Before the start of the 2015-16 NBA season, some four months ago, it would have been hard to imagine that a March matchup between the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers would be key to the playoff race in the Western Conference.

While nobody envisioned then that Houston would be ninth in the West -- and outside the playoffs if the season ended today -- Portland's relevance was even more difficult to foresee. After losing four starters from last season's team that won 51 games, the Blazers were originally given a line of 26.5 wins at the Westgate SuperBook Las Vegas -- a total they surpassed by beating the Rockets in their last game before the All-Star break.

No team in modern NBA history has rebuilt on the fly quite like Portland. How have the Blazers done it?