The Blazers are one of the hottest teams in the NBA, where behind the scenes, their coach has held a series of meetings to inspire change.

The Portland Trail Blazers may be sitting in 13th place in the Western Conference, but a recent victory against the Phoenix Suns showed glimmers of hope for the

Before one of the signature wins of the Portland Trail Blazers’ unexpected, absurd and, yes, entertaining run of success, I had a conversation with Joe Cronin about the ambiguities of this tanking team that suddenly can’t stop winning.

The Trail Blazers took a second straight game away from the Suns as Ayton throttled his former team. Now at full health, Portland is feeling the groove with eight wins over its past nine games, and Ayton's four double-doubles have been a key part of the effort.