Oklahoma City.
