THE PROOF IS IN: THIS IS A BETTER TEAM WITHOUT LILLARD

False. But it sure was nice to see a 2nd game in a row with better defense. On a day when George Karl threw the first punches, this is no time to pile on. It was nice to hold a team to 89 points and 39% shooting. It was nice to get off to a fast start. It was astonishing to actually see a 20 point lead. It was ultimately a 13 point win over the 8th seed in the West. See, the Blazers are finally good and Dame was on the bench.

Let's not get carried away. The Kings are not a play-off team (especially without Gay). If they do sneak in it is an indictment on the West, not an endorsement of the quality of this Sacramento team. Collison and Lawson as point guards? McLemore looks worse every time he takes the floor. Barnes is ok as your 7th best player. At times he was the 2nd option. Cousins was good, but Portland only lost a week ago because he was INSANE. Portland finally with some rest, playing at home (even without their leader) should beat a marginal team like the Kings. They did their job.

The story of this game was that there were no heroes. Simply every player on the court came out and did what they are paid to do. Harkless and Aminu were efficient, not prolific. Plumlee was a power on the boards. CJ had decent numbers (20 and 7) but his 6-18 shooting showed the pressure of needing to lead the team in scoring and assists. When Portland has Crabbe, Leonard, and Turner playing like tonight they will win a lot of games.

Lillard's injury does not prove that Portland is better without him. Like last year, games without Dame force every player to focus on those things he is supposed to do. They know they are operating on a reduced margin of error. There were a couple of dreadful lulls on offense tonight that would have spelled disaster against a good team. Having a player who can consistently create a reasonable shot is the most precious commodity in the league. Once Dame returns, everything will get a little easier for everyone. IF the defense can hold up.

Dame has lived a relatively charmed life in the NBA. Expect him to come back with a king-sized chip on his shoulder when he is healthy. Thank you George Karl. Maybe we needed that.

BOOGIE WAS A REGULAR GENTLEMAN IN THIS GAME

False. Yes he somehow managed to keep his mouthpiece in for the whole game. 28, 8 and 6 is a great line, even if it felt rather pedestrian after his 55 last week. Yet if you kept your focus on Cousins you find that he is a constant instigator. Not in the "wow he's really into the game" way. More like in the "He just wants to find trouble" way. He is constantly flailing, flopping, jumping into imaginary contact like he is a marginal player just trying to get noticed. Worst of all, he believes that he is getting away with it, and expects calls on each of these plays. The refs get so tired of his antics that they don't cut him any slack at all. Again, he is a MARVELOUS talent. But he is a despicable person on the court. Being a Kings fan has to be one of the toughest jobs in sport. Please Neil, don't bring that cancer to Portland.

FINAL GRADE: Don't forget that Portland is just getting Aminu back into the groove. Chief and Harkless make Portland better defensively, and Stotts is turning them loose to trap and apply some pressure. It still isn't always pretty, as too many players collapse and leave competent shooters like Temple with 20 feet of space. Making this team an adequate defensive team again is going to take baby steps in terms of improvement. The key Is not to take a giant step backwards when Lillard re-joins the team. Look for CJ to face a real challenge Friday in San Antonio, but look to see if the defense and the Leonard, Crabbe, Turner trio can build some consistency. B