Portland Trail Blazers Stock Watch: Rough Week Blues Edition

With Portland recording its first winless week of the season, how did the stock of the contributors fare?

Stats are reflected from Monday, January 12th through Sunday, January 18th

Damian Lillard

Last Week: 23-59 (39%) shooting, 7-24 (29.1%) threes, 15 assists, 3 steals, 6 turnovers

Stock Watch: DOWN

While Lillard remains one of the most dangerous fourth-quarter players in the league, his shooting in the first three quarters has been another story. He shot just 5-of-18 in Quarters 1-3 versus Memphis, and 1-of-8 in the first three quarters versus the Clippers. Lillard hoisted 26 shots against the Grizzlies, his second most of the season behind a 29 shot performance versus San Antonio on December 19th. In that prolific Spurs game he hit 55% of his shots; against the Grizzlies he connected on just 9 attempts. While he nearly succeeded in rallying Portland to victory, if his first half shooting improved rallying wouldn't be necessary.

Wesley Matthews

Last Week: 13-35 (37.1%) shooting, 9-25 (36%) threes, 10 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 turnovers

Stock Watch: NO CHANGE

Matthews started the week on the wrong foot, recording his worst two-game shooting performance of the season against the Clippers and the Spurs. His 23.5% clip in those games was his lowest since February of last year, where he shot 22% over two games versus the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Denver Nuggets. Against the Spurs he went without a three for only the third time this season. His fortunes for the week shifted radically against the Grizzlies, as Matthews nearly carried the Blazers to a comeback win in the second half, shooting 5-of-9 including 4-of-7 from three point range. He also passed Terry Porter for the most threes made in Portland Trail Blazers history against Memphis, and that has to count for something.

Nicolas Batum

Last Week: 3-18 (16.7%) shooting, 2-10 threes, 11 assists, 11 rebounds, 9 turnovers

Stock Watch: WAY DOWN

Something about the San Antonio Spurs makes Batum falter. The 5 turnovers he committed versus the Spurs on Friday night were his highest total since he recorded 6 in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals versus San Antonio last season. In his last 9 games against the Spurs (including postseason), Batum is averaging 3 turnovers per contest. Batum also struggled mightily against the Clippers on Wednesday with an 0-for-5 shooting night and three more turnovers. He finished the week by barely registering against the Grizzlies.

Meyers Leonard

Last Week: 9-15 (60%) shooting, 2-5 threes, 17 rebounds, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers in 71 minutes

Stock Watch: UP

In the absence of Robin Lopez and Joel Freeland, Leonard continues to impress with his improved skill set compared to last year. He shot effectively from behind the arc last week, but hardly shot from long distance this week to focus on attacking defenders who continue to play off of him. He fired 4-of-7 against the Clippers without taking a three point shot, instead attacking Spencer Hawes and overwhelming the Clippers' interior defense while Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan were off the floor. The Grizzlies neutralized him for the most part, but were able to do so only because Memphis carried such a large lead for much of the game.

Steve Blake

Last Week: 3-8 (37.5%) shooting, 1-5 threes, 16 assists, 3 turnovers in 49 minutes

Stock Watch: NO CHANGE

Blake saw his minutes plummet this week. 49 total minutes mark the smallest amount of playing time in any 3-game stretch this season. While Blake has been an effective floor general for the bench unit, his lack of scoring allows other teams to sag off of him. The veteran has cut down his turnovers substantially over the past month and still has tremendous value as a pass-first guard, but if his teammates are unable to score, Blake loses value by proxy.