Chauncey Billups extremely proud of his Blazers after their victory in Milwaukee | NBA

And three! The transition to Portland, since the departure of CJ McCollum and in the absence of Damian Lillard, is going quite well. On the Milwaukee floor last night, the Blazers were indeed able to take full advantage of the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo to impose their game and their rhythm, with big defensive phases and transitional play, a bit like the qualities of the “Greek Freak”.

At the end of the meeting, Chauncey Billups had reason to be satisfied, his players having not been far from the perfect match, whether by having taken the advantage in a one-sided second quarter (40-24 ) or in the management of the end of the game, when the Bucks tried to close.

“I told the guys at half-time that I thought it was our best first half of the season, on both sides of the pitch, because we were very effective. And at the end of the game, I would say from start to finish, it’s probably our best game.”did he declare. “We did what we wanted to do, we set a great pace all night, chasing every rebound. 30 assists against a very good defense, it’s incredible. We played fast enough to prevent them from putting their defense in place. That was the key among the things we wanted to do”.

One more step for Anfernee Simons

Within this wind of freshness which blows on the frankness of Oregon, Anfernee Simons asserts itself like the fatal weapon of this team “new look”. He proved it again last night with his 31 points and 6 assists since it was his three 3-point missiles that allowed his team to make a difference before the break, and he was also essential in the second. half-time, scoring or passing.

“I’m never surprised by his ability to score. I was more proud of how he created late in the game, drawing two defenders while making the right choices. He also knew how to be patient.added Chauncey Billups, who also underlined his ability to hold on in defense while the Bucks regularly attacked against him, putting pressure on him after his first personal foul committed quickly. “That’s how you learn, and I wasn’t going to switch him over to Jrue Holiday.” He did a great job against him, and Jrue lost 7 balls in the match..

The new “go-to-guy” was invited to talk about what makes the difference with this team which seems to play without pressure and which distinguishes itself by the rhythm printed at each opportunity to attack in transition.

“We play freely”, explained Anfernee Simons. “There is good cohesion with Jusuf Nurkic. We’re also in constant conversation with new players, about what they like to do and how we like to play. We play very well for each other, we feed on each other’s energy, to get stops and run. It allows me to play in transition and find open 3-point positions. Everyone plays free and loose, and that’s what helps us win (…). Everyone is united. Young players, we often hang out together and we see this cohesion reflected on the field. It helps us to have Justise Winslow and Josh Hart who are primarily defensive players. They help us make stops and guide the youngest. All of this helps us in our current success.”

No stars but a lot of heart

Abused since the start of the season, Chauncey Billups is drinking whey since he has managed to impose his vision on a group that now gives itself fully to him and his ideas.

“The biggest difference with the start of the season is that the players know what the staff want. We worked a lot on it and we managed to put it in place. We manage to produce the effort we need in each game, we move that ball, a point that we have talked about all season. And our level of confidence increases thanks to these two elements. So I think it was just the time for everyone to get to know each other., mentioned the Blazers strategist.

The former leader thus took the liberty of recalling that the name and prestige of the stars was not everything, praising the “watchdog” side of his new hard core, like a Josh Hart who also been very valuable tonight (27 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists).

“Most of the fans, and here in particular, don’t care about the name behind the shirt. Rather, it’s the heart, the mindset, the effort and the intensity that the players will put in. At the moment, we are playing really hard, we are running everywhere, we are throwing ourselves at all the balls. When you play with this heart, not only do you give yourself a chance to win, but people fall in love with you. And it will always be like this, regardless of the times.