The Portland Trail Blazers were blown out at home on Monday night and there were plenty of built in excuses. The Blazers were missing eight players due to health and safety protocols and injuries. They were facing a Dallas Mavericks team with a distinct size advantage. Portland hadn't played in a week and was missing its head coach and lead assistant. All those things are true. And yet the Blazers came out flat, failed to play hard or smart and got run off the floor by Kristaps Porzingis and the Mavericks. There are bad losses and then there's whatever happened on Monday night where Portland looked like an art exhibit exploring the boundaries of how little effort you can put into defensive rotations. Art and Blazers basketball can be challenging and upsetting. Is there any good news? Well, CJ McCollum got a real pre-game work out in suggesting his return to the court from a collapsed right lung is getting closer and will likely happen sometime this week. The NBA has adjusted its health and safety protocols such that some Blazers might be able to return to the court sooner than initially expected. Also Nassir Little had a really nice game. Maybe not good news but close! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices