by Austin Peters
Wesley Mathews didn't obtain the nickname "Iron Man" for no reason. Not only is he a stocky guy at 6'5", 220 lbs., but in his five years in the league, Wes has played 381 games out of a possible 394. Missing only 13 games is remarkable, given how many injuries happen each year to teams.
Thursday night, Wes tore his left achilles and was ruled out for the season. The same injury that has hindered Kobe's last couple years is hindering the Blazers' title hopes this year. It was good that they were able to pick up Arron Afflalo at the trade deadline, but Wes is a key part of this Blazers franchise, more than most probably expect.
Wes has started every single game for the Blazers the last two years; the two seasons that Portland has emerged as a Western Conference power. That starting lineup with Damian Lillard/Matthews/Nic Batum/LaMarcus Aldridge/Robin Lopez ranks as the sixth best five man combination in the league, per NBA.com. This summer, I took a deep dive into the Blazers mid range chucking offense, and Wes was a key part of that. He is shooting nearly 44% on shots from 16 feet out to the three point line, according to basketball-reference.com. While Portland still ranks top ten in the league in percentage of their shots that come from the mid range, they rank second in three point attempt percentage. Matthews' heat map reflects those teams stats as well.
With Wes out, the Blazers are more than likely going to insert newly acquired Arron Afflalo into the starting lineup. Afflalo is a scorcher from the mid range as well, shooting 49% on those types of shots. He isn't as good of a three point shooter as Wes (34% compared to Matthews' 39%), but he is capable of knocking down the same corner three that Matthews is good at.
Afflalo has a lot of red on his map probably due to an increased role that he had in Denver as opposed to Portland. He will be getting a lot of the same looks that Matthews got in the Portland offense. Their games are pretty similar in a vacuum; both are big two guards that can spot up, hit shots off the dribble and off screens, post up smaller guards, and hold their own defensively. With all that in mind, you would think that Afflalo would be able to fit right in and the Blazers wouldn't miss a beat.
It's not that simple. I've noted before how the Blazers' defense has improved drastically over the last three seasons and vaulted into the top ten in defensive efficiency this year despite keeping the same system in tact. This Blazers team is all about continuity and familiarity, trusting that keeping the same team together will benefit them in the long run. It has paid off, with Portland looking like a title contender this year. Afflalo might be a good individual defender, but he just joined the team two weeks ago. This team has been familiar with the system for a while, and he will have to adjust in the middle of a season and with little practice time.
The Blazers' depth takes a huge hit as well. With Afflalo coming of their bench, they had one of the best benches in the league. Now those minutes go to guys like Alonzo Gee, Dorell Wright, and CJ McCollum; significant down grades from Afflalo and Wes.
Portland was starting to become my favorite to come out of the West. Batum was finally playing like Batum, Lopez was back, and the Afflalo trade gave them a huge boost in depth. Without Wes, however, the system will take a hit and lose a guy that was a cornerstone to this team on both ends of the floor.
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