The1987–88 Portland Trail Blazers season was the 18th season for thePortland Trail Blazers in theNational Basketball Association.^[1] During the first month of the regular season in November, the Trail Blazers signed free agent, former Trail Blazers and All-Star forwardMaurice Lucas,^[2][3][4] and later on in December signedRichard Anderson, who was previously released by theHouston Rockets.^[5] The team began their season withoutSam Bowie, who was out due to a preseason right leg injury, and would miss the entire season.^[6][7][8]

After winning their first two games of the regular season, the Trail Blazers posted a five-game losing streak, but then posted a 9-game winning streak between November and December, and held a 26–16 record at the All-Star break.^[9] At mid-season, the team tradedJim Paxson to theBoston Celtics in exchange forJerry Sichting.^[10][11][12] The Trail Blazers posted another 9-game winning streak between February and March, and won 10 of their final 13 games of the season, finishing in second place in thePacific Division with a 53–29 record, earning the fourth seed in theWestern Conference, and qualifying for theNBA playoffs for the sixth consecutive year.^[13]

Clyde Drexler averaged 27.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.9 steals per game, and was named to theAll-NBA Second Team, whileKiki Vandeweghe contributed 20.2 points per game off the bench, but only played just 37 games due to injury, andJerome Kersey provided the team with 19.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. In addition, second-year centerKevin Duckworth averaged 15.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, and was named theNBA Most Improved Player of the Year,^[14][15][16] whileSteve Johnson provided with 15.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, but only appeared in just 43 games also due to injury, andTerry Porter contributed 14.9 points, 10.1 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Off the bench, Anderson averaged 6.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, while Lucas provided with 6.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game,Mike Holton contributed 5.3 points and 2.6 assists per game, and starting power forwardCaldwell Jones averaged 4.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.^[17]

During theNBA All-Star weekend at theChicago Stadium inChicago, Illinois, Drexler and Johnson were both selected for the1988 NBA All-Star Game, as members of the Western Conference All-Star team, although Johnson did not participate due to injury; it was his final All-Star selection.^[18][19][20] In addition, Drexler and Kersey both participated in theNBA Slam Dunk Contest; it was the fourth appearance for Drexler, and the third appearance for Kersey.^[21][22]

Drexler finished in fifth place inMost Valuable Player voting, and also finished tied in eighth place inDefensive Player of the Year voting,^[23] while Kersey finished in fifth place inMost Improved Player voting,^[23] and head coachMike Schuler finished tied in third place inCoach of the Year voting.^[24][23]

In the Western Conference First Round of the1988 NBA playoffs, the Trail Blazers were eliminated in the opening round for the third consecutive year, this time losing to the 5th-seededUtah Jazz, three games to one in the best-of-five series.^[25] Following the season, Lucas retired, and Holton was left unprotected in the1988 NBA expansion draft, where he was selected by theCharlotte Hornets expansion team.^[26][27][28]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club team
1	17	Ronnie Murphy	F	United States	Jacksonville
2	29	Lester Fonville		United States	Jackson State
2	30	Nikita Wilson	PF	United States	Louisiana State
3	63	Kevin Gamble	SF/SG	United States	Iowa
4	86	Norwood Barber		United States	Florida State
5	109	David Moss		United States	Tulsa
6	132	Bernard Jackson		United States	Loyola (IL)
7	155	Kenny Stone		United States	George Fox

1987–88 Portland Trail Blazers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From F 35 Richard Anderson 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1960–11–19 California C 31 Sam Bowie  (IN) 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1961–03–17 Kentucky G 22 Clyde Drexler 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1962–06–22 Houston C 00 Kevin Duckworth 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 275 lb (125 kg) 1964–04–01 Eastern Illinois G 6 Mike Holton 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1961–08–04 UCLA C 33 Steve Johnson 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1957–11–03 Oregon State C 27 Caldwell Jones 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 217 lb (98 kg) 1950–08–04 Albany State F 25 Jerome Kersey 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1962–06–26 Longwood F 20 Maurice Lucas 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1952–02–18 Marquette G 4 Jim Paxson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1957–07–09 Dayton G 30 Terry Porter 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1963–04–08 Wisconsin G 14 Jerry Sichting 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 1956–11–29 Purdue F 55 Kiki Vandeweghe 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1958–08–01 UCLA

Head coach Mike Schuler Assistant(s) Rick Adelman Jack Schalow Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster Updated: February 23, 1988

• CenterSam Bowie was on theinjured reserve list due to a right leg injury sustained during the preseason, and missed the entire regular season.^[6][7][8]

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

• Clyde Drexler,All-NBA Second Team
• Kevin Duckworth,NBA Most Improved Player

• Portland Trail Blazers seasons
• 1987 in Portland, Oregon
• 1988 in Portland, Oregon
• 1987–88 NBA season by team
• 1987 in sports in Oregon
• 1988 in sports in Oregon

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from August 2023