Houston Rockets: Re-ranking the top 10 NBA backcourts after 50 games

2. Portland Trail Blazers – Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum

Combined average: 51.2 PPG, 11.6 APG, 8.4 RPG
Previously ranked: 2

After a surprise trip to the Western Conference Finals last season, the Portland Trail Blazers have had a disappointing first half of the season. Terry Stotts’ club has had three separate losing streaks of four games or more through the first 50 games, however, seems to have turned things around lately thanks to stellar play by Damian Lillard.

Lillard has put up 51, 48, 36, 50, 47 and 61 points in his last six games, which amounts to an average of 48.8 over that stretch. That’s just unreal. Over that stretch, the Blazers are 5-1 with victories over the Warriors, Pacers, Rockets, Lakers and Jazz.

Overall, Lillard is averaging 29.8 points, 7.9 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game, with his scoring average being on pace for a career-high in a season. Dame even recently said he’s never been in this type of rhythm in his life, and that’s hard to argue.

"I've never been in this type of rhythm in my life."

Dame is playing at an all-time high right now. pic.twitter.com/TMrfew8Cun

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 2, 2020

CJ McCollum has also been playing well for Portland, putting up 21.4 points per game while pulling down 4.0 rebounds and dishing out 3.8 assists. The 6-3 guard has produced a solid 20-plus points per night since the 2015-16 season, and this season has been no different.

While the Trail Blazers currently sit at 23-27 and just out of the playoff race in the West, the numbers McCollum and Lillard are consistently putting up for Rip City are too hard to ignore. The duo is scoring 45 percent of the team’s total points and Lillard is apparently just starting to get warmed up. With the return of Jusuf Nurkic potentially on the horizon, Portland might just surprise everyone again come playoff time.

Next: Number 1