This was the year for the Portland Trail Blazers to push all their chips in. LaMarcus Aldridge was at his peak, Damian Lillard was coming into his own and the supporting cast had fallen into place. Uncertainty loomed on the horizon with three starters hitting free agency this summer, so the time was now or never.
Those pieces were falling into place. Portland raced to a 30-8 start, withstood a Robin Lopez injury, made an in-season trade for Arron Afflalo to boost an inconsistent bench and entered the second half of the year as one of the handful of teams best equipped to knock the Warriors off.
But that was before a wrong step caused Wesley Matthews to crumple into a heap on the MODA Center floor during a game against the Mavericks. The bad news came swiftly: A torn Achilles, a long recovery with free agency looming and a major setback for a team that thrived because of its continuity.
Without Matthews, the Blazers stumbled to a 10-12 record down the stretch, only holding the No. 4 seed in name because they won their division. They are forever a threat because of Aldridge, Lillard and one of the prettiest offenses in the league, but it's hard not to think of what might have been when watching them.
