Morant and Lillard Headline Blazers' Chaotic Starting Lineup Against Lakers

The Portland Trail Blazers are rolling out a starting five on Tuesday that looks like a glitch in a fantasy basketball group chat. Ja Morant and Damian Lillard sharing a backcourt is officially happening, and the Los Angeles Lakers get to be the test subjects.

Underdog NBA confirmed the official lineup alert, with Portland starting Morant, Lillard, Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara, and Donovan Clingan. If you are wondering how this works defensively, the answer is probably just scoring 130 points and hoping for the best.

"Underdog NBA confirmed the lineup alert."

So far, the strategy is working flawlessly. Portland just nuked the Phoenix Suns 124-83 and outgunned the Sacramento Kings 128-120. When your guards can pull up from the parking lot or put a center on a poster, traditional basketball math goes out the window.

Avdija, Camara, and Clingan are basically out there to grab rebounds, set screens, and stay out of the way while the two point guards take turns terrorizing drop coverage. Clingan anchoring the middle gives them just enough rim protection to justify the absolute chaos happening on the perimeter.

For anyone holding player props or setting fantasy lineups, this backcourt usage rate is going to be a nightly rollercoaster. You are essentially betting on which guard gets the hot hand first, while the frontcourt guys sweep up the peripheral stats.

The Lakers get the first look at this specific starting unit on Tuesday night. If Portland keeps putting up 125 points a night, the rest of the Western Conference is going to need a lot more perimeter defenders.