The Portland Trail Blazers are hot. The Houston Rockets are not.
The Blazers enter the All-Star break as one of the league's biggest surprises, with Wednesday's 116-103 victory over the Rockets pushing them into an unexpected playoff position. Portland has been red-hot of late, winning 12 of its last 15 contests.
Damian Lillard once again led the attack for the Blazers, collecting a team-high 31 points to go along with nine assists. Mo Harkless continued his surprising campaign, chipping in 19 points and 13 rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting.
After losing four starters in the offseason, the Blazers entered the year as a non-threat in a loaded Western Conference. However, Portland has proven doubters wrong thus far, carrying a 27-27 record into the break.
While Portland seemed destined for a lottery spot entering 2015-16, the Rockets appeared bound for another great year after adding Ty Lawson to a core that reached the Western Conference finals the season before.
Instead, Lawson and Co. have been a major disappointment, with the lethargic Rockets dropping out of a postseason spot following Wednesday's defeat.
At 27-28, the Rockets have more losses than they had the entire 2014-15 season (26). Houston has accompanied one of the worst defenses in the league with an offense that's often too reliant on 3-point shooting to remain effective.
Losers of three straight, Houston has yet to play playoff-level basketball for a meaningful stretch this year.
Sitting just a half-game between each other, Houston and Portland will have the opportunity to prove which team is better equipped to play postseason basketball come April.