Overview
- Portland left its three two‑way players home for Games 1 and 2, breaking an NBA norm that usually has those playoff‑ineligible teammates travel for practice and support after Sunday’s series opener.
- Team staff were told to check out by noon in Phoenix to avoid fees, which left the masseuse without a room to treat players before the play‑in in what interim coach Tiago Splitter found disruptive.
- The club will not hand out playoff T‑shirts for Games 3 and 4 at the Moda Center, though a co‑owner said the team plans a different in‑arena giveaway.
- Multiple outlets report Dundon prefers to cap the next head coach’s pay around $1–1.5 million, a figure below typical NBA salaries, though some team sources dispute any hard limit.
- Portland also trimmed its traveling party and skipped sending a scout to a possible next‑round series, and associates say Dundon is unfazed by backlash as he follows a cost‑cut‑then‑reinvest playbook seen with the NHL’s Hurricanes.