PREVIEW: The Golden State Warriors return to action on Friday night, traveling to Portland to face the Trail Blazers at the Moda Center with a tip-off scheduled for 10:00 PM ET. The Warriors are riding high after notching a win in their season opener on Tuesday N/A After building an early lead through three quarters, the young Trail Blazers struggled down the stretch and fell 118–114 to the Minnesota Timberwolves, with Jerami Grant leading Portland with 29 points. The Blazers are facing additional challenges, as head coach Chauncey Billups was placed on immediate leave following an arrest, with Tiago Splitter named interim head coach. Adding to their complexity, the team is also without Damian Lillard, who returned in the offseason but is sidelined with an Achilles injury, and guard Scoot Henderson is out with a hamstring tear. The Warriors are making one more push for the NBA Finals with Stephen Curry leading the team, and they've started the season strong by winning their first two games against Western Conference competitors. In their opener, Jimmy Butler was particularly impressive, scoring 31 points while making all 16 of his free throws and matching Stephen Curry in shot attempts. Portland showed offensive potential in their first game, scoring 114 points with contributions from Jerami Grant (29 points), Deni Avdija (20 points), and Jrue Holiday (14 points with 7 assists). Historically, the Warriors have dominated this matchup, winning nine consecutive games against Portland and maintaining a five-game winning streak at the Moda Center.