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The Portland Trail Blazers dropped four home games and slid out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference standings over the past week. The result: a considerable downward move in the latest round of power rankings.
No. 12, down two spots from last week. Contributor Royce Young detailed Portland’s new position inside the play-in field.
The Blazers have lost five straight and eight of 10. They’ve slipped into the play-in spot, now two games behind the Mavericks in the loss column. Diagnosing the Blazers is complicated, but Damian Lillard summarized it this way after Sunday’s loss to Memphis: “I’m not playing well enough. I’m on the floor because that gives our team the best chance to win, and I’ve got to be better.”