Portland Trail Blazers put on a show during 134-105 win over the Phoenix Suns

Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum shoots against the Phoenix Suns during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers forward Nassir Little, center, shoots between Phoenix Suns forward Jae Crowder, left, and guard Elfrid Payton during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard, right, drives to the basket past Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers forward Nassir Little reacts after making a 3-point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers forward Nassir Little reacts after making a 3-point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum shoots in front of Phoenix Suns forward Jae Crowder during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic, left, shoots over Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard brings the ball up against the Phoenix Suns during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul, right, is defended by Portland Trail Blazers forward Robert Covington during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard, center, shoots between Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, left, and guard Chris Paul during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum, right, has his shot blocked by Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges, right, passes the ball away from Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker shoots against the Portland Trail Blazers during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, right, shoots over Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns forward Jae Crowder, left, shoots over Portland Trail Blazers forward Robert Covington during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns guard Elfrid Payton, center, shoots between Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic, left, and guard Dennis Smith Jr. during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard Ben McLemore gestures after making a 3-point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker, right, is defended by Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum gestures after making a 3-point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

It can’t be ignored that the Phoenix Suns were playing the second of a road back-to-back Saturday night in Portland.

Maybe that, and the fact that the Blazers had two days off since their first game, contributed to the Trail Blazers throttling the defending Western Conference champions 134-105. at the Moda Center.

But don’t let those realities detract from the fact that the Blazers played just about exactly how new coach Chauncey Billups could ask for.

“We played as good as we could play,” Billups said. “And we made shots. Defensively, we did a really good job. We were focused in on all of our coverages. It was just beautiful to see.”

The offense flowed to near perfection, producing 54.3% shooting with just nine turnovers. Portland attacked the paint, scoring 50 points inside, and that set up the outside shooting, which notched 42% from three-point range.

On defense, the Blazers contested most of the Suns shots and worked hard inside to win the rebounding battle, 48-38. Phoenix shot well (48.3%) but struggled from three (32.1%).

This was the perfect way to forget about the opening night loss to Sacramento, 124-121, that saw Damian Lillard miss all nine of his threes including one that would have tied the game and the Kings treat the new Portland defense like the project that it is.

On this night, the team played so well that Lillard sat the entire fourth quarter as the Blazers closed out the first win of Billups’ head coaching career.

After the game, the team doused him with water during a locker room celebration.

But can the Blazers sustain the excellence they displayed Wednesday, especially on defense?

“I think we’ve got a lot to build on,” CJ McCollum said. “There’s a lot of things we need to work on to be more comfortable with. As the season goes along, there will be great nights like tonight and there will be some nights where we don’t execute as well. But I think, all in all, you want to string together as many good games as possible and just playing the right way.”

WHAT IT MEANS

Difficult to say. The Blazers played extremely well but this is a league where good teams get blown out on off nights. The defending champion Milwaukee Bucks lost 137-95 at Miami on Thursday. But the way this team played looked different than it did last year. If sustainable, the Blazers could be on to something.

NORMAN POWELL

Norman Powell scored 16 points in 12 minutes but left the game with a knee injury in the second quarter and did not return.

Billups said he didn’t know how serious the injury was and that Powell would undergo an MRI.

Later Saturday night, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that initial imaging of the knew released that the injury was not considered serious.

TRANSITION DEFENSE

The team’s poor transition defense was a problem during the preseason long despite efforts in practice to fix the issue. Then Sacramento put up 20 fast break points on Wednesday further frustrating Billups.

“It’s kind of been an issue for us,” Billups said.

Billups said the goal against the Suns was to get off to a good start defensively and that meant focusing on not allowing the Suns to run free.

The plan worked. The Blazers limited Phoenix to six fast break points. Portland scored 21.

IT WAS OVER WHEN

The Blazers jumped on the Suns right away and led 25-18 early and 30-24 at the end of the first quarter. The Blazers then built a 51-32 lead in the second quarter thanks largely to the play of Norman Powell (10 points), CJ McCollum (eight points) and Lillard (nine points).

Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum gestures after making a 3-point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Portland led 67-47 at halftime but watched the Suns draw to within 74-59 when Devin Booker scored with 9:05 to go in the third quarter.

Billups called a timeout and that led to a 27-16 stretch that gave the Blazers a 101-75 lead with 1:28 to go in the third quarter.

McCollum scored 15 points in the quarter and Anfernee Simons added eight.

The fourth quarter was pretty much a showcase for the backups.

SHOWED UP AND SHOWED OUT

Lillard, who saw 40 minutes against the Kings, played just 24 on Friday. He sat out the entire fourth quarter. Still, he finished with 19 points and eight assists.

McCollum made 10 of 19 shots and 6 of 11 threes to finish with a team-high 28. He led the team with 34 against Sacramento.

The athleticism and energy that Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little bring to the second unit was on full display. Little provided numerous highlights while scoring 11 points with seven rebounds, while Simons made 7 of 14 shots including 4 of 8 threes and once again appeared comfortable handling point guard duties while Lillard was out of the game.

SHOWED UP AND FIZZLED

None of the Blazers regulars struggled.

As for the Suns, Chris Paul delivered 11 assists but couldn’t get his offense going and finished with five points.

Jae Crowder made just 2 of 7 shots for seven points.

NEXT UP

The Blazers hit the road for their first regular-season game away from the Moda Center when they play at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Los Angeles Clippers who entered Saturday night’s game against Memphis at 0-1.

-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook).

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

X

Opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information

If you opt out, we won’t sell or share your personal information to inform the ads you see. You may still see interest-based ads if your information is sold or shared by other companies or was sold or shared previously.