Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reports...
The Trail Blazers had one of those players-only meetings Sunday night, which is what playoff teams do when they've lost three straight games, fallen to .500, and shown a startling in ability to close out games - at home and on the road.
The culprit? Lack of execution, according to coach Nate McMillan. Lack of rhythm, added Brandon Roy. Effort, said Wesley Matthews. All good answers. But not the answer - not the problem that looks like it's going to haunt the Blazers for months, if not longer.
It was the lowest point of the season, everyone in the visiting locker room agreed after Portland turned in another lackluster fourth quarter and lost to the Nets 98-96.
After following up Friday's terrible performance with another ugly late-game breakdown this is a good sign.
-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter