Holy Backboard

2010-10-27T21:38:00.001-07:00

The 2010-2011 season is upon us and we kick it off with some talk about the upcoming season. We're in for a special season. Season Kickoff Holy Backboard Podcast

One Year Anniversary Holy Backboard Podcast

2010-07-02T02:30:00.000-07:00

It's the one year anniversary of Holy Backboard and our latest podcast is up! We talk draft grades, rookies, free agency, summer league and more. Check it out! July 1st Holy Backboard Podcast

Blazers Improvement '10: Greg Oden

2010-06-29T15:59:00.000-07:00

Throughout the first month of the season, Greg Oden was playing like an All-Star, leading the team in rebounding (8.2 per game), shot blocking (2.3) and played with a PER (Player Efficiency Rating) of 23.1, good enough for 8th in the entire league. Finally, the stars seemed like they were aligning in Greg’s favor to help him live up to the hype of being the #1 pick. But it wasn’t meant to be in 2010. While going up for a loose ball against Houston on December 5th, Greg’s kneecap broke in half. The injury would be Greg’s fifth since exiting high school and has put a stranglehold on his professional career with the Trail Blazers, only allowing him to participate in 82 games over the span of three years. With the heart of champion and mentality of a fighter, there is no doubt Oden will once again bring the Rose Garden faithful to life with rim rattling jams and game-changing swats into the third row, but what can he work on this summer to ensure his presence is felt?

Defensive Timing

Post Moves

9th in defensive rebounding rate

Don’t expect a barrage of jaw-dropping post moves out of Oden right away, but if he’s able to work on his timing on defense and stay on the court for 30+ minutes a night next year, the Trail Blazers should be the favorite to dethrone L.A. out in the Wild West. Given his physical attributes, Greg is a player unmatched by few in this league, on par with Yao and LeBron when it comes to most difficult to game plan for. If healthy, his presence alone will bolster the Trail Blazers from middle of the pack in the NBA to the upper echelon.

Breaking Down The Draft

2010-06-28T15:53:00.001-07:00

After the dust had settled, Portland ended up with four new players on their roster and had to say goodbye to a longtime friend. All in all, the 2010 NBA Draft was just like others in recent history, filled with speculation, trade rumors, and big moves to reshape the landscape of the Trail Blazers for the upcoming season.

The major splash of the night came about an hour into the draft when Portland came out of nowhere to snag Luke Babbitt, a 6-9 small forward out of Nevada. It wasn’t unexpected that the team moved up in the draft, which was the thought all along, rather the player who they ended up acquiring. Many rumors had Portland linked to a player such as Paul George, or big man Patrick Patterson, but Babbitt’s name came out of the blue. Maybe even more shocking than obtaining Babbitt was the player Portland sent away to the Wolves. Everything leading up to the draft had Rudy Fernandez as the bait which was to lure in a coveted spot higher in the draft, so when it was made clear Martell Webster was the one dealt, it came as a surprise. I had thought with his three remaining years, teams would shy away from his contract.

As sad as it is to see Webster leave, a change in scenery will do Webster wonders. While he thrived during the month of January, leading the NBA in 3-point field goals made (42); he did so as the starting wing, playing 35 minutes night due to the absence of Batum and Roy. Unfortunately, he won’t have those opportunities here in Portland with both of those guys coming back healthy. By trading Martell, the Trail Blazers lose one of their best perimeter defenders but felt the need for a pure scorer off the bench was higher on the priority list. Insert Babbitt.

With his ability to shoot either off the dribble or spotting up, Babbitt shouldn’t have a problem getting his shot off at the NBA level. When Luke gets his man in the triple threat position, game over. He uses the jab step better than any collegiate prospect in this year's class, which allows him to create additional space as well as keeping his defender off balance. Along with his prototypical small forward height, Babbitt defies the stereotype that ‘White Men Can’t Jump’ by measuring a maximum vertical leap of 37.5 inches, sixth best out of all draftees, and higher than other swingmen taken ahead of him such as Wesley Johnson (37), Al-Farouq Aminu (33.5), and Gordon Hayward (34.5). Taking all of this in, it seems like Luke should be able to come in right away and fill the void of scorer off the bench, vacated by Travis Outlaw. More important than any jab step or vertical leap is his attitude. While making the media rounds today, time and time again, Luke reiterated he wanted to earn everything himself; a breath of fresh air and undoubtedly will gain the admiration of the Trail Blazer fan base.

While this trade was being announced, it felt like a game of ‘Red Light, Green Light’. First Ryan Gomes was involved in the deal, then 10 minutes later he wasn’t, and then he was again. At this time, the team doesn’t know if they’ll waive his partially guaranteed contract, try to trade him to other teams looking to save a little money, or keep him on the roster. Management has until tomorrow to make the decision. Obviously, he’s a solid basketball player who’d be able to back up Nic at the 3 or play some power forward in spots given his toughness (5.7 career rpg). With that said, as it stands, our roster is already at 14 players and the team did just trade their bench defender for another small forward, would it be overload carrying Gomes as well?

After Portland got through wheeling and dealing, it was time to make their pick at #22. Reports earlier in the week leaked out they were targeting Memphis’ Elliot Williams, but after so many famous KP smokescreens put out in the past, this rumor was treated as such. But this was no diversion, Williams was a guy they had been eyeing for a long time and wasted no time selecting him as he was still on the draft board.

Elliot was widely regarded as not only the 2nd best shooting guard in this year’s draft but also the 2nd best athlete overall. Similar to Jerryd Bayless in the sense he is an attacking guard who rarely settles for the jump shot as evidence by averaging 7.5 trips to line his sophomore year at Memphis. With Jerryd Bayless proving himself as a point guard in last year’s playoffs against Phoenix and Webster’s departure, all of a sudden reserve minutes behind Roy are available. Given his natural athleticism and willingness to play defense, Coach McMillan has to be salivating at the chance to work with him in hopes of molding Elliot into a defender of the caliber of a Martell Webster. Really the only negative I can think of when it comes to Williams is the fact he won’t be able to play in next month’s Summer League due to banging knees with other draftee during a workout. No need to worry Trail Blazers fans, the injury is not serious. The team is just taking precautionary measures to ensure he has a healthy rookie campaign.

With their final pick at #34, acquired for #44 and cash consideration, the Trail Blazers stayed true to their philosophy of taking the best player available and grabbed Babbitt’s teammate at Nevada, Armon Johnson, a 6-3 point guard regarded as one of the toughest players in the class. At the time I was pulling for us to swap picks with the Kings who had selected a falling Hassan Whiteside or simply picking Solomon Alabi, both big, 7 ft. project centers who could pay big dividends in the future but with Whiteside’s character issues and Alabi testing positive for Hepatitis B, the red flags were too vivid to ignore.

Much as I do after every draft, I go onto YouTube and find video of the prospects and read up on all of the scouting reports. Needless to say, it didn’t take long to get excited about Armon and after meeting him in person for his press conference, that feeling was only compounded more so. Like Williams, Johnson is an athletic freak, measuring the 4th highest vertical at the combine (38.5 inches) and possessing an intimidating 6’8” wingspan, which has the talent capable of becoming one of the most suffocating defenders at the point guard spot, along the same lines as a young Greg Anthony.

In the end, if you're a Trail Blazers fan, I don't know how you can not be thrilled with the results of draft night. The biggest need of a pure scorer off the bench was filled by Babbitt, added another player who looks to attack the basket first, shoot from the perimeter second in Elliot Williams, and could find a diamond in the rough with Armon Johnson. Although the roster seems overcrowded now, these selections set the team up perfectly to make a consolidation trade.

Overall Grade: B+

2010 NBA Mock Draft

2010-06-11T19:56:00.000-07:00

*Updated June 24*

#	Team	Player	Position	School	Age
1		John Wall	PG	Kentucky	19
2		Evan Turner	SG	Ohio State	21
3		Derrick Favors	PF	Georgia Tech	18
4		Wesley Johnson	SF	Syracuse	22
5		DeMarcus Cousins	C	Kentucky	19
6		Ekpe Udoh	PF	Baylor	23
7		Greg Monroe	PF	Georgetown	20
8		Al-Farouq Aminu	SF	Wake Forest	19
9		Luke Babbitt	SF	Nevada	20
10		Ed Davis	PF	North Carolina	21
11		Patrick Patterson	PF	Kentucky	21
12		Paul George	SF	Fresno State	20
13		Cole Aldrich	C	Kansas	21
14		Gordon Hayward	SF	Butler	20
15		Xavier Henry	SG	Kansas	19
16		Avery Bradley	SG	Texas	19
17		James Anderson	SG	Oklahoma State	21
18		Daniel Orton	C	Kentucky	19
19		Solomon Alabi	C	Florida State	22
20		Elliot Williams	SG	Memphis	20
21		Kevin Seraphin	PF	France	20
22		Hassan Whiteside	C	Marshall	20
23		Larry Sanders	PF/C	VCU	21
24		Dominique Jones	SG	South Florida	21
25		Eric Bledsoe	PG	Kentucky	19
26		Devin Ebanks	SF	West Virginia	20
27		Damion James	SF	Texas	22
28		Craig Brackins	PF	Iowa State	21
29		Terrico White	PG/SG	Misissippi	20
30		Trevor Booker	PF	Clemson	22

Blazers Improvement '10: Andre Miller

2010-06-08T11:12:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the best really is saved left for last. After targeting not one, but two other players in free agency, Portland finally "settled" on Andre Miller in late July. At first, the marriage between the two seemed vexatious at best: a ball-dominant guard, not known for his ability to hit the open jump shot, playing alongside Brandon Roy and with an established point guard in Steve Blake already on the roster? The relationship figured to end before it even got started, but everything changed after a mid-season, heated altercation between Miller and Coach McMillan over a late-game decision the previous night. Headlined by a career-high 52 point game in Dallas and keeping his NBA "Iron Man" streak intact, even more impressive considering the amount of games the team missed totaled over 300; Andre was able to lead the squad to a 50 win season and another playoff berth. Although Miller was arguably Portland's team MVP for the 2010 season, he'll once again have to silence the critics who insist he isn't the man for the job.

Jump Shooting

“Ason”

Chemistry

With a finely tuned jump shot and a healthy group of teammates surrounding him, don’t be shocked if Andre makes a serious push for his first ever All-Star appearance as well as being the ringleader of team pushing for 60 wins.

Blazers Improvement '10: Rudy Fernandez

2010-06-03T17:16:00.000-07:00

Coming off a sensational rookie campaign which saw him break the single season three-point record for first-year players (159), Rudy Fernandez's hopes of a successful sequel in 2010 were thwarted with an assortment of injuries, ranging from a needed microdiscectomy to relieve pressure on a nerve in his back to strained quadriceps. Both obstacles kept Fernandez out of action for multiple games at a time, making it hard to establish a rhythm; he struggled with inconsistencies all season long. The toughest pill to swallow had to be the timing of the injuries. Just as he was on the cusp of hitting his 2009 stride, as evidenced by exceeding his seasonal averages in points (10.4), field goal percentage (.423), and three-point shooting (.471) over a span of a 14 game stretch directly after the All-Star Break, he incurred yet another setback on March 20th. Were injuries solely to blame for the sophomore slump or was there more to it?

Shooting Off The Dribble

Limit Turnovers

By reducing his turnovers and enhancing his offensive repertoire, Fernandez can further interject more spirit and zeal into the game, significantly strengthening his role on the team and making the case for most dynamic 6th man in the NBA.

Blazers Improvement '10: Dante Cunningham

2010-06-02T09:10:00.000-07:00

When a 54-win team selects a player in the second round, many fans and media members simply shrug it off as a bench warmer or Summer League roster filler, but right from the start, Dante Cunningham let it be known he would be no afterthought. Even after one quarter of Summer League play, it was evident Dante would find his way onto the court one way or another. Over the course of the summer and into his rookie campaign, Cunningham used his silky smooth mid-range jump shot, versatility to play either forward position and high basketball intelligence to absorb the absence of Travis Outlaw once he went down with a broken foot. Highlighted by a vicious, retaliation slam on Amare Stoudemire and a noteworthy .495 field goal percentage, the future looks bright for Dante in the Rose City, but how can he crack the rotation?

Jump Shot

scouting report

His work ethic and desire to improve cannot be questioned ... He transformed himself from a scrappy, hustle, workingman's player into a polished offensive player and top scoring option on a final four team ...

Perimeter Defense

With Juwan Howard entering his 17th NBA season and the departure of former backup forward, Travis Outlaw, the time for Dante Cunningham to grab a spot in Coach McMillan's rotation is now.

Blazers Improvement '10: Marcus Camby

2010-05-25T13:06:00.000-07:00

Immediately after being traded to Portland near the trade deadline, Marcus Camby made his impression felt. The 6'11", 220 lb. 14 year veteran helped shore up a depleted Trail Blazers front line, ailing from the injured departures of Oden and Przybilla. Down the stretch run of the season, whatever the Trail Blazers needed from Marcus on any given night, he provided it. Whether it was his memorable 30 point, 13 rebound performance in victory against the Thunder, inspiring the crowd to serenade him with chants of "Mar-cus Cam-bee" all throughout the Rose Garden arena or his uncanny veteran leadership. With the health status of the other big men still in question, Camby will definitely be called upon again this season to shoulder the load. What can he do this summer to ensure his impact is prolonged on the Trail Blazers?

Free Throw Shooting

Jump Shot

By becoming more consistent at the charity stripe and maintaining his jump shot, Camby can stake his claim as a top 10 center in this league. With the center position evolving into a dying breed of today's NBA, the Trail Blazers are fortunate to have a player of Marcus' size and caliber holding down the fort in the middle.

Blazers Improvement '10: Jerryd Bayless

2010-05-21T15:22:00.000-07:00

Logging only 65 minutes and appearing in 53 games during his rookie year, Jerryd Bayless was determined to make a bigger impact on the Trail Blazers in 2010. But after the team brought in a free agent and fellow point guard Andre Miller, it was unsure just how much playing time he'd be able to muster by being 5th on the depth chart amongst the guards. No one took advantage of the injury-plagued season more than Bayless. In a one week span right before Christmas, Jerryd showed why he was a heavily coveted lottery pick in 2008, scoring 29 points in 29 minutes in a comeback victory over the Suns and then six days later, with Brandon sidelined, scored a career-high 31 to upset the Spurs in San Antonio. With Roy out again to start the playoffs, it was Jerryd who once again rose to the occasion, averaging 13.5 points, on .431 field goal shooting, 4.0 assists, only 1.3 turnovers, and saw his three-point percentage increase from .315 during the regular season to .400 this postseason. The flashes of brilliance were evident in 2010, but how can he sustain his lightning in the bottle outbursts over the duration of an entire season?

Long-Range Shooting

NBADraft.Net

Gets great lift on his jump-shot, with range well out to the NBA three. His pull up jumper is magnificent; with the elevation, balance, and quick release, he is virtually able to shoot whenever, and over whomever he desires

Court Vision

With the addition of a more consistent jump shot, Bayless fills the void of dynamic scorer off the bench and by adding the ability to find the open man in traffic, it completes his game offensively. Along with his defensive intensity, he can now make the transition from role player to the next great, young Trail Blazer.

Blazers Improvement '10: Nicolas Batum

2010-05-18T13:56:00.000-07:00

After missing the team's first 45 games of the season due to shoulder surgery, it was questionable just how much progression Nicolas Batum could make out of a shortened season. It didn't take long for the second year forward from France to let it be known that he wasn't satisfied with his rookie production. In just his second game back from injury, Batum showed off a new and improved offensive repertoire, which included a quicker release on a more accurate jump shot as well as the ability to shoot off the dribble. Along with being the team's most suffocating perimeter defender and a highlight real waiting to happen with his patented chase-down blocks, Batum saw his offensive numbers spike up all across the board in 2010. His points nearly doubled from 5.4 to 10.1, he lead the team in three-point percentage at 40.9%, shot 84.3% from the foul line, and improved his field goal shooting nearly 7% from .446 to .519. He has already showing signs of becoming the next great small forward in this league, but what is most vital to achieving that goal this summer?

Gain Weight

Ball Handling

Parker will not participate

Considering the amount of lethal scorers in the NBA at the small forward position, players of Batum's defensive caliber are at a premium and if he is able to put on muscle, it gives the Trail Blazers an answer to all of the aforementioned scorers. Not only would he be able to stymie them defensively, but if he can craft his ball handling skills, it will force them to defend him on a regular basis.

Blazers Improvement '10: LaMarcus Aldridge

2010-05-17T11:20:00.000-07:00

Standing 6'11", weighing 240 lbs, and the agility of a guard, there is not much physically the L-Train can't do. His feathery mid-range jump shot has become a staple of the Trail Blazers offense and his quickness from end line to end line has made him a lethal weapon for Portland to exploit on the fast break. Defensively, he is as versatile as they come from the power forward position, strong enough to defend bigger forwards down on the blocks yet agile enough to stick with nearly anybody on the perimeter. He is a big reason why Coach McMillan is a firm believer in switching on defense, because he has the skill level to hold his own out top if a switch occurs on a pick and roll. Like all players, there is always something to improve on during the offseason and here's what LMA should be doing to prepare for his All-Star campaign in 2011.

Face Up Game:

Go-To Move:

By adding these two moves to his offensive arsenal, Aldridge now becomes impossible to defend and catapults him into elite power forward territory. With a few icons of the post now on the downside of their primes [Duncan, Garnett] as well as a few hitting or eclipsing the age of 30 [Gasol, Nowitzki], the time to take the torch from the others is now.

HolyBackBoard Draft Look Ahead: Version 4.0

2010-05-11T12:00:00.000-07:00

Now that the draft entrants are set after the May 8th withdrawal deadline has come and gone and Portland's picks are set in stone after tie-breakers were held, it is time to update the top 5 prospects the Trail Blazers should realistically be targeting. For the second straight season, Portland reached the 50 win plateau as well as being bounced from the first round of the playoffs, this time at the hands of the Phoenix Suns. As the season headed down the stretch, it became clear this squad had a few glaring needs, such as another scorer off the bench, preferably a 3-point assassin or a big, bruising power forward to relieve Aldridge. The combination of losing three separate tie-breakers for draft positioning and a late-season surge, presumably in large part to the acquisition of Camby, took the Trail Blazers further away from the lottery than I expected, forcing a huge overhaul in the entrees the team should be eying. The Trail Blazers own the 22nd and 44th picks in the 2010 NBA Draft.

C-Hassan Whiteside: Marshall

averaging 5.4 blocks in only 26 minutes of action

PF-Ekpe Udoh:Baylor

13.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, and a fifth best 3.7 blocks

C-Larry Sanders:Virginia Commonwealth

14.4, 9.1 and 2.6

SG-Dominique Jones:South Florida

21.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg, and 3.6apg

SG-Avery Bradley:Texas

11.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg and 2.1 apg

2nd Round Steals

PG-Jerome Randle:California
SF-Da'Sean Butler:West Virginia
PF-Jarvis Vanardo:Mississippi State

2010 Offseason: Playing With House Money

2010-05-05T21:32:00.000-07:00

Although everything turned out for the best in the end, no Trail Blazers fan will ever forget the rocky, unsettling start to the 2009 summer. Portland had around $9 million in salary cap money to throw at numerous free agents as well as having the extensions of both cornerstone players to hammer out, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. The pressure was on. Cap space isn't like many things in life, it can't be carried over or reused, either you use it or you lose it. Maybe more vital to the team's success in the 2010 season was locking up both Roy and Aldridge long-term, preventing a season of uncertainty as either could have been a restricted free agent come July 1st, 2010. With all those variables in place, not even factoring in the draft, it was an offseason of sitting on pins and needles for anyone associated with the Trail Blazers worldwide and it got started off on the wrong foot.
After Portland management targeted Hedo Turkolgu as their #1 free agent, all looked well. Hedo visited the Rose City and a 5 year/$50 million deal seemed inevitable, even being announced on ESPN.com as a done deal. In a flurry of changes, it appeared Hedo would be heading north of the border to play for the Raptors, his wife choosing the Turkish culture of Toronto over Portland. A lot of people were divided on Turk from the beginning but swinging and missing on your top choice was not a good omen and voices of Portland not being an attractive free agent destination began to creep back in. A week or two passed and the Blazers pounced on Paul Millsap, the only problem is their money was tied up for a week as Utah had the allotted time frame to match the offer due to Paul's restricted status. After much deliberation, Utah matched, stating they would not be bullied by any "toxic" offer. Even though Millsap would have been a huge addition, it did force Utah to ultimately give away Ronnie Brewer and Eric Maynor in order to stay under the luxury tax; a direct correlation from the offer sheet Portland gave Millsap. Finally, KP snagged Andre Miller to a reasonable 3 year/$21 million deal in July, proving you don't always have to be the first option to be the best option.
If the free agency fiasco wasn't enough trauma to endure during the summer months, the prospect of not having either star extended was looming on the horizon. Signing Roy to a 5 yr/Maximum extension was a no-brainer, right? To many fans and media members, it should have been done in a day or two and then quickly move on to Aldridge. A holdup over an early termination player option after the 4th year was causing all the hoopla. Radio interviews by Roy, sounding unsure of his future in Portland, left a lot to be desired in the hearts of BlazerManiacs. Could the unthinkable happen? Could Brandon Roy be unhappy in Portland and eventually leave the franchise he recently saved? After holding their collective breaths for two months, the entire city exhaled on August 6th, when the extension was signed. Roy was supposed to be the easy one though. It was Aldridge's contract everyone was worried about. Andre Bargnani had just received a 5 year/$50 million extension and surely LA is a much better player, so what does that say about his market value? To no one's surprise, talks stalled and it was assumed a deal just couldn't be reached. Fans were chanting "Cut the check" during Fan Fest as well as early pre-season games. Everybody was restless. But just 10 days before the Halloween deadline, a 5 year/$65 million agreement was reached, momentarily putting Blazer fans at ease, that is, before the news breaking of Batum missing half the season and the rest, as they say, was history.
Why am I bringing up the past? Only to remind all of you about the roller coaster that was the '09 summer. This year, take a more relaxing approach to the draft, free agency, and don't worry about contract extensions. Portland has already handled the big business, inking Marcus Camby to a 2 yr/$21 million extension, keeping him in the Rose City to finish out his career. Anything else added to Camby's re-signing is cherry on top of the sundae. Coming off a 50 win season and first round exit, normally urgency would be high after another early bounce out of the playoffs, but the Blazers had integral championship puzzle pieces injured, either for the season or physically being well below 100%. Injuries are something no one should dwell on, because they are out of everyone's hands. With that said, all the Trail Blazers need to do this summer is get healthy and address the need of another bench player, whether it be a long-range assassin or a punishing, rebounding machine. In his arsenal, Kevin Pritchard obtains the 22nd and 44th picks in the 2010 Draft, along with the ability to have owner Paul Allen purchase another pick if deemed necessary, as well as the 5.8 mid-level free agent exception. We have minimal needs and one of the best management teams in the biz. Enjoy this ride.

2010 Offseason: Addressing Team Needs

2010-05-03T13:42:00.001-07:00

Now that we have seen Portland go one and done in the playoffs for the second straight season, some team needs still need to be addressed. The biggest difference between this year and last has to do with the plethora of veteran leadership provided by Andre Miller, Marcus Camby, and Juwan Howard, which allowed Portland to withstand the array of injuries as best as possible by winning 50 games again, and reaching the playoffs in the hotly contested Western Conference. Out of necessity, the trade which brought in Marcus Camby turned a couple of strengths into liabilities at times down the stretch of the 2010 season. Blake and Outlaw provided a solid, sturdy second unit for the Trail Blazers, as well as long-range accuracy, but those strong suits of the team had to be left by the wayside as Portland had bigger holes to fill, such as providing Aldridge and Howard with some help up front. No one questioned the trade for Camby then, nor do they now, but the voids left by Blake's steadiness and Outlaw's gunner mentality still have yet to be filled.
Here are a list of needs Pritchard and Co. can target this summer to help take Portland to the next step.

Bench Scorer:

What do all elite teams have in common? Either a cohesive bench unit or a 6th man who can come in and heat up in an instant. Detroit in the 80's had Vinnie "Microwave" Johnson, Toni Kukoc for the Bulls in the mid-90's, and more recently, Manu Ginobili of the Spurs earlier this decade. Although he wasn't at any of the aforementioned player levels, Travis didn't need any time to heat up and was good for about 13 points a night and could be counted on to make shots in the clutch. Jerryd Bayless showed signs of becoming a dynamic scorer off the bench, but a couple factors negate this thought. First, he needs more than just a few minutes to heat up. He is a rhythm player who needs minutes in bunches to get into the flow of the game. Also, I'm not sure we want our point guard being the one doing all the scoring and I don't think that's what the coaching staff is grooming him to be. Bayless' future is definitely with this team, but I'd like to see us acquire a wing player to play alongside Jerryd and Martell on the second unit. While Jerryd is trying to make a name for himself as a distributor, Webster is doing so as a defensive stopper. A three guard bench unit of Bayless, Webster, and [insert scorer here] seems to fill all roles to a tee and could catapult us into elite status.

3-Point Specialist:

Again, with Blake and Outlaw gone, our long-range accuracy went as well. In 2009, Portland shot 38.4% from beyond the arc but saw it plummet down to 35.5%. The discrepancies in shooting percentage could be just another fallout from the injuries as guys such as Rudy Fernandez and Travis Outlaw (pre-trade) were either hurt for prolonged periods of time, in Outlaw's case or just constantly dinged up as was the case for Fernandez, but Coach McMillan wants to see another shooter added to the mix regardless. While Batum has turned himself into quite the marksmen from downtown, (40.9%), I still feel like once he subs out of the game or is having an off night, our long-range shooting goes out along with him. Maybe this is where Portland kills two birds with one stone, in the sense they acquire a instant offense scorer off the bench who happens to be extremely accurate from 20 ft. and beyond.

Bruising Backup Forward:

What did the all the great Blazer teams of season's past have that we don't currently attribute? A big, strong, take-no-prisoners, power forward. Although the title team had Maurice Lucas, the 90's had Buck Williams, and the millennium squad featured Briant Grant as starters, the current Trail Blazers already have their starter at the 4 spot firmly entrenched for years to come in Aldridge, who's inside/out combination is a perfect compliment to Oden. The only issue is that too many times did the starting big men check out of the game only to see the opposition clean house on the boards. It makes even more sense considering the division in which Portland participates in. The Thunder have young buck Serge Ibaka, Utah possesses one of the best backup forwards in the league in Paul Millsap, Minnesota has one of the best pure rebounders coming off their bench in Kevin Love, and Denver has Chris "Birdman" Andersen who is willing to give up his body on any given play as long as it benefits the team.
As the team stands, when healthy, they are loaded and a force to be reckoned with. All the essentials are there for contention. Superstar? Check, Brandon Roy. Veteran leadership? Check and Check, compliments of Camby and Miller. Robin to Roy's Batman? Yes sir, LaMarcus Aldridge. Perimeter defense? Most definitely, thanks to the progression of Nicolas Batum and Martell Webster. Interior defense and rebounding? No doubt about it with Oden and Camby manning the middle. Young talent? Bayless, Cunningham, and Pendergraph would all agree. The team doesn't need much, but with their mid-level free agent exception to go along with two picks in the upcoming draft, the Trail Blazers have the resources to turn some of these weaknesses into strengths in a big hurry.

It's The Offseason, What To Do Now?

2010-05-01T11:40:00.000-07:00

The 2009-2010 Trail Blazers season has come and gone and the prospect of no Blazers basketball for six months is now looming upon us. Some may get their hoops fix by watching the rest of the NBA playoffs play out for the upcoming six weeks, but if you're like me who only has an NBA allegiance when Portland is in the mix, the rest of the playoffs just doesn't fit the bill. Chances are if you aren't a baseball, golf, or racing fan, taking part in watching professional sports will have to be put on the back burner until the leaves start to change colors in the fall. Now with nights freed up and the summer coming up just around the bend, what hobbies or activities are there to do or take part in? If you still want to keep the Trail Blazers in your mind during the off-season, here are a few suggestions. For all of the readers out there, I offer up three selections, destined to bring back memories of the glory years. Up first is The Long, Hot Winter, a narration of the 1990-91 season told through the words of Coach Rick Adleman with Dwight Jaynes. After Rip City had returned the year before with a Western Conference Championship, fans wanted more and more Trail blazers coverage. The book is a very quick and easy read, which takes you through the highs and lows of the 63 win Portland Trail Blazers. For a fan such as myself who was only 5/6 years old during that season, going back now and reading it, gives you a whole different perspective on what was actually going on. Against the World, written by Kerry Eggers and Dwight Jaynes who covered the team religiously, takes the reader into an even more in-depth look at the 1991-92 Portland Trail Blazers. Due to having actual members of the media putting together this piece, instead the head coach, the coverage is much more thorough. We all have to remember that their was no internet, Facebook, Twitter, or really even cell phones back in the early 90's, so this book is the best recollection of everything that went down from Danny Ainge's contract holdup to the potential Charles Barkley to Portland trade rumors. Last but certainly not least is Clyde The Glyde and autobiography of Clyde Drexler told through the stories of Drexler himself but forwarded by Kerry Eggers. Like many 20-somethings in the Oregon region, Drexler amazed us with his high-flying athletic glides through the air and won over our hearts as the sports hero for us during our youth. A must-read for any Trail Blazers or Drexler fan, which takes you through his life as a child in Houston all the way through his retirement as a Hall of Fame and 50 Greatest Players career. If reading isn't your cup of tea or you simply want more, there is visual reminiscence of those great, engaging early-90's Trail Blazer squads. The films which depict the amazing three-year run were Return To Rip City which tours through the NBA Finals run of the 1989-90 season, Running Down A Dream focuses more on the franchise-setting 63 win regular season during the 1990-91 year, and Make It Happen is the culmination of the three-year run that shows the Trail Blazers last grasp at a title during the 1991-92 season. For me personally, the team will continue to stay in the back of my mind, but with more nights free now, I'll definitely explore more of the Portland restaurant scene and maybe check out a movie here and there. Outside of keeping up in the world of the blog-o-sphere, I would like to see what Oregon has to offer in term of hiking terrain and scenery. While in Arizona this March, I hiked two mountains and found it not only exhilarating but a sense of accomplishment when you stand high above the rest of the world, looking owt to see how far you made it. And during those rainy, June days the northwest is known for, nothing beats a good book. Now that I let all of you know what my plans are for the off-season, what are yours and do you have any suggestions for me?

Trail Blazers vs Suns: Round 1, Game 6

2010-04-29T11:34:00.001-07:00

For the first true time this season, the Portland Trail blazers face a must-win game. Win or go home is what the stakes are set at tonight for the team against the Suns who hold a 3-2 series lead after their impressive 107-88 win during Game 5. After 5 games, the teams know each very well and they keys to victory aren't changing anytime soon. Portland needs to ugly the game up, slow down tempo, contain Phoenix fast-break points, and win the second-chance points battle. On the other hand, Phoenix wants to get Portland into a jump-shooting contest, run and gun style, and let Nash and Amare run the pick and roll to death. Whichever team is able to force their style of play upon the other will win. I haven't seen any evidence the Trail Blazers can win playing free-flowing nor is their proof the Suns can get a W not scoring less than 95 points. There's really nothing more to say. I believe Portland will come out and play like a team with their backs against the wall, feeding off of the rabid Rose Garden crowd. The emergence of Roy into the starting lineup should being stability back, allowing Bayless to thrive by becoming the spark off the bench. In a series that has seen the losing team come back and win every game, outside of Game 3, it seems the previous winner comes out a little less urgent while the loser has made the proper adjustments. Also, do not count out the fact the Trail Blazers finally got more than one day of rest in between games, which has allowed Brandon to get a little more conditioned. Portland wins the second chance battle, slows the tempo down, and even gets a little hot behind the three-point arc themselves. Behind big nights from Miller and Aldridge, along with Bayless' continued consistency off the bench, the Trail Blazers will force a Game 7 for the first time since 2003. Game 6 Preview Video &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; Round 1, Game 6 Prediction: Portland 97 Phoenix 94 Post-Game Thoughts A season filled with adversities, which sent our emotions on a roller coaster of highs and lows, finally came to a halt Thursday night in the Rose Garden. Phoenix jumped out early behind the hot shooting of Jason Richardson, who ended up with 28 points on 10-16 shooting from the field, including 5-8 from downtown. Portland saw the deficit grow as large as 16 mid-way through the third but didn't want a blowout to be the last memory of the 2010 season for the fans. Reminiscent of his 24 point quarter two years ago against Utah, Marty caught fire in the later portions of the third and into the 4h to the tune of three three-pointers as well as being fouled on another, making two of the free throws. In total, he was 6-10 from the field for 19 points. Aiding him was none other than the reemergence of Rudy Fernandez, who bombed away, draining 5-6 from beyond the arc which brought the RG from a passive clap to a loud roar. Portland fought all the way back to tie it up at 76 apiece, but a 8-0 Suns run killed any hopes of a Game 7. "I hope it hurts right now for all of us," McMillan said. "We need to get a grasp on how this feels. Because next year at this time, we want to be moving on to the next round and competing for a championship." Give all the credit in the world to the Suns and their coaching staff. After falling asleep in Game 1, they made all the proper adjustments to take away all of our strengths. After scoring 105 in a Game 1 win, Phoenix locked in on Miller, Aldridge and really never left either one out of their cage, holding the Blazers to under 100 points the rest of the series. With a non-100% Roy, Phoenix was able to hide Nash defensively and put the bigger Hill on Miller, stifling his every move. When they weren't full court pressing Dre, they would simply play a zone whenever he was in the game, daring Miller to win the game from the outside, obviously his major weakness. Gentry also knew the Blazers were not an aggressive team in terms of cutting to the hoop, so he doubled Roy and LaMarcus at every opportunity, which ended up in Portland usually just swinging the ball around the perimeter instead of sending a slashing cutter to the middle of the open defense. On offense, whomever Roy was guarding, they engaged him, making him work on defense by running him through screen after screen. Finally, whenever Portland seemed to have a comeback in them or any wave of momentum, Phoenix always had an answer. "He[Roy] struggled to get his rhythm," Portland coach Nate McMillan said. "He wasn't able to move like he normally does. (Jason) Richardson did a good job crowding him and getting into the ball. (Roy) was trying to get a rhythm, but he just couldn't get it." Even in defeat, there is something positive to take out of this series and it comes in the form of Jerryd Bayless. Although he got a little bit reckless during the game, coughing it up three times, for the first half, he was the only player trying to be aggressive and take it to the cup. What we have found out though is that with ample playing time, Jerryd is able to get more into a rhythm. Once he gets settled into the game, not only does his jump shot seem to find bottom more times than not but his court vision expands. JB's 4-12 shooting wasn't indicative of his series but he did pass out a game-high 7 assists, showing his maturation as a point guard. Maybe even more impressive is his defensive effort and intensity. He just seems to relish the big-game situation, something a team can never have enough of. Portland's future is in safe hands with Jerryd waiting in the wings, ready to take the torch from Andre in 2-3 years. The 2010 season has finally came to a close. Although Portland failed to advance past the first round since 2000, there is a lot of hope heading into the 2011 version. Camby is locked in for two more years, Andre will head into training camp as the starter, giving us more stability at the lead guard slot from the get-go, and hopefully all Trail Blazers who are dinged up can be healthy and rejuvenated come October. Nico showed he is the small forward for the next 10 years and most likely would have been on a All-Defense team had he not been injured for half of the season. Portland won 50 games despite having over 300 games missed due to injury, so it's not inconceivable 60 could be on the horizon, especially with Oden's return inevitable and the majority of the top Western players aging and out of their primes. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Brandon Roy: A True Superstar

2010-04-28T11:10:00.000-07:00

After being eight days removed from right knee surgery to repair a tear of the meniscus, and seeing his team lose Games 2 and 3 by a combined 50 points, Roy couldn't take it anymore. Originally, the prognosis on the surgery of a torn meniscus is about a 4-6 week recovery time, therefore, he was ruled out for the playoffs, but the number of incisions to the knee were less than usual, causing team officials to become optimistic of his return, should the team advance past the first round. Initially upon awaking from the operation, Roy said the knee felt great and didn't experience any swelling at all. Whispers of him returning for a possible Game 6 or 7 now started to linger through the media, but Game 4, just eight days after surgery? No way, no how, it wasn't happening. Roy was pushing to play in the team's home playoff games and initially accepted Coach McMillan's answer of no, but while watching the playoffs the Friday before Game 4, Roy got the playoff itch and wouldn't take no for answer this time. He pestered Coach McMillan via text message as well as Trainer Jay Jenson to let him play. No Trail Blazers' fan would have questioned Roy one bit if he decided not to play at all this post-season. The risks were high for the franchise player, especially after signing a maximum extension during the summer of 2009. This season has been difficult enough in terms of the injury bug, and the last thing we need is our leader to be out the start of the 2011 season. But Brandon is not your stereotypical athlete of the 21st century who carries a me-first persona, rather Roy, like all Trail Blazers, is humble and puts the team before himself. Only he knew how well his knee was progressing and although he's not physically 100%, if he could contribute, nothing was going to stop him from bringing home a Game 4 win for the team, city, and fan base. His performance wasn't pretty, even looking awkward at times, but it was more of his presence, than his 5 big points in the latter portion of the 4th quarter that propelled the Trail Blazers to a 96-87 win. No one felt Roy's presence on the court more than Aldridge, who was more than relieved to see the other half of the dynamic duo return. With Roy garnering all of Phoenix's attention, it was Aldridge who made them pay with a career playoff-high 31 points and 11 rebounds. 52 points on December 18th against the Suns, hitting the game winning three-pointer from 30 ft. with 0.8 seconds left to crush the Rockets, being named, for the third consecutive year All-Star and 2nd Team All-NBA, and countless other clutch game winning baskets were already part of Brandon Roy's legacy as a Portland Trail Blazer. He was already on the path to inevitably have his #7 jersey hanging from the rafters of the Rose Garden and be on the short list of candidates mentioned for greatest Trail Blazer of all-time, but what he did before Game 4 was something of legend. Being activated 15 minutes before tip-off, Roy's dressing for action created a buzz of its own throughout the arena and eventually spreading like wildfire out onto the streets leading to the Rose Garden. Then it happened, his face was shown on the big screen, back in the locker room with his teammates getting ready to run out onto the court and he didn't look like a decoy. The crowd erupted in amazement. A new hope was instilled. Portland could win this series with their hero back in action, and it wasn't only the fans who felt this way but his fellow Trail Blazers, who went on a 9-2 run while he was waiting at the scorer's table set to check in. The rest as they say, was history. Even if Portland doesn't go on to win the series against Phoenix, the team is still in good hands. The torch Clyde Drexler passed on as face of the franchise took longer than expected to get into the hands of someone worthy but better late than never. For the next four years guaranteed (player option for year #5), every person with ties to the organization can be proud to have Brandon Roy be synonymous of all things Trail blazers. Outsiders have even caught on too, as the list of most popular jersey sales was just released, placing Roy 13th on the list.

Trail Blazers @ Suns: Round 1, Game 5

2010-04-26T10:18:00.001-07:00

A best of seven series now turns into the best of three as the two teams are all knotted up at two games apiece after Roy's Willis Reed/Kevin Duckworth incredible return to action propelled the Trail Blazers to a 96-87 Game 4 victory. After stunning the Suns in Game 1, Phoenix threw the first wrench into the equation by putting Grant Hill on Andre Miller and having him pick up Dre a full 94 feet at every possible chance. It wasn't until Game 4 that Portland was able to make an adjustment of their own, which was to trap and double Nash as much as possible. It worked as he had just 15 points, 8 assists, and a game-high 6 turnovers. Does Phoenix have an answer for the suffocating defense on Nash or on Roy's reemergence back onto the court or does Portland have another trick up their sleeve for the Suns? Nothing is more important to the Trail Blazers tonight than getting off to a good start. In their two losses, it was evident early it was going to take a miracle for them to pull out a win. When they won Games 1 and 4, it was a one point game either way. The addition of Bayless to the starting lineup should solve this issue as he is another ball handler out on the court who can get to the rim and create for others and actually take advantage of Steve Nash defending him, unlike Rudy who plays most of his game outside on the perimeter, allowing for the defensive strategy of the Suns to suffocate Miller with Hill. What I like about Brandon coming off of the bench for the time being is that its a win-win situation. If we get off to a sluggish start, a much more reliable Roy will be there to help bail us out instead of seeing their lead increase or if we hold a lead once he comes in, the chances of us extending the lead go up with our All-Star checking into the game. If the Blazers can keep it at least within four points after the first period, then they should feel good about themselves weathering the opening storm. Assists and fast-break points will be the deciding factors in whomever wins tonight's Game 5. The potent suns offensive attack is based upon these two key statistical categories, essentially acting as the fuel for their high-octane offense. Although you always want to stop a team from getting easy baskets, the importance is greater against a team of Phoenix's caliber. If their shooters see the ball go in, it raises their confidence and puts them in a rhythm Portland doesn't want to see them in; games 2 and 3 were enough for everyone's liking. There's no secret the Blazers won their two games by holding the Suns to a combined eight fast-break points. They must force Phoenix into playing their slow, grind-it-out tempo and attack them at every opportunity. Getting to the foul line should be priority #1, because not only does it negate the run game but helps the 3rd leading free throw shooting team get easy points of their own. Finally, win the assist battle. Phoenix is nothing without Nash driving and dishing to his teammates for open looks. Outside of Amare, no Suns player can get his own shot off via isolation. I would continue to throw multiple defenders at Nash and make someone else beat us. On the flip side, by racking up more dimes than the opposition, it means the Blazers are playing good, team basketball and making Phoenix work on the defensive end of the floor, taking away some of their energy on offense. Win these two categories and you win the game Portland. Trail Blazer shooters be ready, because Brandon's back and he's going to find you. We all saw how many times he found Aldridge open for his patent 18 foot jump shot simply by drawing multiple defenders to him. Although he still isn't 100%, the Roy dynamic is yet another wrinkle in this series and if Roy continues to find open men off of dribble penetration, we must knock them down, otherwise our offense is going to burn out. If such a scenario occurs, they'll simply take Roy out of the game if Bayless, Batum, Webster, and LaMarcus don't make Phoenix pay. By hitting a few from the outside, not only will it spring Roy loose a bit but the paint begins to thin out as the Suns defenders can no longer pack it in tight and sag off the shooters. If Portland can shoot around 46-48% from the floor tonight, they shouldn't be surprised if they find themselves up 3-2 heading back home to the Rose City. If Portland is able to win this series, it must be done tonight. I don't think you want to take your chances winning a Game 7 on the road as the odds are stacked too high against you. Unfortunately, Portland isn't going to be heading home to the Rose City holding a 3-2 series lead. I believe Phoenix will make an adjustment to Roy being back in the lineup and our trapping of Nash. They just have so many weapons on offense that one is bound and determined to get hot. Also, with the series being so chippy, look for one of our key players on defense (Batum, Camby, or Aldridge) getting into foul trouble and Phoenix exploiting it. I'd love to be proven wrong, especially considering this is my birthday, but Phoenix is the 3 seed for a reason and will protect home court tonight behind a monster performance from STAT. Round 1, Game 5 Prediction: Trail Blazers 96 Suns 101 Post-Game Thoughts Apparently getting off to a hot start wasn't as important as many thought it would be during Game 5. The Trail Blazers came out blistering, taking a 9-0 lead and eventually seeing it grow as large as 14 at 23-9 mid-way through the 1st quarter. Then the wheels fell off completely. Marcus Camby picked up his 2nd foul, Brandon Roy had three fouls in a heartbeat and Phoenix went to their bench and boy did they ever produce. Behind their 55 bench points, Phoenix was able to wipe away the 14 point deficit and trail only by 1 after the 1st and take a commanding 57-47 lead at the half. Portland found themselves down only 7 late in the 3rd, but a lack of defensive rebounding killed any hopes of a Blazer rally as Phoenix rode the wave of momentum to a 84-66 3rd quarter lead. The Trail Blazers once again fell into the Suns trap of a high-tempo game and got burnt by allowing 17 fast-break points, getting out-rebounded 41-29,and got to the foul line 8 less times (32-24). With all of that happening a result of 108-87 isn't surprising. "We fell into their tempo," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said. On a positive note, Jerryd Bayless continues to make a case for more playing time in the 2011 season as he had another excellent outing. He tallied 17 points (6-14 FG, 3-5 3PT), handed out 4 dimes, grabbed 4 rebounds, and committed only 1 turnover in 37 minutes of action. One play in particular which showed the maturation of Bayless into a true point guard occurred in the 1st half when he took his man off the dribble and proceeded into the lane. Normally, he would try to force contact and get to the line, but he saw a big come over to deny his access to the basket and dumped it off to Howard for an easy two. These are the types of plays that will only gain Bayless more court time which he has so desperately desired since arriving in the Rose City. We all know he can score and get to the paint but being able to create for others, not just himself, out of the penetration will take his game to a whole other level. People will point out the refs were biased during this match as PHX had shot 20+ more free throws than Portland at one point during the course of the game, but even if some of the calls were questionable, they were the aggressors. I've said this time and time again, the officials reward teams who are more assertive and give them the benefit of the doubt more times than not. The Suns simply wanted this game more. I don't know how many times I saw multiple black jerseys underneath the hoop waiting for the rebound to fall into their laps only to see one, lone white jersey come out of nowhere and take it from them and lay it up and in. We punched them in the mouth from the get-go and its as if we didn't expect them to fight back and once they did, we folded. If the Blazers do indeed wind up losing this series, they can go back to Games 3 and 5 and kick themselves. Its not often a road team obtains the home court advantage and we gave it up without much of a fight in Game 3, once again failing to secure rebounds and give up cheap buckets in the paint. Also, when you have the momentum heading into a road game after the emotional Game 4 win and come out with both guns blazing, you simply can't let your opponent back into the game so quickly. We all knew the 14 point lead wouldn't last the entire night, but to see it evaporate within minutes was a red flag in my book. We had the Suns by the throat but the lack of killer instinct haunts us once again. Portland now finds themselves behind the 8-ball, needing to win twice against a Suns team which hasn't lost consecutive games in nearly 3 months. Phoenix wants this series over as soon as possible, so the Blazers can't expect to win Game 6 just because its at the rowdy Rose Garden. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers v Suns: Round 1, Game 4

2010-04-23T22:35:00.001-07:00

Do or die, now or never, win or go home, or whatever other cliche is out there, it doesn't matter, because they are all applicable to tomorrow's Game 4 matinee. There is simply no way the Trail Blazers, without Roy, will be able to dig themselves out of a 3-1 hole on the road, meaning they need to prepare for Game 4 as if it were an elimination game. It's not shocking Phoenix has stormed back to take two in a row, but what is surprising is the level of ease the Suns are doing it at as well as the point differentials. Combined, the prior two matchups have seen the Suns win by an astounding 50 points, crushing the spirits of Blazer fans all over Rip City. The big question looms over the Trail Blazers reaction tomorrow after being humbled and humiliated over the course of these past two games. Will they thrive with their backs against the wall, aided by the best fans in the NBA or will they sulk in their sorrows and fold, setting up an inevitable 5 game series win for Phoenix? At this point in the series after being drubbed twice in a row, wins and losses are not what I'm going to measure this team by, because of the key injuries making Phoenix the superior team; the Trail Blazers were expected to lose this series. All I want to see out of the boys are a sense of urgency without second guessing every movement. The Suns have came out of the gates the past two games and set the tone and we simply haven't responded. Either Portland needs to be the ones being proactive instead of reactive out of the shoot or they need to learn how to respond after taking the first blow. I just want to see bodies on the floor, diving for each and every loose ball, multiple tips to keep offensive possessions alive, and charges taken. Being the injury riddled team that we are, we'll have to win this one smashmouth style and gut out an important win to ensure the fans at the Rose Garden there will be a Game 6. Three players I really think could give the Trail Blazers a boost tomorrow are Bayless, Cunningham, and Pendergraph. Jerryd has been the one constant all series and I hope Coach Nate gives him the green light, much like he did before Christmas in San Antonio with Roy sidelined. Our only players able to get into the paint are Miller and Bayless. Right now they are taking away Dre with the longer Grant Hill smothering him. Giving JB the go ahead to score at will forces either Dragic or Nash to defend him, daring Phoenix to pick their poison, Miller or Bayless? Howard has been a surprise and inspiration all season long, but I think its time to unleash Dante's fountain of youth and jump shot on Phoenix. His mid-range jumper will make the Suns think twice about sending doubles to Aldridge or from packing the paint. Finally, Amare is a very vulnerable target right now and is not the most mentally stable person in the NBA when it comes to controlling his temper. It wouldn't be the worst idea in the world to send JP in there, one on one, and just get under his skin. I don't care if he commits fouls, but jab STAT here and there with an elbow, bump up on him, get physical, and be an all around pest towards him. Maybe it pushes Stoudemire over the edge and he either loses his cool or gets taken out of the game mentally? Its time to pull out all the stops! Defensively, the Trail Blazers need to take a page out of the Suns playbook and pick them up for a full 94 feet every time down the court even if it means picking up a few extra fouls in the process. To keep Phoenix from crashing the offensive glass, the Trail Blazers need to emulate the Suns and push the tempo once the rebound is secured, making them fear our fast break and rethink their strategy about sending everyone inside to fight for the second chance points. Also, Portland needs to find a way to fluster the crafty Nash. Like many teams do to Roy, they immediately run two defenders at him with a quick trap, begging someone else to beat them. I realize Richardson is the hottest player on the planet right now, but the reason he is getting all of those open looks is due to Nash. Its time for our coaching staff to be the ones throwing wrench in their well oil offensive machine and put them on their heels for once. If it works, Portland probably wins. If it doesn't, then at least they tried something. I fully expect the effort to be there Saturday as I can only imagine how embarrassed the players were after that performance Thursday night. Hearing one of the most loyal fan bases in all of sports rain down scattered boos most likely opened their eyes. The play on the floor has to be extraordinarily terrible for the fans of Rip City to bust out the boo birds. Unfortunately, this is the playoffs and you can't win on effort alone. The Suns are one of the most deadly teams out West and if that wasn't going to be hard enough for the Blazers to stop, now Phoenix is loose and relaxed. I'm just not sure we have an answer for them in regards to putting Hill onto Miller without Roy to exploit Nash. They'll keep it close, but in the end, Phoenix just has too many weapons, someone is bound and determined to catch fire and carry them to victory, but that's fine with me. I just want to see our boys leave it all the floor if this is truly the last time we'll see this 2009-2010 Trail Blazer team play live in the Rose Garden. Round 1, Game 4 Prediction: Trail Blazers 95 Suns 105 Post-Game Thoughts With their backs against the wall and the thought of this being the last game played in the Rose Garden for the 2010 season, the Trail blazers, aided from the emotional boost of their leader, Brandon Roy, returning to action, left everything on the floor and took it to the Suns in every facet of the game, resulting in a 96-87 win to tie the series at 2 apiece. Phoenix looked like they were about to repeat the start of Game 3, hitting numerous long-range shots all the while stifling the Blazers offense, then it happened. Brandon Roy stood up from the bench and proceeded to the scorer's table to check in. In the span of time while Roy was ready to sub in for Batum, the Trail Blazers went on a 9-2 run, including two three-pointers and a Batum dunk to let the Suns know they will be no pushover in this series. Even though Portland missed 13 straight shots to begin the 4th quarter, they never relinquished the lead over the final 12 minutes and were always able to force Phoenix into critical turnovers, keeping them in check to only 15 4th quarter points. Finally, shots that weren't dropping started to see bottom of the net, including two Roy jumpers, bringing back memories of vintage Brandon. "We finally got to playing basketball, scrapping," McMillan said. "We matched their intensity and challenged them. We were the aggressors. Seeing Brandon Roy on the big screen in the locker room tunnel before the team took the floor and the reaction the crowd gave was worth the price of admission alone. It gave me chills and I'm man enough to admit a tear was close to falling. I was only five when Duckworth came back during Game 7 against the Spurs in 1990 so I only have video to bring back those memories, but being there live and seeing him run out onto the court will be unforgettable. That moment is going to be a staple of any Brandon Roy tribute video when he is one day inducted into the Hall of Fame or inevitably having his jersey retired by the team. Not only did he contribute with 10 points (4-10 fg), but he gave his team a mental boost of confidence as well as the fans. I wasn't too hopeful we could win Game 4, then I saw Roy suiting up and in a instant, knew we had a series on our hands. No longer can PHX throw the kitchen sink at LMA and Dre as well as hide Nash on defense, exposing them at that end of the court. "I got chills when he got up and the crowd saw he was going to the scorer's table," McMillan said. "I know our players fed off of that, the emotions and the energy in the building and having him back." "As soon as he checked into the game, I got my first shot with nobody guarding me," Aldridge said. "It was like, 'thank God he's back.' " You know that missing person's report Portland filed for Aldridge after Game 3? Well, he was found! Stepping up when his team needed him most, Aldridge went toe-to-toe with Amare Stoudemire and had the best playoff game of his young career, scoring a post-season career-high 31 points (11-19 FG, 9-12 FT), grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds, and handing out 3 assists. Whether it was on the block or off of dribble penetration shooting the jumper, he was dialed in, especially late in the 4th when Portland was matching Phoenix bucket for bucket to ensure the lead stayed in our hands. It's no coincidence Portland won the two games this series in which Aldridge played to his talent level and it's also no coincidence LaMarcus got open looks due to the return or Roy. If Portland has any thoughts of upsetting the Suns, they'll need to ride the L-Train. Roy isn't ready physically to carry this team, but Aldridge is. He just needs to continue knocking down the open looks Dre and Brandon will create for him. Three categories won this game for the Trail Blazers yesterday afternoon and will continue to be the deciding factors for the eventual winner: fast-break points, assists, second chance points. Just like they did in Game 1, Portland held the Suns to a mere four fast-break points, doing so by getting their butts back in transition defense as well as slowing the game down by attempting 28 free throws, minimizing the opportunities for Phoenix to leak out and push tempo. Phoenix lives and dies by Steve Nash creating shots for the entire team. Portland made an adjustment in Game 4, trapping Nash nearly every time down when he had the ball and forced him to give up the ball or commit one of his 6 turnovers. In the end, the Trail Blazers won the assist battle, 26-17, meaning they forced a lot of isolation play from the Suns as well as using superior teamwork to exploit the weak PHX defense. You can't win a playoff game is you don't show heart and desire and the Blazers showed they didn't want this to be their last home game of the season and destroyed the Suns on second chance points, 15-4. Winning those three statistical categories helped Portland contain the potent Phoenix offensive attack to a season-low 87 points and they'll need to continue to play with that type of defensive effort if they want to advance past the First Round for the first time since 2000.
Official Game Photos
Box Score &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Trail Blazers v Suns: Round 1, Game 3

2010-04-22T10:02:00.000-07:00

Portland got what they wanted out of the first two games in Phoenix, a split. By doing so they stole home court advantage out of the grasp of the Suns, giving them an opportunity to take the series if they simply win home games the rest of the way. But it all starts tonight in Game 3, which should be the first real game of the series as Phoenix underestimated the Trail Blazers a bit in Game 1 and Portland likewise relaxed in their Game 2, 29 point shellacking. If both teams didn't know before what the other was capable of, they do now. Outside of getting their egos bruised, the Blazers received some good news as soon as they landed back home in the Rose City. First, the MRI on Batum's right shoulder confirmed a strain of the previously injured body part, putting him as a game-time decision for tonight, which is probably the best case scenario after seeing the injury live. Secondly, Brandon Roy seems like a lock to play in the 2nd round and maybe even sooner after his comments at Trail Blazers practice yesterday. If Phoenix is going to make stopping Andre Miller priority #1 on defense, then Aldridge must rise to the occasion. His 16.5 points on 39.3% shooting and 3.5 rebounds a game are not going to cut it, especially with Roy sidelined. He's not even seeing average defenders step up and lock him down either, its a combination of Jarron Collins and Channing Frye, two guys he should eat alive every time down in the post. What I've noticed when LA does get it down low, the defenders always give him baseline, but he rarely takes it, instead settling for a difficult turn around. It'd be nice to see him back either man down, fake to the middle, and proceed to go up and under his man for the easy two off of the window. There are only five defenders on the floor and they all can't hound Andre and Aldridge, so if a double comes, run a cutter to the basket. We should have absolutely no problems scoring at will on this team in the paint, but it takes the proper mindset. The biggest adjustment from Game 2 to Game 3 should be on the defensive end for Portland. Most would think finding ways to re-release Andre off of Hill should be tops on the list, but if we make those countless missed lay-ins, we easily break 100. It was on the other end of the floor which broke us. The fronting in the post which worked so beautifully in Game 1 was negated with crisp, precision passing in Game 2, leading to cheap points in the paint or kick outs to wide open shooters when someone rotated over. Not only did the fronting cause chaos for the Trail Blazers, as everyone seemed out of position, but it seemed like we couldn't buy a rebound either. They won the battle on the boards again, 43-34, and if they weren't racking up offensive rebounds they were in good enough position that all Portland could do was tap it out of bounds to prohibit put backs. The Trail Blazers best bet to slowing down the Suns should be to force them into shooting jump shots, even if it means playing off guys like Amare. This can also help defend the pick and roll with just two players, letting the other defenders stay at home on the three point shooters. I've said this before and I'll say it again, if they are going to beat us with contested jump shots, then so be it. For the Trail Blazers to take a 2-1 series lead tonight, two things must happen. First of all, their body language and movements needs to be sharper and more alert. They were a step slow in reacting to the Suns pressure, which caused for a lot of empty possessions. We all know the Suns will let you score, but you've still got to earn it. Also, Rudy Fernandez needs to wake up and do so quickly. Without Roy and Phoenix keying in on Dre, with he as the starting shooting guard, the Blazers need much more aggression out of him. Why wouldn't the Suns trap Miller at all costs if they know Fernandez isn't going to even look at the basket? This is one game maybe where you don't mind a couple turnovers from Rudy if he's showing signs of being in attack mode. If I'm Coach Nate, I run a few plays for Rudy right out of the gate to see where his body language is at and if his stroke looks right or not. A hot Rudy will ruin all Phoenix defensive strategies to this point and make us that much more difficult to prep for. If Rudy is able to get around 15 points and 5 assists, look for Portland to come away victorious. This is one game where I don't have a clue who is going to step up. Will Camby get 30 again? Can Batum and Bayless go off for 18 a piece once more? Does Andre break the Phoenix code and finally get loose? How does Fernandez react to being scrutinized by the media for really one of the first times in his career here? I'd love to tell you I have a prediction, but I don't. The only thing I'm sure of is how absolutely nuts the Rose Garden is going to be tonight. The energy inside that arena will be enough alone to give the Trail Blazers a boost on the defensive end and prove to be one of the most hostile environments an opposing team can play in. With nothing but blind faith in my team and a deafening crowd in their corner cheering them on, Portland finds a way, somehow, to gut out a gritty win. Round 1, Game 3 Prediction: Trail Blazers 102 Suns 98 Post-Game Thoughts In the bat of an eye, the game was over. Aldridge picked up two more quick fouls in four short minutes to start Game 3 and when he returned, the lead was 18, an insurmountable deficit without the services of Roy. Phoenix, riding the momentum wave, pushed the lead up to 29 at halftime, bringing back horrific memories to Blazer fans who had to sit through the same embarrassing display against Houston in the first home playoff game last year. After being humbled in a big way on Tuesday night in Game 2, a lot of people would have expected more of a sense of urgency, instead we were subjected to second-guessing in all movements and a lack of heart, which is really sad to say considering how much fight they showed all year long. In the first half, Phoenix was outworking us for every loose ball, no Blazer put a body when they drove to the paint, and we failed to show any signs of aggression. Portland did end up winning the 2nd half by 10, giving the fans a little hope going into Saturday's game, but it was too little too late and had fans everywhere scratching their heads and asking, "Where was that earlier?" "The second half tonight, we won that," McMillan said. "We played basketball. We started to fight and we won both of the last two quarters. Somehow we have to get that scrappiness at the start of the game." Portland needs to man up and get off to better starts, because as soon as Phoenix gets up 12-15 points, they shoot loose, which means money in the bank for their shooters. The Suns have just too many shooters for them all to be cool, calm, and collected as they are bombing away from downtown. It also starts and ends with Steve Nash. The amount of easy shots he gets his guys is surreal. No one benefited more from it than Jason Richardson, who picked up right where he left off in Game 2, going off for a playoff career-high 42 points on a sizzling 13-19 from the floor and a heartbreaking 8-12 from distance. As soon as one of Portland's long jumpers missed, Nash received the outlet and pushed it down court, getting J-Rich off early with easy buckets, building his already sky high confidence which was a catalyst in getting him off tonight. With how hot Richardson was shooting, I was amazed how open he was being left open. One play in particular which stood out to me happened in the 3rd. Webster was within arms distance of J-Rich then suddenly decided to drift towards the hoop. Phoenix saw Webster was caught in no mans land and hit Richardson for a wide open three. Portland was not mentally prepared to play basketball last night. "I was very surprised," Richardson said after scoring a career playoff-high 42 points in the Phoenix Suns' 108-89 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers Thursday night at the Rose Garden. "Seemed like I was open every time. I was surprised they kept leaving me." I'm surprised Portland hasn't issued a missing person's report, because LaMarcus Aldridge has been M.I.A. this entire series and it really needs to stop now. 17 points, on 5-14 shooting, and 7 rebounds, done most in the 2nd half when the game was already decided, just isn't going to cut it without Oden and Roy. For the second straight game, he took himself out of the game with two early fouls. As a four year vet and team leader, Aldridge needs to play smarter and not take himself out of action. With Roy out, Phoenix is already eying in on LMA and Miller, but when Aldridge goes out early with foul trouble, the whole team swarms to Andre, suffocating him and stalling our offense. Aldridge finally showed a little bit of fire in the 3rd when he got a double technical, getting into an altercation with Amare as well as fighting for good, deep post position. There is absolutely no reason Frye and Collins should be pushing him out to the perimeter to catch the ball with his back to the basket. Am I being too harsh on LMA? Probably, but this is the playoffs, either you win or you go home and his teammates, the city, and fan-base is counting on him to step up and take over like we all know he is capable of doing. "They're trying to take me out any way they can," Aldridge said. "I just have to figure out ways to get going." This loss isn't on Rudy, Aldridge, Nate, or any one player; it was a team loss. Is Phoenix more talented? Most definitely. But wouldn't it make more sense for the injury-depleted Trail Blazers to be the ones showing more intensity on defense, determination in diving for loose balls, and aggression on offense? I love this team and they fall very high on my priority list in life behind religion, family, etc and I supported them through thick and thin, good times and bad times, Drexler era and Jail Blazers era, but that first half effort was simply unacceptable. I brushed off Game 1 against Houston last year as first time jitters, but four of the last nine playoff games for this era of Trail Blazers have been blown out by 16 or more points, twice at home. The fans brought their A+ game last night, chanting to no end, even with the game in doubt. I don't ever think I've seen a crowd so lively with a 17 point deficit in the 4th quarter, but now its time for the players to bring it and ensure the city of Portland gets at least one more playoff game hosted. As ticked off as I am with the team, I'll still be in my seat for Game 4 and if you have tickets to, I hope you're their as well.
Official Game Photos
Box Score &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Suns: Round 1, Game 2

2010-04-20T10:35:00.001-07:00

Our goal is to only get a split. There's no way we can take two from the Suns in Phoenix. All we have to do is protect home court and its on to the next round. Phoenix is going to come out extra energized and motivated, it'll be a miracle to come out alive. We're satisfied going back to Portland tied 1-1. If any player is having those thoughts, they need to be smacked. Of course getting a split on the road is enormous in terms of the entire series, but that doesn't mean it's time to relax or that taking a second game is out of the question. The Trail Blazers have a huge opportunity, not task, to put a stranglehold on this series by going up two-love in the best of seven, with two home games at the raucous Rose Garden looming on the horizon. If the team allows Phoenix to put them away easily, it fuels the fire for the argument that Game 1 was a aberration and Phoenix simply overlooked the depleted Trail Blazers. Portland already shot a loud message across to Phoenix in Game 1, now they must do so again. After the Game 1 win, I scoured the internet for post-game reactions about the lone upset of the first round. From a lot of Phoenix fans, I kept hearing the same rhetoric over and over about how the Suns will not continue to shoot that poorly throughout the series. Research disagrees with this opinion. Over the span of the four prior games played this year, the Trail Blazers have thwarted all of the gaudy offensive numbers that the high-octane Suns usually put up. The 110 points per game Phoenix usually tallies has been restricted to 99. The league-leading 49.2% shooting, plummeted down to 43.8% when the red, black, and white are on defense. All those three point shooters, bombing away towards a league best 41.2% has been stymied to a lukewarm 36.7% against Portland. Four games against one team is a large enough sample size to revoke the fluke references. A lot of people say Phoenix didn't shoot well, but I've got news for those naysayers, Portland didn't play that great either. You think the 3rd leading free throw shooting team is going to miss six of eight down the stretch again? Is Camby going to miss a breakaway dunk once more? Or LaMarcus and Rudy shooting a combined 10-27 repeatedly throughout the remainder of the series? In the words of Kevin McCallister, "I don't think so!" The first quarter is crucial towards success tonight. After being the only home team to lose Game 1, especially when all the experts thought they had the easiest series out West, Phoenix is going to come out guns blazin'. The Trail Blazers must weather the storm and keep the game within striking distance (5-8 points) after the first 12 minutes of action. Phoenix was embarrassed and beaten, making them all the more likely to overexert themselves, which could take them out of their offensive flow. To counter this onslaught which is about to be bestowed upon them, Portland must control pace now more than ever. Put the rock in Dre's hands and let him go to work, creating nightmare matchups for the Suns all game long. I suspect they will have something up their sleeves in regards to containing Miller, therefore, look for Aldridge to see the ball down low early and often to start the game, because there is no way Collins or Frye should be able to uproot him from gaining excellent low-post position. The longer the Blazers can make this a close, tight-knit ballgame, the more pressure builds upon the Suns shoulders and doubt clouds their mind. Outside of Nash, not many of the Phoenix players seem to react to pressure well, as seen in Game 1. One way this game can get out of hand for the Trail Blazers is if the Suns bench goes bananas on our reserves much like they did on Sunday. Luckily, we had a steady lead built before it happened last time around. Portland needs to do their damnedest to fight through the screens, keeping Nash in front of us, and disallowing him to dissect the defense which results in wide open three-point attempts. If Portland can limit Phoenix's open looks and lock down the defensive rebounds, it could be hard for the Suns to eclipse their 110 point average. Obviously Portland needs to continue their defensive prowess over the Suns, but they also must make the same shots they took in Game 1. If Bayless doesn't hit from the outside once or twice, the lane gets a little tighter. If Batum doesn't make those open looks from downtown, the doubles comes quicker and longer towards Andre and LaMarcus. We don't have our go-to-guy who can simply take over games anymore. To win, it must be a total team effort. For the love of all things holy, Fernandez needs to heat up from the outside. Just catch, shoot, and don't think about it Rudy. I expect a lot more of the offense to run through Aldridge, as PHX will most likely dial in to minimize Dre's impact. If Aldridge can stick his 20 ft jumper, things will only get easier inside. On defense, let Nash get his, because I don't think he can be stopped unless he is flat out missing, but quiet the others. When Nash is doing the bulk of the shooting its because nothing else is open, which helps keep them out of rhythm. Finally, continue to bother Amare. Frustrate the living daylights out of him and if he wants to ball further away, so be it. Force him to take jump shots. A lot of folks probably don't expect Portland to take two from the Suns, even I must admit that I came into this preview feeling a Phoenix win, but after writing and being reminded how this group of guys always rises to the challenge when everything seems stacked against them, I can't go against my team now. April 19th Practice &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; Round 1, Game 2 Prediction: Portland 103 Phoenix 101 Post-Game Thoughts Phoenix did what many expected (not I) and took Game 2 as they simply played with more urgency and desperation. Portland knew they had to weather the first onslaught and did so admirably, finding themselves only down 32-26 after the 1st quarter after being down 10 the majority of the period. But it was only the first of many storms and the Trail Blazers just weren't equipped to take it all on. Grant Hill took the ball out of Miller's hand, forcing Rudy to step up, which he failed to do so. Aldridge picked up three first half fouls, putting the offense in a world of hurt. For the first time in five meetings this season, the Suns caught fire by shooting 52.3% from the field, combined with the fact Portland was simply struggling for any buckets, it continued to rain down upon the Trail Blazers. A six point deficit after 1 turned into a 14 point hole at half and any hope of making a comeback with a fresh Aldridge was negated by a 31-19 quarter in the favor of the Suns, pushing the lead into laughter territory. Not only was Portland getting manhandled 94-68 after 3 periods, but Batum re-injured his right shoulder after colliding with Nash at the buzzer. When it rains, it pours. "We were the aggressors...and we did a good job on Andre Miller," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "We ran and got easy shots. We didn't give them a chance to get their defense established. I think they're as good as any team in the league if you let them get set in a halfcourt defense." McMillan lamented, "We needed to match their sense of urgency. We never did. They imposed their will from the start." It wasn't the Phoenix bench, nor STAT which was the storyline of the night, rather the scorching shooting of Jason Richardson and Grant Hill. Held in check to 6-21 shooting and only 18 points on Sunday, they were able to get off to the tune of 21-27 from the floor, tallying 49 points. There just wasn't enough resistance on the Nash pick and rolls, leaving Richardson just enough space to get off his shot. Batum was hampered by two early foul troubles, freeing Hill up to work the middle of the floor for multiple foul line jumpers. Even though the Suns were taking and making nearly every tough shot, they had a lot of open looks which got their confidence flowing, making those tough, contested shots easier to make. Overall, the entire defensive intensity of the Trail Blazers just wasn't at the necessary level needed to win on the road in the playoffs. While Phoenix was pestering us the entire 94 feet, Nash and Co. had open lanes to the paint continuously throughout the night, enabling them to rack up an unstoppable 58 points in the paint. Personally, I'm not worried about the Suns dropping 119 or J-Rich and Hill shooting 21-27 or even getting nearly 60 in the paint. Let's not kid ourselves here, Phoenix is a really good team, borderline great, and it was only a matter of time before they exploded offensively. What Portland needs to do is tighten up the defensive intensity and make life rough again, much as they did in the other four matches with the Suns. But, the main adjustment Coach Nate must make is how to get Dre Miller off. Hill took him away and Andre was relegated to being trapped 30 feet from the home most of the night. I'd like to see Bayless get a lot of time in there with Miller to get another ball handler in there to help him out, because Rudy flat out isn't cutting it. Possibly run Andre off a couple of screens to free him loose, then make a quick move to the hoop before Hill can keep up or run a better pick and roll with the screener actually putting forth a solid pick, allowing Dre to carve up the Suns defense. Wednesday, June 3rd, 1992 and Saturday, May 20th, 2000. What do these dates have in common with the Trail Blazers and last night's performance? Portland experienced a huge embarrassment at the hands of a favored opponent in the playoffs. Chicago blasted Portland, 122-89, in Game 1 of the '92 NBA Finals and the Lakers dominated the Blazers, 109-94, in Game 1 of the '00 WCF. If you're a Trail Blazers fan, and more importantly a player, simply shrug this one off as walking into the perfect storm and remove it from the memory banks. Blowouts happen, and they happen frequently in the playoffs. When you're facing a team 4-7 times within a two week period, teams make adjustments and sometimes they catch the opposition off guard. The best thing about those aforementioned games? Portland came out more focused the next night out, thrived upon the underdog role the media placed upon them after getting throttled, and came back to win the very next night out. The next two games are going to be in the frenetic Rose Garden, giving the Blazers a huge confidence boost and they'll be able to play off the energy buzzing throughout the arena. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Suns: Round 1, Game 1

2010-04-17T11:01:00.000-07:00

After six grueling months of regular season basketball, countless injuries, and up and downs, the playoffs are finally here! Like '09, Portland's opponent wasn't known until the last day of the season, but for one of the only times during this season from hell, the Trail Blazers got a little bit of luck by drawing a team they match up extremely well with, the Phoenix Suns. Although the Suns obtained the West's best record post All-Star break, 23-6, Portland has taken two of three from Phoenix, including a 108-101 win in the dessert without Roy on February 10th. Without Roy being the key term, the Trail Blazers will be without their leader, superstar, and best player for at least the first round after having successful surgery to repair his torn meniscus. But Phoenix has injury problems of their own. Absent has been Robin Lopez, their starting center and only defensive minded player, who has been sidelined since March 26th due to bulging discs in his lower back. The key to the entire series is bench play. As Rudy Fernandez moves into the starting lineup for Game 1, a weak performing Blazer bench, gets even weaker. Not only does Portland have to face the hottest team, Phoenix, and the hottest player, Amare, but they have to deal with one of the top benches in the league. Jared Dudley is 4th in the league in three-point percentage, 45.8%, Channing Frye's 172 three point makes are good enough for 4th most in the league, and Goran Dragic is playing his best basketball of his young career, averaging 9.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 20.1 minutes per night during April's seven games. While the Phoenix reserves are peaking, Portland's are just now trying to find their niche. Webster had a clutch performance in L.A. last Sunday and is netting a little over 14 points in the three games since Roy has been out. Lets not forget he did lead the NBA in 3's made during January when he saw starter's minutes due to Roy's hamstring. But, I think flying under the radar is the fact this is Webster's first ever playoffs, as he was out all of last year with the stress fracture. Marty won't be alone either, because Dante is experiencing it for the first time and Bayless might as well be too after only seeing 2 minutes during last year's series with Houston. Both starting fives match up very well and all the Portland bench has to do is survive their shifts, giving the starters just enough rest for them to take control of the game later on. Inside, the interior, the paint. Whatever you call it, that is where Portland must take this series by the reigns and assert their dominance. As big a loss as Roy is, I'd argue losing Robin Lopez is nearly as big for Phoenix. He is their rebounder, their energy, and only player who puts defense first. Phoenix loses skill when Jarron Collins starts and toughness when Frye checks into the game. Yes, Amare should win the MVP for the second half of the season, but outside of Dwight Howard, I couldn't think of two guys I'd rather have than Aldridge and Camby to throw at STAT for an entire series. In the only match between the duo of Marcus and LaMarcus versus Amare, STAT was held in check to 18 points an 14 rebounds compared to his April averages of 26.4 points and 9.3 rebounds. Two things Blazer big men must do to slow down Stoudemire is to limit his momentum boosting facial dunks out of the triple threat position which ignite him and force him to work on defense, because it's widely known he doesn't take as much pride on that side of the ball. In their first full game without Roy, the Trail Blazers filled out the blue-print on how to win by scoring a season-high 60 points in the paint on another small team, the Thunder. Game 1 sets the tone for the entire series. Does Portland get stage fright and bullied around as they did against Houston or do they follow their veteran's footsteps and become the aggressors? The arena is going to be loud, hostile, and ramped up, but through smart play, playing under control and with poise, Portland can weather it by putting the game at their pace. Andre needs to have the ball in his hands at all times and either decide to take Nash off the dribble or on the blocks and work the offense around what Phoenix gives you. Phoenix will let you score, there's no denying that, but Portland needs to force the action inside, have crisp ball movement, and players always on the go. The series is a four-game sweep if we try and get into a jump shooting contest or a run and gun race with these guys. These are the playoffs and half-court basketball prevails; slow the game down, work the shot clock, and find the open man. The more you make Phoenix work on defense, the less energy they'll have to exude on offense. To win, the Trail Blazers must get to the line 7-10 more times, commit under 10 turnovers, and dominate the glass. If there's a game to catch the Suns napping, it's this one. Role player of the game will go to Marty. He performs when he knows the team is counting on him. Look for at least three 3 pointers and 15 points from Marty Party. Andre's steady play and Aldridge's offensive repertoire will lead the way for Portland on offense, Batum and Camby on defense, to a very close Blazer victory. Trail Blazers Talk Playoffs &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; Round 1, Game 1 Prediction: Trail Blazers 105 Suns 103 Post-Game Thoughts In a game which felt more like a heavyweight fight than a basketball game, both teams throwing what seemed to be knock out punches all throughout the 2nd half, only to see the other counter or retaliate. Neither team had a lead more than nine and the 4th quarter was a seesaw affair. Phoenix would go on a mini run and go up 5, then Portland would strike back. While listening to the post-game show on the ride home, every clip in the 4th I heard Wheels call, I said "Man, that was clutch!" or "Play of the game right there!" Where to even begin? Martell had those two mammoth blocks, Aldridge's running tip in to put Portland up 5, Bayless' countless drives to the bucket, Andre's three ball, corner pocket, and Batum's three moments after Nash had hit one on the other end to push the lead back to 5. Although missing six of eight free throws down the stretch and Camby's oops moment of the decade are not recipes for success, whatever the Suns threw at us, we had an answer. To have a puncher's chance, I knew we had to commit 10 or less turnovers, get to the foul line 7-10 more times and dominate the glass. Well, two out of the three isn't bad. Aided by Bayless and Miller's relentlessness, Portland out shot the Suns 31 to 16 at the charity stripe, taking advantage of the fact Robin Lopez is still sidelined, leaving no real imposing force to challenge them once they get to the cup. While everyone was being aggressive, the team played under control and with poise, only coughing it up 10 times, which also helped contain the dangerous Suns fast break to only four points. One area which must improve is defensive rebounding. The total advantage was only +3 for the Suns, 47-44, but they had 17 to our 10 in regards to offensive boards. Outside of Camby's 17 pulls, no one else even sniffed double digits. "We had to drive the ball to the basket to get them in the penalty," said Miller, who called the win "big, especially considering....they were probably the hottest team in the league." The saying goes, "Defense wins championships" and tonight was further evidence to prove that argument correct. The Suns were held in check to only 41.8% shooting from the floor (38-91), 34.4% from downtown (11-32), and 100 points, 10 points under their season average. Only Nash was able to reach the 20 point mark, dropping 25, and really the only Sun making it happen. If the ball wasn't in his hands, everything was at a stalemate for Phoenix, settling for contested jumpers or eventual turnovers. Most impressive had to do with the lock down on Amare Stoudemire, viewed by most as an unstoppable force heading into the post-season. Normally a 27 and 10 guy, Camby and Aldridge swatted those numbers away, frustrating him constantly throughout the night. In the end, STAT didn't live up to his acronym, netting 18 points (8-18 fg, 2-3 ft), 8 rebounds, 4 turnovers, 3 shots blocked against him, and ending the game early on the bench, fouling out due to the swarming defense of Camby taking him out of his game. "Amar'e is as tough as they come," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said. "Camby made him work and didn't give him anything easy." "They did a phenomenal job defensively," Stoudemire said. For Portland to have continued success throughout the series, the Blazers will need two players at least have huge games outside of our new Big 3 (Aldridge, Camby, Miller). Last night it was Bayless and Batum coming to the rescue, combining for 36 points and Webster doing his own damage on the defensive end, but the Suns bench is deadly, putting up 39 points, putting the pressure on the Blazer reserves on a nightly basis. Taking out Frye's 12 points of production, since Collins plays two minutes per shift, the Suns only outscored the Trail Blazers bench, 27-25, an outcome Blazer coaches and fans will take all day. I expect Martell to keep up the defense, Batum to continue to excel, and Bayless to do his thing in the paint due to the lack of shot blockers Phoenix possesses, but Portland can not win this series unless a certain #5 steps up. Rudy has been yearning for playing time all year long and he is finally getting it, only to perform sub-par. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for the first game, but if he doesn't put up, Webster is ready to get those starter's minutes. Official Game Photos Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Pendergraph Puts On A Show

2010-04-15T11:21:00.001-07:00

Here is a video compilation of Lil' Bit's rim-rocking throw downs during last night's Fan Appreciation game against Golden State. Steph Curry, get out the way!

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers vs. Warriors: Game 82

2010-04-14T10:16:00.000-07:00

81 games are in the books, leaving just one more regular season game to play. Tonight, Portland (50-31) looks to accomplish many feats; clinching 6th out West, figuring out who the first round opponent will be, maintaining momentum from Monday's win all the way into the playoffs, and giving the fans a good ole' fashioned beat down of Golden State (25-56) on Fan Appreciation Night. The Trail Blazers have taken two out of the first three seasonal matchups this year, including an impressive defensive performance with only eight active players on January 2nd, winning 105-89 and allowing only 48 points after the 1st quarter. But, like many games played earlier in the year, they must be taken with a grain of salt, especially since Golden State doesn't have half of that team available anymore due to injuries and Portland had half of theirs out due to injuries. If one team can sympathize with us about our turbulent 09-10 season, it's the Warriors who have had over 300 games missed to injury as well. Win or lose, the #1 objective for tonight's game must be to keep everyone healthy. With the later start at 7:30 PM, Portland will know exactly what they need to do in regards to seeding. If Dallas beats San Antonio, the outcome of the Blazers/Warriors game is a moot point, because the 6th seed will be wrapped up. Knowing Coach Nate, he'll have his troops ready to play to win, which is the right decision, but it'd also be nice to be able to rest our vets whom we have relied upon so heavily down the second half of the season. It looks like the Trail Blazers will be without he services of LaMarcus Aldridge as he was hospitalized last night with a stomach virus and was released today but considering he's dealing with a left calf strain after Collison tackled him on Monday, LA is listed as doubtful for tonight and its probably for the better. Juwan Howard would be the starter if the L-Train is indeed derailed for tonight only. In what could turn out to be a completely meaningless game, look for a lot of Cunningham, Pendergraph, Mills, Webster, Rudy, and Bayless. Of course it would be superb to win #52, but at what cost? It wouldn't be the smartest move to push Camby, Andre, and Juwan for 35-40 minutes and tire them out even more for the weekend's first playoff game. As painful as it is to say, maybe LA not playing tonight is a blessing in disguise. With the way the injuries have snowballed this year, who knows who's next? At least this way, everyone on the team is able to get into a rhythm heading in the post-season. Personally, I still think Cunningham could have a nice impact in the NBA's second season, but his jumper needs to be stuck on automatic to do so and no better way to get him into a groove than play him heavy minutes tonight. The same goes for Rudy and Jerryd who have struggled mightily since the New Year. Even without Roy, Aldridge, Oden, and Przybilla, Golden State still may be the more banged up team as they only played seven players last night and may again only have eight players available for action tonight. Let's not forget the back to back the Warriors are going to be dealing with along with vacation spots dancing around in their heads, being the final action for a lottery bound team. On the other hand, Coach Nate will have whomever suits up in the Rip City jerseys tonight 100% focused and zoned in on the job at hand. Portland eats adversity for breakfast. Roy's torn meniscus, Aldridge's hospitalization, or whatever, after all that the team has gone through it just starts rolling off your backs after a while. Whatever the current playing roster looks like between now and 7:30, I am extremely confident in their ability to finish the season off on a strong note and win one for the fans and keeping some nice steam going as they head into a hostile environment come this weekend. Watch out for big nights from Bayless, Cunningham, and Batum as Portland sends their fans home happy. Game 82 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Warriors 97
Post-Game Thoughts
In a meaningless game that saw Aldridge, Roy, and Camby all sit, Andre play only 9 minutes to keep his Iron-man streak in tact, and Golden State play really only five guys, including George who fouled out but was allowed to continue playing due to a loophole in the rulebook, Golden State ended up winning 122-116. In short, we found out Jeff can fly high, Dante's a better rebounder than given credit for, Patty's jumper is almost as awesome as his accent, Bayless' court vision has re-emerged, Rudy throws a sweet one motion scoop lob pass, Marty makes 3's, Andre's still our Iron-man, Juwan and Marcus get excited when Lil' Bit throws down, Nico can fly as well, and Diener didn't score. All in all, a great Fan Appreciation Night! Official Game Photos Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers vs. Thunder: Game 81

2010-04-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

Without their leader and superstar, Brandon Roy and coming off an emotional victory in Los Angeles, the Trail Blazers (49-31) take on the Thunder (49-31) in a game that decides who avoids the Lakers in round 1 of the playoffs. While the Trail Blazers are soaring high after knocking off the Lakers in Staples Center, the Thunder are feeling the polar opposite after blowing not only a 42 point first quarter but a 20 point lead in the Bay Area against the Warriors last night. Portland leads the season series to date, 2-1, with each team winning on the others home floor, including the most recent matchup on March 28th, a 92-87 Blazers win. Coincidentally enough, the only game Oklahoma City won occurred during Roy's rehabilitation of his hamstring, causing him to be miss the game and yet again tonight they are going to be the beneficiaries of another lucky break. In their earlier loss to the Thunder on February 9th, 89-77, Portland actually held a two point lead head going into the final period, but with no Brandon Roy to turn to, the cold shooting Blazers only were able to muster up 16 4th quarter points. Defensively, Portland has their number, holding the Thunder to under 90 points during every game this year, compared to their 101.1 points per game average. Its doubtful the Blazers will be able to score over the century mark, but if they can find a way to score around 95 points tonight, it could be enough to hold off OKC. Luckily for Portland, Webster, Bayless, and Rudy appear to be in much more of a groove, looking to pick up the scoring slack from an absent Roy and anything they provide tonight has to be better than their combined 3-17 shooting last go-round, right? One night it's Kobe Bryant, the next day it's scoring leader Kevin Durant. Being Portland's best perimeter defender doesn't allow for nights off and just one day after holding Bryant in check to the tune of 8-23 shooting, Nicolas Batum has to refocus and prepare for another scoring assassin. KD has got right near his scoring average, netting 31 a night in two head to head matchups with Batum, but not without challenge as he was contained to 19-43 shooting (44.2%). Like all elite scorers, Durant does his business at the foul line and does it often, getting to the line a league-leading 10.3 times a night, making 9.3 of those attempts. Both Marty and Batum kept Kobe quiet by forcing into a large quantity of contested jump shots combined with suffocating ball denial defense and doing so without fouling, as Kobe attempted only 3 free throws the entire night. A success for our wing defenders tonight would be to make Durant shoot under 45% from the floor and limit him to 8 or less free throw attempts. One player who gets swept underneath the rug when it comes to the Thunder is jack-of-all-trades forward, Jeff Green. Reminiscent of Antwan Jamison is his ability to not only score inside but drift his game out as far as the three-point line, Green is their quintessential "glue-guy". Durant is bound and determined to get 30, no matter how many shots it takes, but if the Trail Blazers can score more than they did against Dallas when they let Dirk loose but held everyone else in check, they can win the game the same way. Green has been very consistent this year against Portland, keeping extremely close to his season averages in all three games, averaging 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assists., so don't expect Green to not produce. To keep him from exploding for 25+, Aldridge must make sure most of his [Green's] energy is spent trying to keep him [Aldridge] off the blocks. A fiery Aldridge is something the Thunder are not equipped to handle, especially if Nenad Kristic isn't able to go after a bruised knee kept him out of last night's game against the Warriors. Injuries have forced both squads to thin out their bench and put quality reserves into the starting lineup. It will be a test to see which 2nd units want it more. Although Portland won the last meeting, it wasn't in any part due to their bench, getting outscored 23-12 and losing the rebounding edge 14-2. One player Portland must keep an eye on at all times is young forward Serge Ibaka, who during the month of April is putting up season-highs in points, 9.5, rebounds, 7.3, and minutes, 20.3. One player who the Trail Blazers should call upon is rookie Dante Cunningham to ignite the offense and scrap for loose rebounds. In the last game against OKC in the Rose City, Cunningham was the only Blazer who was locked in from the field, shooting 7-12 for 14 points and grabbing 6 off the glass. Even though the reserves have only played well for the last two games, I see the trend continuing tonight. Marty's confidence has to be through the roof after his huge 4th quarter, Bayless, at one point, scored 7 straight for Portland yesterday in the 2nd half, Old Man River seemingly is there whenever we need a foul line jumper, and Dante always seems ready for the challenge. The Blazers bench outplays their counterparts, Durant gets his but others are negated, and the Aldridge/Camby front-line are just too much inside for the Thunder to handle. Game 81 Prediction: Trail Blazers 94 Thunder 90 Post-Game Thoughts This team, this town, and these fans never cease to amaze me. Literally 45 minutes before tip-off, the inevitable bad news regarding Roy's injury about his knee leaks out, delivering a gut check for everyone with Blazer ties. I can't lie, for a moment I had my "woe is me" moment, but quickly refocused my energy towards the guys who will be suiting up tonight. In a game that both teams desperately needed, the Trail Blazers and fans worldwide wanted it so much more. The term playoff atmosphere gets thrown around way to lightly, mostly without any merit being held behind it, but tonight was the exception. Portland used a 10-0 run to start the 3rd, taking a 2 point lead after seeing the Thunder control the entire first half aided by Aldridge's 3 fouls. What was so magical about the Garden last night occurred during the 21-4 Portland run over the span of six minutes in the 4th quarter. At around the four minute mark, the Rose Garden faithful all rose as one and stood and cheered deafening chants for the rest of the game, including one of the best synchronized and loud ones of all-time. As he checked out of the game, Camby was serenaded with chants of "Mar-cus Cam-bee, Mar-cus Cam-Bee." "Haven't heard anything like that since I was in the (Madison Square) Garden," said Camby, who played his home games there for New York from 1998-2002. "Felt good to be appreciated, but they should have been cheering the whole team." "We weathered the storm without B-Roy. Being down by eight points at halftime and pulling out this game in a back-to-back situation shows a lot of character and heart by our whole team." We were cheering for the whole team Marcus, but you deserved a little extra recognition for a simply sensational performance with the stakes stacked so high. Every single time Portland needed a bucket to stay alive, especially in the first half with LA out with 3 fouls and a hobbled Roy, Camby was always around the ball either tipping in numerous shots or grabbing offensive rebounds to prolong possessions. He stepped up, taking his game to new heights by doing things not many of us new he had in his arsenal, such as putting the ball on the floor in order to get to the line and even running the fast break. When it was all said and done, Camby tallied 30 points (12-16 fg, 6-8 ft), 13 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal, and a block in 36 clutch minutes. Portland fans are very sly as well as I believe there could have been an ulterior motive behind the praise. While the chants were much deserving, the showering of affection towards Marcus from the fans will linger in his mind this summer when deciding where to finish up his career up. If he didn't know he was wanted before, I think the point is loud and clear now. In the first half it seemed like Durant was going to put on a performance of Biblical proportions, scoring 21 points, getting to the line 9 times, and doing so on only 7 field goal attempts. Coach Nate showed his troops some first half game film and changes were made coming out of the locker room which really flustered KD. Martell and Nico both denied him the ball much better, if he got it at all, it was three feet beyond the three-point line. Different looks were thrown at him, including a trap out top and just putting the paint on lock for him, only giving up one free throw attempt in the 2nd half, which came off of a Nate McMillan technical. When it was all said and done, Webster and Batum held him to just 3-13 shooting and 9 points in the 2nd half and it wasn't just Durant missing makeable shots. Both defenders were up in his grill the entire half, forcing deep, contested jump shots throughout the final 24 minutes. Durant ended the night with his average of 30 and 10 trips to the charity stripe, but on only 8-20 shooting, 5 rebounds, and 3 turnovers. "We weren't playing our roles at the defensive end of the floor in the first half," McMillan said. "In the second half, if there was an opportunity to switch out and deny, we did it. We wanted to body him and wear him down, and we wanted to double-team him in isolation on certain parts of the floor. And we kept him off the free throw line the second half. That was a key." With the win, Portland avoids the Lakers, giving that unenviable task to the young Thunder, but maybe more important than all of these playoff scenarios was the way the Trail Blazers responded to adversity for the umpteenth time this year. Knowing the fate of their superstar's knee and the realistic possibility he won't even be 75% for the playoffs, if there at all, instead of choosing to sulk, they rose above everything and played with heart, passion, and intensity. They have realized how hard it has been to simply be in the position the team is at right now and don't want to waste seven months of hard work. It wouldn't be their style. Call me naive, but with the veteran presence of Camby and Miller, Aldridge looking more and more like an All-Star forward, and a coach who is impressing the hell out of me with each passing game, I can see Portland wreaking a lot of havoc this post-season, similar to the Rockets last year without Tracey and Yao. Also, on a final note, 60 point in the paint from the Trail Blazers last night. If there is one way to win in the playoffs, its forcing the issue down low. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Lakers: Game 80

2010-04-10T15:50:00.000-07:00

After coming off arguably the most intense games of the season, which saw Portland (48-31) drop one they couldn't afford to against Dallas, they must quickly compose themselves with the defending champion and potential first-round opponent Los Angeles Lakers (56-23). The two teams split two early games in the Rose City this year, Portland winning the first, 107-98, behind Roy's 32 points on only 11 shots, while Los Angeles finally got the monkey off their backs, defeating the Blazers in the RG, 99-82, without the services of Kobe Bryant. Speaking of Mr. Bryant, head coach Phil Jackson has rested his star the past two games in hopes of getting his legs back for the playoffs. With their win last night against the Wolves, L.A. clinched home court throughout the Western Conference and really is only jockeying with Orlando right now. The $1 million question now remains, will Kobe get another day off? *Edit* Kobe Expected To Play Against Portland If there was one positive which came out of Friday's debacle, it was the fire and composure LaMarcus Aldridge showed. Normally when someone is fired up, they let their emotion get the better of them but LA was able to rise above it all and simply focus on hoops. I can guarantee you each game the rest of the way is going to feel like a playoff-type game, so the team has a couple practice games to get accustomed to playing under control, regardless of how they feel the game is being called. With teams begging anyone other than Roy to beat them, seen by help-side defenders sagging into the paint and always having two players locked onto Roy, someone else is going to have to step up outside of Aldridge. In the month of April, Aldridge is putting up 22.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, all above his season averages. With defenses keyed on them, who will step up and become that third scorer Portland is going to need to beat L.A.? I think a key stat will be if the Trail Blazers can get 60 combined points from three players. Regardless of whether Bryant plays or doesn't, the key to beating the Lakers is to neutralize Lamar Odom. When he is playing the point forward, setting up teammates, grabbing rebounds, and hitting open jumpers, their squad is nearly unbeatable. In their last contest against Portland, Odom completely dominated the glass, gobbling up 22 boards like they were gummy bears. Now, I doubt Odom is able to do that much damage again on the glass, as the Camby-Man now mans the paint for the red and black, but none the less, Marcus can't do it all by himself. Juwan, Batum, and LaMarcus all need to make rebounding a priority. Los Angeles was able to manufacture 13 extra shot attempts, which was the difference in a fairly even game otherwise statistically. With Bynum out, Odom has been the starting power forward, meaning he'll be matched up on Aldridge. L-Train is going to have to make Odom work on defense, hopefully taking away some of his energy in other facets of the game. What will swing this game in either team's favor will be the play of the second units. As mentioned, Bynum is still out with an injury, moving the Lakers best reserve, Odom, to the starting lineup. Most fans and media correlate the Lakers recent struggles, three wins in their last eight games, directly to the lackluster play of their bench. Howard has been solid for the Trail Blazers, Bayless looked a little bit better against Dallas, and Rudy hit three pretty huge three-pointers, but can they build upon that success and take the momentum gained against Dallas with them on the road in a hostile environment? On paper, I'll take our bench over the likes of Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic, Josh Powell, Jordan Farmar, and Shannon Brown, but games aren't played on paper. Most likely we'll see the two, inconsistent benches play to a standstill, but if one outshines the other, it will be the deciding factor in the outcome of the game. Even though the Lakers got embarrassed at home on national television against the Spurs, they hold the NBA's 2nd best home record at 33-6, and I don't think Portland will be giving L.A. their 7th home loss on Sunday. L.A. knows this is one of the tougher Western Conference's in recent memory and with the last week of the NBA schedule starting tomorrow, the time in which to turn the proverbial switch on is quickly vanishing so look for them to come out with a purpose tomorrow. Although we dislike them more than they us, L.A. hasn't been living under a rock over these past couple of weeks. Portland could very well be their first round opponent, especially after the Spurs stunned the Nuggets tonight, and they'll want to thwart any Trail Blazer confidence early and often. With the West being so tough, the Lakers will want as quick of a first round as possible and if they do match up with us, the series starts Sunday. I hope I'm wrong, but the Lakers message will be loud and clear to the Trail Blazers about how tough its going to be to get the one win they'll need to to advance in the playoffs. As much as it makes me want to puke... Game 80 Prediction: Trail Blazers 88 Lakers 97 Post-Game Thoughts Words can't describe how satisfying this win was or the way in which is came about. Early on it looked as if the Lakers were ready to show why they were defending champs, running off to a nine point lead, but the Trail Blazers weathered the storm and only trailed by three after one period. In the 2nd quarter, Roy's knee went one way while his body went the other. He would not return to the game, scaring the living hell out of Trail Blazers fans everywhere. Luckily an MRI just revealed only a bone contusion, with a time table for a return uncertain but easily the best possible scenario. With Roy out, Portand's bench came to the rescue in a big way, outscoring their L.A. counterparts 35-8. After momentum swings saw both teams take six-eight point leads, the game settled into a classic photo finish. Andre Miller was clutch all game and his driving lay-up put Portland up 86-81 with 54 ticks to go. A Kobe 30 ft. three and an And-1 within 20 seconds put L.A. up 1 when the madness began. An Aldridge low post miss opened the window for Marcus to tip it in; Portland up one. Webster, apparently not knowing time and score, bear-hugs Bryant, putting him on the line with a chance to take the lead. With M-V-P chants reigning down from Staples Center, Kobe ironically front rims two, yet L.A. gets the offensive rebound and Fisher is fouled seconds later by Miller. Fish only made one of two, setting up the game winning shot for Portland with 5 seconds to play. Somehow a running jumper off of one foot was the play we got out of Webster, yet Fisher and Bryant both fouled him in the act of shooting, resulting in three made free throws from Webster. Up 3, Batum denied Kobe the ball, meaning Gasol out top was their only viable option which he unsurprisingly clanked, giving the Trail Blazers their biggest win of the season and in a dead-heat for the 6th spot out West. "It's big for us," said LaMarcus Aldridge of the victory. "It's giving us more confidence if we do face them. This will be big for us on the road. We always feel like if they come to our house it'll be a really good game, but now (with this win), it makes our confidence grow even more." I felt the reserves would decide the game if either bunch showed up. Luckily for Portland, everyone was above par today. Bayless chipped in 8 points and 5 rebounds, including a three to give the Blazers back the lead and broke the two minute long dry spell from either side to begin the 4th. But it wasn't Bayless, nor the reliable Howard who starred for the bench. It was the much maligned duo of Fernandez and Webster. Rudy stepped in right away as soon as Roy went down and looked comfortable out there for the first time in months. Finally he was hitting the pull-up three pointers, had his patented lob pass to Aldridge for the flush in the waning moments, and even picked up a charge. All in all, Rudy recorded 9 points and an impressive six assists. I don't think I've seen a player go from hero to goat back to hero in such a short span of time than what happened with Webster. While he started off missing badly on his first two attempts from outside, he received an alley-oop from Rudy that seemed to ignite him. His defense on Bryant was phenomenal and had to hit two pairs of three free throws in this game, showing signs of extreme clutchness. His 16 points (4-7) all seemed to come at a desperate time for the Trail Blazers, stalling any hopes of a Laker run. Not only did the Blazer bench outscore L.A.'s (35-8), but they out assisted them 9-1, got to the line five more times, and grabbed 11 boards compared to their 5. In a game that needed them (bench) more than ever, they delivered. A tremendous sign heading into the postseason. "He was great today," said Camby of Webster. "We're definitely going to need him as the season ends." As much length and overall talent the Lakers attribute, the key to stopping them starts and ends with Kobe Bryant. Coach Nate had Batum and Webster dialed in on Kobe all game long, forcing him into 8-23 shooting and maybe more importantly limiting him to only 3 trips to the foul stripe. Throughout the game, Batum used his quickness and length to deny Bryant the rock and when he did get a shot off, made sure a hand was right between the eyes of Kobe as he let it go. Only was it through a few questionable calls that allowed Kobe those six points in 20 seconds, but regardless, when it mattered most, L.A. wasn't able to get their go-to-guy and supposed "best closer in the game" the rock down by three with 3.1 to go. Here is a video breakdown from BasketallBreakdowns of how great a job both Marty and Nico did on Kobe. It just wouldn't be right to not give our starting big men their due. Each player played off the other just how KP imagined when he pulled the trigger to bring Marcus to Portland. Camby was suffocating on the glass, grabbing a game-high 17 rebounds and sending messages of 'DO NOT ENTER' inside with 4 confidence crushing blocks. While Camby was doing his thing on defense, Aldridge became the de-facto leader as soon as Roy went down, scoring a game-high 24 points on 10-21 shooting from the floor and showing signs of All-Star caliber play with 11 boards of his own. Normally known to roam the perimeter during games, Aldridge was a beast inside, always trying to overpower the soft Gasol. Although he missed the would be go-ahead shot with Portland trailing by one, it was his desire and determination to get off a good shot inside that drew Camby's defender over to him, leaving Marcus wide open for the tip-in. A criticism of Aldridge has been his tendency to shy away from the ball in the 4th, but lately that doesn't appear to be the case. The feistier Aldridge has resulted in nearly 23 points and 8 rebounds during the month of April. For the Trail Blazers to advance in Round 1, the team will nee the April Aldridge and not his early season counterpart. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Trail Blazers vs. Mavericks: Game 79

2010-04-09T11:37:00.000-07:00

The most important three-game stretch of the season starts tonight as the Trail Blazers (48-30) go for the four-game season series sweep against the Mavericks (51-27) in the Rose Garden. Portland took the first two games in Big D, but the real test came just 15 days ago when the Blazers crushed the Mavs, 101-89, behind Aldridge, Camby, and Miller each recording double-doubles. It was the real test, because these are the rosters both teams would have if they were to matchup in the first round of the playoffs. For once there is good news on the injury front as Marcus Camby is expected to play after missing the last half of the 4th quarter Wednesday night in Los Angeles with a sore hamstring. It isn't looking so bright for Dallas though, because they will be without their starting small forward and best perimeter defender, Shawn Marion, who is out indefinitely with a strained left oblique. Why did Dallas used to have our number? Simple, they always won the point guard battle. Blake and Rodriguez would get outplayed by Kidd on a nightly basis. Wonder why Portland has turned the tide this season? One reason, Andre Miller. In three games against Dallas this season, Dre has averaged 27.7 points on a .604 field goal percentage, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and only a total of 4 turnovers. While Andre has made life a living nightmare for Dallas, he has also found a way to keep Jason Kidd in check to the tune of 8 points on only 38.1% from the floor, 7.7 assists, and 5.7 rebounds. The key to slowing down the Dallas Mavericks is to frustrate and lock-down their floor general. Obviously no one wants to see Dirk go off for 40, but even if he gets 30 and Andre continues to out-shine Kidd, Portland will win. What makes Dallas the prime first round opponent for the Trail Blazers is not only Andre's ability to dominate his matchup with Kidd, but all the lanky defenders we can throw at Nowitzki. Whether it be Aldridge or Batum, Portland needs to get physical with Dirk all game long, much like they did on March 25th, holding him to 15 points on 5-13 shooting. One of the biggest factors to slowing down Dirk is to contain the amount of open looks he gets. If he hits a couple open jumpers in a row, either in transition or via a blown assignment, his confidence starts to percolate and all of a sudden those difficult turn around jumpers start to fall. If I'm Coach Nate, I'm hesitant to throw double teams at him, based on the fact Dallas is surrounded with a plethora of shooters, including Butler, Kidd, and Terry. The game plan should be to try and win the point guard battle and just make Dirk earn everything he gets, nothing easy. If he's hot, hopefully he'll cool off as the game winds down the stretch. With Marion out, the one person's eyes who will light up like a Christmas tree is Brandon Roy. No Marion means mismatches across the board. Caron Butler makes the most sense from a measurable standpoint but Butler isn't quick enough to stick with Roy nor does he want to be on the defensive end all that much. Dallas could put Kidd or Terry on Brandon, which is just begging for abuse in the post, but if Kidd were delegated to defend him, it could mean Jason Terry would have to defend Andre and I think Dallas is still reeling over those 52 points Dre dropped back in December. No matter what the Mavs do, Portland will have an answer. Although Roy was content shooting only 7 times, making 5, in the last meeting due to his teammates carrying the load, look for a more assertive Brandon tonight. Sweep, sweep, get out the brooms! Portland is going to knock off Dallas for the fourth straight time this year and put a stranglehold on the 6th spot out West. Andre will continue his dominance over Kidd, Batum and Aldridge will fluster Dirk just enough, and Brandon will have no problems getting to where he wants on the floor. Outside of Juwan, one bench player will step up to answer the bell tonight. Who it is, I have no idea, but I saw signs of a little bit improved bench play out of Marty and Jerryd on Wednesday, so hopefully it continues to progress on over to tonight. Much like on March 25th, the Blazers will jump out to a marginal lead and slightly increase it throughout the night, never relinquishing it to Dallas. Game 79 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Mavericks 93 Nate McMillan Previews Dallas & The Playoff Race &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Clippers: Game 78

2010-04-07T10:41:00.001-07:00

After yet another three-day layoff, Portland (47-30) heads back out onto the road again to take on the struggling, but dangerous Los Angeles Clippers (27-50). The Trail Blazers are 2-1 against the Clipshow this season with each team protecting home court, including the most recent 109-87 Blazers victory on February 16th. Like most matchups down the stretch, it feels like it should be the first meeting of the season due to all the changes Portland has gone through as well as the opponent. Although three games are in the record books, this will be the first time Los Angeles sees Camby in the red and black while it'll be the first time the Blazers see their friends and former teammates, Outlaw and Blake, standing in the opposite huddle. Portland may catch a break tonight though as Travis is listed questionable for tonight's affair with a strained right groin. As there are only five games remaining in the 2010 regular season, there is absolutely no margin for error when trying to move up in the standings. Personally, tonight's game is the scariest left on the schedule, because we should be favored to win the last three home games and most everyone will predict us to lose against the Lakers, so this game is sort of a wild card. It seems like games in the Staples Center against LAC are nail-biters, unpredictable down to the final possession. Not to mention the Clippers are a talented bunch, sporting past and present All-Stars in Baron Davis and Chris Kaman, a young pure scorer in Eric Gordon, and sharpshooting Rasual Butler. As it is with all non-playoff teams, it will be key for the Trail Blazers to get out to a hot start and, at the bare minimum, keep the game within three-five points through the first half until the team gets into their rhythm. With all the weapons Los Angeles obtains, it may be hard to single one player out to neutralize, but their squad seems to go as Chris Kaman goes. In the last Blazers thrashing of the Clippers right after the trade deadline, Juwan and LaMarcus absolutely negated anything Kaman tried to get going. I doubt he puts up 4 points (1-6), 8 rebounds, and 7 turnovers again, but the Blazers do have another asset to throw at him in Marcus Camby. What Coach Nate did brilliantly that night in his scheme against Kaman were the constant, unpredictable double teams thrown every which way. One flaw in his game is decision making under pressure, so look for more traps, double downs, and mixed coverages thrown at Kaman throughout the game to take him out of his offensive flow and force turnovers, hopefully leading to fast break points the other way. Finally, the Blazer bigs must put a body on him as each shots goes up. If we are confusing him with the defensive strategies, then the only other way to get into a rhythm is by crashing the glass and getting cheap, garbage points. The responsibilities don't all simply fall on Aldridge, Howard, and Camby, because if they are focusing only on boxing out Kaman, than the guards and small forwards must crash the boards hard to keep the other Clippers out. It sounds simple, but how many times have we seen a big do his job and keep the opposition's most prolific rebounder out of the way only to see a guard blow their assignment? Too many. Tonight Brandon needs to channel his inner Kobe Bryant and do work on the blocks. Defending him will be the much smaller Eric Gordon and not only is he at a height disadvantage by being three inches shorter but Gordon's M.O. is offense and probably hasn't heard the word defense mentioned in practice since November before their season went south. Gordon won't want any part of Roy so it's up to Brandon to just calmly take advantage and dissect the defense. If they allow the single coverage, Roy should be able to rise above Gordon and if they want to send doubles, Roy is talented enough to find the open man. It could all come down to the Trail Blazer role players shooting the ball tonight, because I just can't fathom any coach letting Gordon try to handle a player of Roy's caliber one on one. As worrisome as tonight's game is, the added veteran leadership just won't let us down tonight. If any added motivation was needed, the boys should know OKC lost last night and there is a great chance they could find themselves in 6th place after Wednesday is over and done with. Andre has been there all season when we need him for a boost, Camby should cancel out Kaman on the boards, and hopefully Juwan is healthy enough to provide our bench some offensive production. Watch out for Nico to have another huge night. Those double teams sent at Aldridge and Roy should leave him wide open for jump shots and possibly even some plays being ran for him in the 2nd half if his shot is dropping. If Marty is completely off again tonight, it would be nice to see Batum log 35+ minutes tonight, because not only will the offense be needed to pick up for the bench, but Butler is not joke from downtown and Nico needs to make his life miserable. I still think the bench will struggle but it won't be enough to derail the Trail Blazer train. Game 78 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Clippers 96 Coach, Batum, and Camby Preview the Clippers &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; Post-Game Thoughts Had it not been for the dynamic duo of Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge, this game could have gone either way. There's a reason they signed long, expensive extensions in the summer and they proved their worth against the Clippers, combining for 50 points. Much like the Sacramento game, Portland raced out to a nine point first quarter lead, only to see it shrink down to four at halftime. The bench wasn't terribly bad, scoring seven in the first half, but turnovers and spotty defense enabled the Clippers to make it too close for comfort. A great sign was Portland coming out of halftime with a purpose and rode the broad shoulders of LaMarcus Aldridge to a 27-14 advantage in the period, eventually pulling away 93-85. One player who will fly under the radar in terms of performance is Juwan Howard, who had 10 points on 5-8 shooting, but each basket felt like much more than two points, always either stopping the bleeding or boosting momentum. Roy had 23 points (10-17) and 6 assists, an average night by his standards, not taking over as much as I expected. He had a stretch in the 2nd quarter when I thought he was going to go off for 40, but the offense was ran through Aldridge all night long. It didn't really matter who L.A. put on LA, whether it was Kaman or Jordan, because he was in attack mode tonight. All in all he tallied 27 points (12-26), 12 rebounds, 5 assists, a block, and a steal in his team-high 42 minutes of action. There was just a relentlessness to his body language tonight, always the quickest to tip rebounds back to teammates or keep it alive on the cylinder. He simply outworked everyone on the floor tonight. Regardless of how his offense is flowing, if Aldridge can use his wingspan and height to be a force on the glass, life will be so much easier in Blazerland. Apparently the bench didn't get the memo I sent out about them, because they were still pretty lackluster again tonight, Howard excluded. Outside of Old Man River, the bench totaled 7 points (3-8), 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 turnovers in a short lived 44 minutes between four players. In a game against an opponent who is more than 20 games under .500, the bench should have been able to log more minutes than they did tonight, but their play just isn't allowing Coach Nate to do so. They couldn't even hold a 21 point lead mid-way through the 4th quarter, giving up a 9-0 run in a span of two minutes. Early on it looked like the bench had a breakthrough as Martell hit two nice jumpers, but Webster didn't really get into that type of a groove in the 2nd half. Although Jerryd's 3 points and 1 assists will not make anyone look twice in the box score, I felt like he was more in control tonight and although it was a baby step in his progression, it was a step none the less. Bayless is looking more and more like a player who needs more than 10 minutes to produce. Don't give up hope on J-Bay just yet, he'll improve as he gets more mature and the minutes slightly increase. "We need to get our second unit to step up a little more if we want to be successful in the playoffs," Roy said. "We have been able to build good chemistry with the starting lineup and, again, we just need to get our second unit to that level." Tonight couldn't have gone much better for the Trail Blazers as the Thunder, Jazz, and Spurs all lost, placing Portland in a three-way tie for 6th place in the Western Conference with the Blazers holding the tie-breakers over both San Antonio and Oklahoma City. Utah losing is key, because they have a fairly easy schedule left and as long as they stay out of the 2nd or 3rd seed, Portland should be able to dodge that bullet. These next three games against Dallas, Los Angeles, and Oklahoma City are the biggest three-game stretch this squad will have faced this season and if they can find a way to come out 2-1, the 6th seed should be a lock. Everything outside of the backcourt reserves seems to be flowing and although Trail Blazer fans held their breathe late in the 4th quarter as Marcus Camby had to go back to the locker room with a slight right hamstring strain, it is said to be minor and Marcus would have gone back out on the court had the team needed him. For now, we can all collectively exhale. Currently, I don't think there is a team the higher seeds in either conference wouldn't want to see more in the first round than our Portland Trail Blazers. "It feels really good to be headed to the playoffs," Camby said. "It doesn't matter who we play, we can compete." Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Where's The Bench?

2010-04-05T12:05:00.001-07:00

Over the last 19 games, not much has gone wrong for the Trail Blazers, sporting a 15-4 record and even showing signs home dominance again, winning six in a row at the Rose Garden. Andre and Brandon seem to be playing off one another better than ever, their chemistry growing with each passing game. Batum keeps setting then breaking career highs on a nightly basis. Marcus and LaMarcus are forming a formidable due down low; Aldridge providing the offensive punch, Camby the defense. Not many NBA teams can say they have a better starting unit than Portland, but that's where it stops for the Trail Blazers. While most head coaches are shortening up their rotations for the playoffs, Coach Nate has had to do so out of necessity to keep his ship from sinking. Lately, Trail Blazer fans everywhere have been yelling, "Where's the bench?" Last season at this time, the lone worry for Portland was their lack of playoff experience, only 35 total games combined from the 15-man roster and 19 of those coming from Michael Ruffin, and if it would be their eventual downfall. The question was answered abruptly after a Game 1 thrashing by the Rockets put the Blazers behind the 8-ball the entire series, ultimately getting knocked out of the first round. While they didn't have experience on their side, lead by Travis Outlaw, Greg Oden, and Rudy Fernandez, the second unit and overall depth was a strength of the 2009 Trail Blazers squad. According to 82games.com, Portland's reserves were 2nd in scoring at 35.3 points a night, grabbed 15.6 rebounds which was good enough for 3rd, ranks 7th in the league in assists at 6.9, and tallied the 6th highest +/- of all reserves, +311. My how the tables have turned. Seeing how his team crumbled under the limelight, GM Kevin Pritchard made it a priority to bring in veteran leadership to guide his youthful core. Andre Miller and Juwan Howard were brought in as free agents and Marcus Camby was acquired at the trading deadline, adding an additional 114 games of playoff experience alone, more than three times the amount the '09 Blazers accrued. Adding Camby was a no-brainer with both Oden and Przybilla shelved for the season with injuries, but as it is with any transaction, there is a give and a take. For Portland, they gave up the heart of their bench. No longer a starter, Steve Blake was one of the top reserve lead guards in the game, known for his steady, calming presence and ability to knock down dagger trifectas now gone, replaced by second year prospect, Jerryd Bayless. Along with Blake, the Trail Blazers had to send away versatile forward Travis Outlaw, undoubtedly second on the totem pole only to Roy when it comes to clutch shots and one of the only members of the team able to create for himself when the shot clock winds down. Out of necessity Portland bolstered their starting 5 into elite territory, but now the question for the '10 Trail Blazers will be how will the reserves hold up down the stretch? For the first 12 games of this current 19 game stretch, everything was running smoothly, seemingly no major chinks in the red and black armor. Portland went 10-2 and the bench was producing near their elite 2009 level. Averages of 31.1 points, 10.5 field goals made in 25.2 attempts, 12.9 rebounds, and 5.8 assists compared to only 2.8 turnovers. Digging a little deeper, the second stringers were shooting the three well and efficient by netting 3.4 in a modest 7.8 attempts. They also were aggressive in getting to the free throw line 8.2 times a night, making 6.8. For whatever reason, the wheels have completely fallen off for the reserves since the scare against Washington. A lot of people point out that was the night Rudy Fernandez accumulated yet another nagging injury this season, this time his left quadricep was the recipient. Others could mention the law of averages were bound to bring Webster and Bayless back down to earth after each providing their own offensive firepower, Webster from downtown and Bayless at the foul line.
No one knows the root of the problem in regards to the productivity of the bench, whether it be nagging injuries or just a simple lack of talent, but something needs to be done soon, as the season ends next Wednesday. The past seven games have been downright appalling strictly from a statistical point of view, maybe worse watching it live. Numbers have dropped all across the board which can be seen by averages of only 21.4 points on less than stellar 8.1 field goals made in 22.7 attempts, a .357 shooting percentage. Rebounds and assists are down to 10 and 5 per game respectively while turnovers have increased slightly to 3. While the prior 12 game sample saw more trips to the foul line than three-point attempts, recently the trend has flip-flopped. Trail blazer reserves are shooting a comical .254 percentage from downtown, 1.6 hits in 6.3 tries, and only finding the charity stripe 4.3 times, making 3.7 of them. What these statistics say is the 2nd unit rotation, sans Juwan Howard, are in a historically bad shooting slump but they are only compounding their problems by settling for outside jumpers instead of trying to make something happen in the interior.
Conventional wisdom says if Bayless, Webster, and Rudy were on point at different times during the season, they are still capable of heating up once again, even in this dry spell. On the other side of the coin, if you've seen the play of the reserves with your own two eyes, the only way they start clicking is through divine intervention. Unfortunately for Portland, their only two consistent performers off the pine play the same position, Dante and Juwan, making it difficult to get each their needed minutes. Personally, I don't think the bench will return to top form but it shouldn't be this rough either. When the 2010 playoffs are all said and done, whether or not Portland gets out of the first round will be heavily influenced by the bench play.

Trail Blazers @ Kings: Game 77

2010-04-03T11:50:00.000-07:00

After getting destroyed by Denver, Portland (46-30) looks to rebound against a Sacramento (24-52) team who has lost six straight. The Trail Blazers have taken the first three games this year against the Kings, including a 110-94 thrashing back on March 12th. With Portland getting no help from opposing teams playing the Spurs or Thunder lately, there is no time for letdowns and bad losses. Sacramento would much rather be planning their summer vacation than taking the court tonight, so if Portland comes out and shuts down any notion about the Kings playing spoiler tonight, they will fold mid-way through the 2nd period. It was apparent on Thursday night there was a lack of focus and sense of urgency. If the Trail Blazers come out in the same manner an end up dropping this game, they should prepare to get their ticket punched to Los Angeles, because a first round date with the Lakers would be imminent. Since the All-Star Break, Portland is a formidable 8-4 away from the friendly confines of the Rose Garden. In the eight wins, only once did Portland score 100 points and come away unscathed, March 28th in OKC. On the other hand, during the Trail Blazers four road losses, the last two have seen Portland fail to rev up their offensive engines all the way up to 100 points. Portland is a staggering 27-8, a .771 winning percentage, when they reach the century mark, while Sacramento is 10-40 when allowing the opposition to reach the 100 point barrier. Can Portland win a ugly, grin-it-out game? Of course, but when I see the Blazers playing their best ball, they are pushing tempo, getting easy buckets on the break, attacking the basket, and seeing the entire team get involved on the offensive end. A win is a win, but I would be a little worried if we can't score 100 with ease against a bottom feeding Kings team. Bottom line, score 100 tonight and all will be well in the Rose city. As the leader, it is time for Brandon Roy to simply take over the rest of the regular season, and it starts tonight! To hear him say there was no urgency last Thursday when it was not only a rivalry game but with playoff implications on the line, really is a red flag in my mind. I realize the season is an 82 game grind, but games like tonight or Wednesday against the Clippers are the ones to be sluggish in, not against an inner divisional foe. By taking over, it doesn't mean 30, 7, and 7 each night, rather shown in his body language. It seems like when teams throw different defenses strictly designed to stop him, he gets passive and it plays right into the defense's hands. Roy needs to take an aggressive approach and force the issue a little bit, even if it means a turnover here or there. Getting into the teeth of the defense and doing what he does best, make plays should be his M.O. tonight. Roy's biggest asset is his play-making ability and when he gets relegated to standing around, it thwarts our offensive flow and at times, the team will follow suit. As much as I am a Dre Miller fan, he shouldn't be the one leading the charge over the past month; it must be Roy if this team wants to have any aspirations of getting out of the first round. Tonight, the Trail Blazers start a new winning streak. Maybe last year fans could worry a bit after a tough, devastating loss followed up by a lottery-bound team, but since Andre has became the full-time starter and the acquisition of Camby, the guys haven't dropped a game they shouldn't have. The feeling of falling back into 8th will refocus the troops and it will be a cohesive team effort in Sac-Town this evening. Batum will bounce back after a sub-par performance and hit those jump shots and finish at the rim, Camby and LA will do yeoman's work on the Kings bigs, and the backcourt of Dre and Brandon will lead the way and show the young Evans a thing or two. One player Portland does need to watch out for is Beno Udrih, who put up season-high numbers of 14.9 points, 7.4 assists, and 3.9 rebounds in 17 games during March. In the end, the Trail Blazers will use an early 2nd quarter run to put away the Kings for good. Game 77 Prediction: Trail Blazers 107 Kings 94 Post-Game Thoughts It wasn't pretty, but all that matters is the end result, a win. After jumping out of the gate, 32-25, it looked like only a matter of time before Portland would unleash the flood gates and trounce Sacramento and it would be all over before the halftime buzzer. One problem, someone forgot to tell the bench. In less than three minutes, the entire landscape of the game was changed as the 2nd unit came in and immediately gave up a 9-0 run. Like always, the starters were able to save the sinking ship, 98-87. Do not let the 11 point victory fool you, the score wasn't indicative of how close the game actually was, even seeing the Kings taking a small lead mid-way through the 4th quarter before back to back threes from Batum and Brandon gave the Trail Blazers just enough cushion to escape Arco Arena with a W. "We are still going need our bench to get going if we're going to make a run in the playoffs," Roy said. I know I can't be the only person alarmed at the bench's recent play of late. Saturday night against the Kings was no different with four players seeing action (Dante,Rudy,Jerryd,Martell) and receiving only seven points of production from that group on 3-14 shooting. And its not like a lack of scoring is the only thing the 2nd unit isn't providing as they committed more turnovers, six, than created assists, three, and not one player was able to get to the foul line, which to me, means a lot of standing around the perimeter, waiting for someone else to make it happen. While the Blazer bench nearly blew a huge game, Sacramento's almost shocked the NBA as Omri Casspi out-scored our 2nd unit single handily, 15-7, and along with Ime Udoka grabbed more boards (9) than the entire Blazers second string (6). Somehow we got away with sloppy, downright terrible, bench play again, but it is not a sustainable way to win games in the NBA and could bite us in the butt down the stretch or even in the playoffs. When four players each score 21 or more points, it's tough to single someone out, but once again, Nico Batum's star shone brightest of all last night. He did it all. When we needed a clutch three, he netted it, going 5-8 from downtown, including two in a span of a couple of minutes to regain and extend the Trail Blazers lead halfway through the 4th. All in all, it was another great shooting performance, as Nico shot 6-11 from the field and 4-4 from the charity stripe, resulting in 21 points. As good as his offensive performance was, his defense was just as impressive. Whether it was saving his teammates to the tune of three blocks or absolutely shutting down ROY favorite Tyreke Evans, Batum was everywhere. In Evans' 34 minutes of action, Nico held him to 6 points on 2-12 shooting and helped force him into turning the ball over 6 times. Its too bad we couldn't clone Batum, sure could have used him on Beno as well. "We wanted to get length on him," McMillan said. "That matchup was good for us last time we played them, keeping him in front of us and making him shoot over the top. Normally they try and go into the post with him. In our last two games with [Batum] being on him they haven't got a lot of post-ups." Portland is a sizzling 15-4 since the Utah debacle, yet still finds themselves sitting in the woeful 8th spot in the Western Conference, a guaranteed lock to play the defending champion Lakers in the opening round of the playoffs. There's no doubt Portland has made up ground, only one back in the loss column to the Spurs and two behind the Thunder, but it can still be frustrating, even agitating, at times for the players who have seen their play improve drastically but not see the results on the standings board. It'll be key for the Trail Blazers to simply block out what OKC and San Antonio do and just focus on playing their best basketball possible heading into the post-season. Outside of their five remaining games, one including the Thunder at the Rose Garden next week, Portland has absolutely no control over the teams in front of them, so it would be best to not even waste any time and energy scoreboard watching. The West is about as even as it has ever been. We are looking at possibly the best 8th seed in history, winning over 50 games and the Lakeshow certainly aren't the once intimidating bullies on the block anymore, showing their vulnerable side lately. Leave the scoreboard watching up to the fans and concentrate on playing up to their peak, because a Trail Blazers team clicking on all cylinders is a dangerous beast no opposition wants to tangle with. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

An Advocate for McMillan: 2010 Coach Of The Year

2010-04-02T13:18:00.001-07:00

Be honest, whether you saw it happen right before you eyes live or on television, heard those chilling words come from Wheels' mouth over the radio, or read about it the next day in the newspaper, the moment you found out Greg Oden broke his kneecap and would be out for the remainder of the season, you thought the season was over, done, finished. I'll be the first to admit it. While the team had the courage, inspiration, and poise to fight back and defeat the Houston Rockets that night in December, I sat slouched in my seat up in section 329. All hope had been lost in my mind, nothing could resurrect my spirits for the 2009-2010 season. While I was having my own personal pity party, Coach McMillan didn't bat an eye, instead deciding to face adversity head on and become the commander in charge his troops needed him to be. He truly was "Sarge". Whether it was losing Pryzbilla for the season in Dallas after tearing his patella or sporadically losing players here and there for multiple games at a time, Nate McMillan was always the calming presence. The saying "when it rains it pours" couldn't have been more accurate. After realizing his team didn't even have enough healthy bodies to have a regular five-on-five scrimmage in practice and upset at his team's lackluster play through the first month, Coach decided to take matters into his own hands and get a few runs in with the squad. During what was said to be a great practice, seemingly the spark the team needed, it happened. Coach ruptured his Achilles tendon, causing him to miss four games while the team had a road trip back East. Without their leader, the team crumbled by going 1-3 on one of the easier Eastern swings of the season (New York, Indiana, Cleveland, Milwaukee). From the time Oden went down, Portland was 12-8, to the time everyone but the two men in the middle were completely healthy, Coach Nate had managed to weather the storm to the tune of a 31-24 record, good enough to still sit in 8th place in the ultra competitive Western Conference, despite losing Brandon Roy for over a month, Batum for the first 45 games of the year, and Aldridge for three games. To date Portland has missed a total of 295 games, second only to the Golden State Warriors, but still on pace for at least 50 wins and making a late charge, winning 14 of their last 18 games. Expectations were through the roof for this young team coming off of a co-divisional title, 54 wins, and the franchise's first playoff experience in six years but injuries compounded upon a slow start derailed those expectations quite early. Finally, with a healthy, capable center, a roster as healthy as it'll get, and added team chemistry, everyone is seeing just how dangerous these Trail Blazers are going to be come late April. While a lot of naysayers will point to the fact Andre Miller wasn't starting over Steve Blake until December 15th, and in hindsight it should have been Andre's job from day one since he out-performed Blake in the pre-season, sometimes there are more shades of gray to a black and white situation the fans seem to believe. Coach had his star player, Brandon Roy, come out publicly and say he was more comfortable playing alongside Blake. All of a sudden, Coach McMillan is in a "Catch-22". Does he start the more talented Andre and upset the franchise player or does he try to go with what worked last year and push Miller away? Agree or disagree with how he handled the situation, there's not much else in the area of coaching Nate should be seconded guessed for. Although his best coaching performance of his young career, this is no one-hit wonder for Nate McMillan. After inheriting quite possibly the most dysfunctional team of the early-mid 2000's with nearly all of the talent gutted from the roster due to a pledge to clean up the team's image, Coach had to take a step backwards before moving in the correct direction. Ever since his first year of duty with the Trail Blazers, Coach Nate has seen his win totals increase drastically from 21 in 2006, up 11 to 32 wins the following year in 07, to 41 victories in 2008 without #1 pick Greg Oden which also included a decade-best 13-game winning streak, and all the way up to 54 wins, a co-divisional championship, and not only a spot in the playoffs for the first time in six years but home court advantage to boot. Numerically impossible, Portland will not see their win total improve for the first time under McMillan's tenure, but given all the obstacles this team has had to hurdle over the span of the 2010 season, winning anywhere from 50-52 games this year would be a dream come true for this fan, especially after the way I felt that unforgettable night in December. Arguments could be made for only a handful of coaches this year like George Karl, Scotty Brooks, Jerry Sloan, and Scott Skiles. If the award was for most valuable coach, hands down it would go to the Nuggets' Karl, who has seen his team take a nose dive, losers of five of their last seven, since he left to get cancer treatment. He is the one dominant personality able to keep Melo, Smith, and Martin in check. Brooks appears to be the trendy choice but how are his Thunder any different than Nate's Blazers last year? The Thunder have only seen one starter miss three games this year, Kristic, and won't get home court advantage in the first round, nor will they eclipse the 54 win barrier Portland accomplished in 09. Skiles has seen his team soar since the All-Star break, going 17-5 and entrenching themselves in the 5th seed out East. Although a pre-season pick to be lottery bound, is finishing 5th in the weaker Eastern conference good enough to be crowned Coach of the Year? It truly is a travesty Jerry Sloan has never won this award and after seeing the same core of players stumble down the stretch of the 09 season, ending 48-34 and a five-game exit at the hands of L.A., Sloan has been able to keep Utah in the Northwest title hunt year round despite distractions from Carlos Boozer early on about his future with the organization. While a nice story is happening in Salt Lake City, it's safe to say had Karl not seen a re-emergence of his cancer and Portland not have been hit so hard with injuries, Utah would still be 3rd fiddle in the NW. When the dust clears on the 2010 season, everybody will have a chance to soak in exactly what Coach McMillan was able to accomplish and realize how incredible of a coaching performance it was.

Trail Blazers @ Nuggets: Game 76

2010-04-01T10:36:00.000-07:00

After winning their fourth straight game and ninth in their last 10, Portland (46-29) heads to the Mile High City to take on a struggling Denver (48-27) squad who has lost five of six without their head coach who is undergoing cancer treatment. The Trail Blazers went 11-2 in March but only went 3-2 against teams above .500 including a complete beating behind the woodshed to these same Nuggets on March 7th, 118-106, in a game which the score was not indicative of how badly Denver dominated the contest from start to finish. Similar to games in Phoenix and Oklahoma City these past couple weeks, tonight's game is a de facto elimination game for the 5th seed. After losing to Phoenix, there is now no shot at catching them while winning at OKC gives the Blazers the upper hand at the 6th seed. A win tonight puts Portland only one back in the loss column of the Nuggets and lays down the path for the team to possibly run the table the rest of the season. The absolute biggest key tonight is Brandon Roy. At the Rose Garden, the role players are usually in more of a comfort zone and can be relied on to produce more, lightening the load for B-Roy. On the other hand, when the Blazers head into the Pepsi Center tonight, where the Nuggets are an intimidating 30-6, and Portland has only won once since 2003, the team needs their superstar to lead the way tonight. Brandon is the franchise and has done very few things wrong during his tenure with Rip City, but he should shoulder most of the blame for the loss at Denver three weeks ago. He came out very casual and looked like a zombie out there for most of the night, going 3-14 while Denver's stud, Carmelo Anthony, took the game over with 30 points on 11-19 shooting. As the leader, the team followed Roy's suit and the game was over before the 1st quarter. Roy was told the honest truth by Webster at the half and since has been playing like the 2nd Team All-NBA player he is. This Denver team is slumping, struggling and without their leader; they are ripe for the picking. Roy needs to be the aggressor early like he was in New Orleans and make sure Portland is in the thick of things come the 4th quarter, but he needs to keep us afloat for three quarters. Just as important as getting Roy off on the right foot, stifling and frustrating Melo needs to be defensive priority #1. In three games this season against Portland, Anthony has gone bananas, averaging 34.3 points on 52.4% field goal shooting while finding himself at the foul line nearly 14 times a game. Batum is obviously going to get the first crack at Carmelo, but what makes him so difficult of a cover for Nico is Melo's brute strength to match his cat quickness. Once he gets the rock in the triple threat position, he is arguably the most lethal cover in all of the NBA. He's quick enough to blow by for the lay-up or get to the line and he is probably the best mid-range jump shooter in the league. What Nico has to do is get physical with him, much a he did against Durant by trying to deny him the ball. A lot of the time, you must simply pray he doesn't have the offensive juices flowing on the night. If he does catch fire, Portland needs to adjust on the fly and force others to beat them by either double teaming him or trapping him in the corner. Going by recent history this season, if Anthony is able to score in the 35 point range, Portland will lose. The one time we negated it occurred when Roy had to outscore him on Christmas when he dropped 41, but scoring in bunches like that is not Brandon's M.O. Defense wins the game tonight. Without Kenyon Martin, the Nuggets lose almost all of their toughness. Tonight, Portland must get nasty and punch Denver in the mouth (figuratively speaking). Lately when the Nuggets have been getting hit first, they back down and crumble for the rest of the game. Make sure all loose balls are won, keep Denver off of the offensive boards, and be strong in takes to the bucket are facets of the game the Trail Blazers must do to ensure they have a shot at the 5th seed. I want to see hard fouls by the Blazers if Denver gets into the lane, making them thing twice about trying to score inside again. By doing all of this, it could get into their mind and cause an explosion. Without George Karl, these Nuggets are a ticking time bomb, ready to go off at any minute. Adrian Dantley just doesn't have the strong personality to keep these guys in check. Last year, I doubt Portland would have the savvy or experience to be able to adapt to their surroundings and find holes in the opposing team, but with added veterans in Camby, Howard, and Miller, who have all been there, done that allow for this strategy to be more than just a dream. Denver averages 111 points at home and we all saw how well Portland does when they try to outscore the Nuggets in the Pepsi Center; it just doesn't work. The Trail Blazers have only scored 111+ six times in 75 games this year. Its safe to say defensive stops wins the game tonight, not taking part in a 120-110 wild west shootout. Rotations to their three-point shooters must be quicker, because the last thing the team needs is Afflalo or Smith heating up from behind the arc due to open jumpers, which occurred way to frequent in the previous meeting. One thing to take note from during the last meeting was the fact Marcus Camby was not available due to injury. At the time, it didn't seem like much of a loss as Camby was taking a while to get acclimated with this current team, now looking back, it was a monumental loss. Outside of Roy, Camby will be the difference maker tonight. He should be able to keep Birdman from put-back dunks, Nene from wreaking havoc on the glass, and dare I say contain Johan Petro who pulled down 10 boards in Martin's absence. As long as Portland can weather the opening storm Denver will bring down upon Portland, as they are tired of losing and are out to prove themselves once again, look for the Blazers to slowly take control of the game as it progresses deep into the 4th. Roy leads the charge on offense, Camby on defense as the Trail Blazers exercise yet another road demon and stay in the race for 5th. Game 76 Prediction: Trail Blazers 106 Nuggets 101 Post-Game Thoughts The curse of the Mile High City continues to loom large over the Trail Blazers as they couldn't even keep it a respectable score, losing 109-92, despite Denver playing without starting forward Kenyon Martin, not having their leader Coach Karl on the sidelines, and even losing Chris Andersen to an ankle injury in the 2nd half. While Denver looked like a starving dog that hadn't ate in three days, Portland nonchalantly went about this contest like a stroll in the park, shown by 11 backbreaking turnovers which seemingly lead to a fast break dunk or an And-1. The passing was sloppy, there was no fire in the eyes of our players, and no one outside of Miller even attempted to attack the hoop. It was a near carbon copy of the March 7th game in the Pepsi Center and was a reality check for Trail Blazer fans worldwide. "We didn't have that sense of urgency," Roy said. "You could tell our energy was a little zapped." Hopefully we do not see Denver in the playoffs, because whatever they are doing on defense, it certainly flusters Brandon Roy. Again, he had a terrible night, shooting 3-13 and only his 7-7 night at the foul line made his 13 points look sub-par at best. I give Denver a ton of credit for bracketing Roy at all times, but some of the blame needs to fall on #7's shoulders. In our last three road tests against elite foes (3-7-10 @ DEN, 3-21-10 @ PHX, 4-1-10 @ DEN), Brandon has been invisible, averaging 16.3 points on 14-52 (26.9%) shooting from the floor, compared to his normal 21.9 points on 47.3% shooting. This team just is not talented enough to beat the upper echelon teams, on the road no less, when Brandon gets passive out of the defense. Instead of backpedaling, I'd like to see him pass the ball quickly and make a cut to the hoop. If there are two on Brandon, someone else has to be open; swing the ball! While I don't think Roy should be the scapegoat for the defeat as it was a team loss, his teammates need to give the opponent a reason to think twice about doubling. "Some of it's them and some of it's I'm just missing shots," Roy said. "I'm getting some looks, they're just rimming out." If there was one positive which came out of last night's debacle, it had to be the re-emergence of Martell Webster. Webster's 17 points were only second on the team to Dre's 24 and he did so on 6-9 shooting, including 2-3 from downtown. The injuries look like they have taken a toll on Rudy, so he may not be the same player we're used to seeing the rest of the year. If Marty can fill the scoring void off the bench which Rudy was used to do so well, this loss could be a blessing in disguise if it means the Marty Party has returned. It wasn't only an offensive show Webster provided last night, rather it was the defense on Anthony which should raise the eyebrows. Getting most of the playing time at small forward last night, Marty was able to use his strength to disrupt Melo and he, along with Batum, forced him into 9 turnovers, 10-21 field goal shooting, and only five trips to the line. You know that fan swagger I had going into last night's game? Well, it's completely gone. It was really a step back to reality after seeing one of the most struggling teams in the NBA, not even play that well, yet still able to control the game the entire way through. Portland said all the right words after clinching a playoff spot, "Our job isn't done...No time to celebrate yet..", but their actions spoke louder than words. There was no focus and thee Batum plays exuded this. He had two lazy, one-handed passes, one an entry pass in the post to LA, the other out top trying to get it to the point guard, and both were picked with ease, ending in points for Denver. The other happened in the 3rd quarter. He was open for a three and for some reason he decided to stand there and pose with his follow through held up high. While the shot ultimately missed, Anthony high-tailed it down court and received a bullet pass for the wide open slam. Coach Nate tried to get through to his troops at halftime, but I think mentally they were using playing last night as a crutch for not going all out. Hopefully this game serves as a lesson so close to the playoffs, letting them know they aren't as good as they thought they were and they need to show up every night the rest of the way. Teams aren't just going to give Portland W's, we will have to take it from them! Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers vs. Knicks: Game 75

2010-03-31T09:59:00.001-07:00

After the biggest three-game test of the season saw Portland (45-29) pass with flying colors, they must find a new way to motivate themselves as perennial cellar dwellers, New York (26-47) are in the Rose City. Playing 82 games, plus pre-season and training camp, can take its toll on a player both mentally and physically. Every member of the Trail Blazers knows each game the rest of the way is a playoff game, sometimes even single elimination, and a lot of times the opponent alone is worthy enough of motivation, such as Dallas on a TNT Thursday night or in Oklahoma City to run down the youthful Thunder for 6th place. Unfortunately for Portland, the Knicks are no longer the prime-time attraction, meaning it can become very easy for the Blazers to overlook them, so Coach Nate and the players themselves must find some inner drive. Playoff positioning aside, the revenge factor should be in place as the Knicks handled the Trail Blazers with ease back on December 7th, 93-84. If Portland doesn't remember holding a strong, double-digit lead in last year's contest in the Rose Garden, only to see the Knicks storm back to take a 13 point lead, before Roy-Wonder put on his cape and made the improbable happen, then they should learn from the Utah Jazz. After storming out of the gate with 44 1st quarter points and a 14 point lead, all looked well in Salt Lake City, before it happened. The Jazz let up, lost focus, and thought the game was over after the first 12 minutes instead of playing a full 48. New York ended up taking the lead on multiple occasions in the second half, even having it tied late in the 4th before Deron Williams put them away with a three. When you are playing an opponent who has nothing to lose, only to gain, you must assert your dominance early and often to ensure their spirits have been crushed. Over the first 60 or so games this year, this may have been a problem for the Trail Blazers, but lately, speaking of the Sacramento game on march 12th and New Orleans on the 27th specifically, Portland has done a superb job of gaining early leads and not letting the opponent creep back in. It will be imperative to have a cushy lead heading into the 4th so not only can the starters gain much needed rest for tomorrow's game in the altitude of Denver but to let the bench work out some of their kinks. In regards to the bench, frankly, they haven't even been mediocre lately, sans Howard. They scored a dreadful 11 points in Phoenix and only 12 against OKC resulting in a 1-1 split in those two games, but for a team like the Trail Blazers, who are looking to improve their seeding, not maintain it, sporadic bench play is the difference between a favorable matchup come late April and not. Coach Nate's late season rotation looks to be in playoff form as it has been trimmed down to only nine players, with the rooks only getting mop up duty. Juwan, really the only serviceable second string big, has been the only consistent offense for the second unit, while Rudy and Marty have seen their shots evaporate and Bayless struggle to deal with the up and down playing time. Not being an NBA player, I can only imagine how hard it is to get infrequent minutes in Jerryd's case or go from being a starter to seldom used role player in Webster's case, but my advice to them would be to focus and have a good time out there. You know you'll get at least a certain amount of time, whether it be five or 10 minutes, and lay it all on the line. Play within yourself and make it happen. Coming off of the bench and producing instantly is one of the toughest things to do in sports as a lot of players need a rhythm to get going, but all it takes is a few good outings and the their time should increase. Personally, the key to Portland making it out of round 1 is the bench. Our starters are already clicking on all cylinders right now, but they are the post-season X-Factor. Tempo. Portland must control it tonight and not get caught up in the run and gun, free flowing style the Knicks love to play. This doesn't mean the Trail Blazers shouldn't look to push the pace at all, because cheap buckets can be had on these guys but pick and choose the proper times to push tempo. Whatever we do, it must be pro-active and not reactive. If we want to grind it out, that's how the game will go or if we want a little showtime then so be it. The one aspect on offense we must stray from is the early shots in the shot clock. Unless it is wide open or from very close range, work the shot clock a bit and make this Knicks team work on the defensive end. Chances are the harder Portland makes New York work, the less resistance they'll face. Andre and LaMarcus should have no problems having the offense run through them on the blocks. If New York gets lazy, there is no way Douglas or Lee can either their respective assignments single handily or if they get lackadaisical coming out of their double teams, Batum, Roy, Webster, etc will be waiting to do work from beyond the arc. While every remaining game is scary due to the implications it would have on the standings if a loss was incurred, I feel pretty confident in our boys tonight. They are on a torrid face right now and with the added veteran leadership provided by Dre, Marcus and Juwan, the Blazers know the task at hand. As easy as it might be to overlook the Knicks, they learned their lesson against the Wizards and I don't see it happening again. Even if the bench doesn't show signs of improvement, which would be extremely disappointing tonight, the starters are good enough to put up win #46 for the Rip City. As well as Andre and Brandon have played lately, don't be surprised if Batum has a huge night. The Knicks may hone in on those two, leaving Nico open to operate, and with the way New York plays in transition defense, Andre could have a field day throwing passes ahead to Batum for a few Batum-Shokka-Lokkas. Game 75 Prediction: Trail Blazers 104 Knicks 90 Post-Game Thoughts "After the [opening] jump ball, it kind of went downhill from there," said New York coach Mike D'Antoni. Everything went according to plan tonight for the Trail Blazers and then some. No starter played more than 28 minutes, preserving them for tomorrow night's divisional battle in Denver. The Trail Blazers jumped out on the Knicks early, leading 31-20 after the first quarter, and kept their foot on the gas pedal the entire rest of the way, pushing the lead to as high as 36 late in the 3rd at 80-44. They used their size advantage inside to conquer the paint, 46-34, and absolutely wanted this game so much more, obliterating New York 68-36 on the Hustle Board (rebounds, steals, blocks). Finally, maybe most importantly of all, our bench showed up by outscoring their Knick counterparts 46-32, including Webster finding him shot to the tune of 14 points and Bayless running the show with a purpose as he filled the stat sheet with 6 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists. "They just stopped playing," forward Nicolas Batum said. "Next week, they go home." In a game that saw each and every member of the Trail Blazers not only play but score, it's difficult to choose who was most impressive, but two players who stood out in my mind were Nico Batum and Andre Miller. As I thought he would, Nico had a huge night, but he did so much more than the usual spot up three-point barrage. Although he was a steady 3-7 from I-5, he scored in a variety of ways. Whether it was rubbing his man off of Aldridge and taking the hand-off for a wide open flush or nailing a long-range jump shot off of the dribble drive, Batum was flourishing on the offensive end the entire night. In total, he dropped 20 points on 7-13 shooting and also found time to grab 5 rebounds and players such as Gallinari, McGrady, and Rodriguez. As important as the bench is to playoff success, Batum's output on a nightly basis could give Portland that extra oomph needed to get out of round 1. Last year Batum had to be bench in the playoffs, because Houston was sagging off of him and he wasn't able to knock down the jump shot as he is now. The more weapons Roy has at his disposal, the more lethal Brandon is going to be able to be. His line won't blow you away, 6 points (3-5), 7 assists, and 2 rebounds, but Andre Miller was in complete command of the entire game and doing so with ease. Nearly all of his dimes resulted in highlight-reel alley-oops or wide open attempts in the lane. If there are 10 better point guards playing in the NBA right now, present them, because I don't believe it. Dre wanted the respect to be regarded as one of the game's best point mans and right now, I don't think you'll find many naysayers. With the way he is operating on the court, my fan swagger has gone through the roof. Earlier in the year, even when healthy, I hoped to win, when we got depleted from injuries, I prayed for win, and now I expect to win no matter the opponent or location. Analysts can continue to brush us aside in the conversation as to whom is L.A.'s biggest threat but let them. A small market team like Portland is used to being underestimated an thrives off of it. Hopefully the team is just as, if not more, confident as I am and I must thank Mr. Miller, because his addition has been the complete difference maker. Even though many would have rather seen Houston defeat San Antonio and Memphis upset Dallas, by virtue of Portland's win and their losses, the Trail Blazers are playoff bound for the second straight season for the first time since the 02 and 03 seasons. Although there were no bottles of champagne being popped in the locker room after Coach told them of the news, its still nice to see the team accomplish their goal of getting back to the dance, especially considering the amount of adversity the team has inquired this season. While a great feat, the team will not be happy with or simply settle for making the playoffs; the goal now is to put themselves in the best possible seed and peak at the right time. Tomorrow night will go a long way in terms of both. A win gives the Blazers a realistic chance to work their way up to 5th in the standings and not many places can boost momentum and confidence like the Mile High City can. "It's a great accomplishment," McMillan said. "Losing so many guys, we knew it was going to be a challenge, but it remained a goal to get here." "Now we get that opportunity [to participate in the playoffs] again. This is what it's all about. This is what we play for. And we still have games remaining that we're going to focus on, starting [Thursday] in Denver." Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Thunder: Game 74

2010-03-28T12:21:00.000-07:00

After a convincing 112-101 win over New Orleans to start this quick, two-game road trip, Portland (44-29) heads to the mid-west to battle Oklahoma City (44-27). If last Sunday's game against Phoenix was the biggest of the year, than this is the 2nd biggest to date. The Phoenix loss really put Portland in a hole in regards of climbing out to catch the Suns, which likely won't happen now after losing. While it won't be as hard to catch the Thunder if the Blazers drop one tonight, it may still be out of the question considering how consistent OKC has been this year, never losing more than three straight this year. Two things in Portland's favor tonight are the fact they have already won in OKC earlier this season, 83-74, and are an incredible 13-3 on the second half of back to backs. Back on November 1st, Portland was able to hold Kevin Durant to 16 points on 3-20 shooting. Now, I highly doubt he shoots that poorly again, but Batum was unavailable for action that night, meaning it was Webster's fingerprints all over the job that night done on Durant. Obviously, Batum vs. Durant is the matchup Trail Blazer fans everywhere want to see, but if Nico gets in foul trouble or just needs a breather, it'll be imperative for Marty to make defense priority #1 tonight. If the Blazers can keep Durant around his average of 30 points but force him into more than 20 shots in doing so as well as keeping him off the free throw line his third best 10.0 times a night, consider it a successful night on Durant. Nico needs to use his length to give Durant a little space, enticing him to shoot jump shots, rather than attack the middle. If he kills us with jumpers, so be it, but its better than him getting into the paint for cheap buckets all while getting our bigs in foul trouble at the same time. The game is going to be won or lost at the charity stripe tonight for the Trail Blazers. During their 89-77 loss on February 9th, the Thunder attempted twice as many free throws as the Blazers, 28 to 14. Granted, Portland was without Roy and had not yet acquired Marcus Camby, but in such a low scoring game with all other statistics comparable, it was their ability to get to the stripe which was the difference. OKC really possess only one legit big man in Kristic and he is further away from being a defensive nightmare than I am from being a member of Cirque Du Soleil. Andre needs to use his veteran craftiness to bait Westbrook into some fouls while Aldridge must use his size advantage in owning Green down on the blocks. I think Portland must get to the stripe at least 20 times tonight to have a chance, because you can't expect your starters to shoot over 75% from the floor once again, let alone on back to back nights. Although each Blazer stater has a Player Efficiency Rating above 17 and have carried the Trail Blazer load the previous two games, it's foolish to think they can perform at this level for the remainder of the season. All elite teams have benches they can rely upon and right now, ours is too sporadic to lean on in times of need. Tonight, that must change. Bayless has looked a little better, letting the game come to him rather than rushing each movement out there. Rudy has been more aggressive on defense, playing the passing lanes, but his patented three-point shooting has been off, a little too off. His percentage from beyond the arc is down from 39.9% lat season to 37.5% this year and has hit a recent cold streak, hitting only 3 of his last 14 over the course of the last three games. Marty has been down right chilly since his hot January, but I did like his play late in the game against New Orleans. He didn't settle for contested jumpers, rather he put the ball on the floor and got to the line or made a play for someone else. The bottom line is our core bench of Howard, Bayless, Webster, and Fernandez is on another level compared to the Thunder's Harden, Maynor, Ibaka, and Collison. I'm not asking for much, but the 2nd unit needs to account for at least 20 points and not only sustain the intensity left from the starters but increase it. Portland is on a roll right now, winning 12 of their last 15 games, but not until the prior two wins they hadn't beat anyone worthy of writing home about. Both wins lately had been complete team efforts with great ball movement and suffocating defense. I look for this trend to continue mainly due to our superb veterans. I don't see OKC getting many offensive rebounds or keeping Portland off the glass with Camby and Aldridge's length inside and while we can throw Webster and Batum at Durant, who is going to slow down B-Roy when he's dialed in? Thabo, Please! At home, I think Roy feels more comfortable getting his teammates off to a good start first, but on the road, Brandon loves to assert himself to get the team's engine running. He's been incredibly efficient lately, and if he scores anywhere in the 25 point range on less than 15 shots, there is no way Portland doesn't walk away victorious. Portland will come out of the gates like a bat out of hell and never relinquish the lead. Dre frustrates the young Westbrook, Aldridge abuses the smaller Green, and the legend of Batum will continue to grow tonight as he gives Durant fits all night long. Game 74 Prediction: Trail Blazers 104 Thunder 91 Post-Game Thoughts This game was a classic case of experience defeating youth. Portland was in the exact same position as OKC last season, full of young, exciting talent that has never been tested in playoff-type environments. What a difference our three veteran players can make as Camby, Andre, and Juwan always had an answer when the Thunder came calling. Only twice did Portland trail in the game and each time only by one point. Every single time Portland upped the lead to 6-10 points, OKC would storm back but could never fully grasp the momentum, thanks in large part to said veterans. In particular, Andre had at least three one man fast breaks, Camby hits a foul line jumper off the dribble late in the 3rd to thwart OKC's run, and Juwan floated in the last Blazer field goal to put us up five with under two minutes to play. In a game that saw Portland get outplayed statistically, the added experience is an intangible asset not seen in box scores. "It was a gut check for our guys," said Blazer coach Nate McMillan. "We have been talking about winning back-to-back games. Just a lot of things we threw out as challenges for our guys. The fact that Oklahoma City was right in front of us (in the standings), we had an opportunity to close the gap on them." Speaking of being dominated by the box score, I don't think getting out-blocked 10-3, out-shot from the foul line 25-17, and getting out-rebounded 41-34 are long-term recipes for success. Don't blame the starters though, as each had a +/- rating of at least three. Our bench nearly gave away the game on several occasions, blowing each lead the first unit built. Rudy didn't even attempt a shot, Jerryd's shining moments included a three minute span where he hit a long-jumper and successfully operated the fast-break but for the most part looked out of sync all night, and Juwan, outside of a couple jump shots, got absolutely annihilated on the glass by Nick Collison and Serge Ibaka. All in the all, the Thunder bench tallied 23 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 blocks compared to Portland's 12 points, 2 rebounds, and zero blocks. Yes, the team has won 13 of their last 16, but our starters can not simply continue to shoulder this much of the load. Juwan, I'll give a pass, because he has surpassed all expectations and shouldn't be expected to manhandle the boards on a nightly basis at his age. Bayless needs to just play under control and have a plan when he attacks. Help-side defenses just salivate every time he drives the ball, because he doesn't find the open man enough, instead throws up a shot which gets sent into the 5th row. Rudy may be hurting, but he needs to find his stroke and give this team the boost he gave us early on his rookie year while Marty needs to know he's getting 10 minutes of run a night and just go all out with confidence. Have no fear of getting pulled and just have fun out there. People can talk about Durant being in the MVP talk or the next Jordan or whatever, and he is a very good player, not great, I need to wait and see what he does come playoff time before dubbing him "greatness", but I still see more McGrady in his game than Jordan. Make no mistake about it, he is an athletic freak: 6'10" with quickness, handles, range to boot. But I've yet to see him hit clutch shots. Last night was a perfect example. He was the reason his team was even in the game at all with his 13-15 effort at the charity stripes, but he missed every single field goal attempt in the 4th quarter and his shot selection was sketchy at best, pulling up for threes well beyond the arc. Until he can find that "it" factor in crunch time that players such as Roy, Bryant, and Wade obtain, he'll just be another fun scorer to watch. Maybe a lot of you out there think I am being too harsh on the third year, 22-year old player, and I probably am. But when he is being anointed as the second coming by all media outlets, its time to bring his game back down to earth. I felt Batum did a tremendous job getting physical with him and, for the most part, keeping him out of the paint, forcing him into jump shots. Roy had 22 points and 7 assists, but it wasn't a typical Roy night as it took him 22 shots to do his damage and Aldridge had his moments, but 14 points and 6 rebounds weren't the deciding factors last night. Rather it was Marcus Camby and Andre Miller leading the charge once again. Early on the the game, as Portland built their nine point first quarter lead, Kristic was active, getting his hands on every rebound, but who was there to always have the last tap and guide it to a teammate? Marcus Camby. Without him, we lose this game and many others and he gives the team a presence inside and as much as we love Joel and Greg, Marcus is capable of making a shot outside of five feet every now and then. He just always makes the right play. Re-signing him should be priority #1 this summer. On to Andre, what more can I say that already hasn't? He fully exposed Russell Westbrook for the young pup that he is and took every advantage to get the Trail Blazers easy buckets. With the way our entire starting 5 is gelling and if we can get any consistency from the bench, 50+ wins is a lock. "Tonight felt like a playoff game with their crowd," said Blazers center Marcus Camby, who had 11 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. "They have a great fan base here. It definitely felt like a playoff game." Official Game Photos Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers @ Hornets: Game 73

2010-03-26T11:40:00.001-07:00

Up next for the red hot Trail Blazers (43-29), winners of 11 of their last 14 games, are the struggling, but dangerous New Orleans Hornets (34-39) as their leader Chris Paul has returned from injury. Both teams have split the two previous meetings to date this season, with each team winning on the others home floor. Portland took the first matchup, 86-78 back on November 13th, behind 20 points and 13 rebounds from Aldridge, while New Orleans stole a sure Portland victory, 98-97, by coming back from 8 down in the final two minutes. It comes down to pride versus aspirations tonight. As their current records stand, Portland can eliminate New Orleans from the playoffs with a victory, and although the best the Hornets can do is delay the inevitable, I'm sure they don't want to get ousted on their home floor. On the other side of the court, Portland must keep their eyes on the prize of moving on up in the playoff standings. A quick two-game road sweep could have the Trail Blazers sitting pretty at the 6th seed out West. Trail Blazer fans probably thought, "Of course Chris Paul would return in time to play us!" when CP3 returned a little ahead of schedule from his ankle injury. Have no fear as it could be a blessing in disguise. First off, it means less playing time for outstanding rookie Darren Collison, who put up 18.2 points on 47.3% shooting, 9 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in 40 minutes of action over the span of 33 games. Secondly, CP3 is the best point guard in the league, hands down, but this will only be his 3rd game back after a two month hiatus from basketball, which means that not only will he not be as sharp as he'd like to be but the team needs to get acclimated to playing along side of him, which could shake up the chemistry temporarily. Finally, Paul just doesn't play that well against the Trail Blazers. In 15 career games against Portland, CP3's stats pale in comparison to his usual all-world self: 14.4 points, on 43.6 field goal shooting and 27.8% from distance, 8.7 assists, and 4.7 rebounds. The premier matchup will be the battle of the power forwards: LaMarcus Aldridge vs. David West. Both jump shooting first big men who, on occasion, find their inner ruthlessness and dominate inside. The key to victory for either team is who out-performs one another. Quite frankly, I'd take a push in a heartbeat, as our supporting cast is leaps and bounds more talented than theirs. Just like he defended Dirk, LaMarcus must get physical with West and force him out of his comfort areas on the floor. If he allows West to shoot a couple open mid-range shots and they fall, all of the sudden the tough, contested shots start to drop. He usually gets those open looks off of Paul drives to the hole, so it is imperative the team fights through all screens and keeps the action out of the paint. Portland's 12 game streak of scoring 100+ on the road fell hard this past Sunday in Phoenix as they only were able to muster 87 points on a Suns team which gives up a 3rd worst, 106.1 points per game. While New Orleans isn't that generous in allowing the opposition to score, they still rank 10th worst in points allowed at 102.4 per night. Portland is 25-8 when scoring 100 or more, and as cliche as it sounds, if they get to the century mark, they'll win. If not, it could be mean one of two things. First, NO effectively executed a zone defense on us as we failed to bust it with outside shooting. Or, it could just be your classic, sloppy game, where no one can hit the broad side of a barn and turnovers are plentiful, similar to the game back in November between the same teams. Its one thing to say score 100+ but how can the Trail Blazers achieve that goal? Look for Dre Miller to run at any opening he sees, but not be reckless about it. I thought the team played a perfect match of uptempo as well as half-court ball in last night's win over Dallas, surely pleasing both Roy and Miller. Brandon was a quiet assassin against Dallas, doing his job in only 7 field goal attempts, as he took what the defense gave him and his teammates were all filling it up, but watch out for him to be in beast mode against NO. With LA going toe to toe with West and the starting back court leading the charge, all the Trail Blazers need is to lock up win #44 is bench productivity, whether it be offensive or defensive. As CP3 returned, it moved Collison to the bench and for whatever reason Morris Peterson starts ahead of Marcus Thornton. I expect the bench to get outplayed by those two, but as long as the bench scoring is within a 6-8 point differential, Portland should be fine. The Trail Blazers looked too good against Dallas to go against them now. They are focused and know what is at stake. Portland will jump out on the Hornets, fight off a couple of valiant comeback attempts, but in the end, sow some killer instinct and swat the bugs away. Game 73 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Hornets 92 Post-Game Thoughts Only a quick 2-3 deficit in the opening moments of the game kept Portland from a wire to wire victory over New Orleans. In the end, the Trail Blazers jumped on the Hornets early, always maintaining at least a 5 point lead, and with 2:44 left in the half, Portland went for the kill. Knowing they could knock N.O. out of the playoff race with a win, the Blazers ended up outscoring the Hornets by 11 to take a commanding 57-41 lead into the half. Every player played their role to a tee, as Roy and Aldridge lead the way offensively with a combined 52 points, Andre handed out a game-high 8 assists, Camby was relentless on the glass to the tune of 14 boards, and Batum played lock-down defense on everyone from Marcus Thornton to Chris Paul resulting in a 112-101 Blazers victory. Although each player played to their strengths, make no mistakes about it, the entire team shot the lights out by going 57.3% from the floor and the starters shot 76.6%, highest percentage from the Portland starting unit since March 17th, 1985 against Atlanta when they shot 77.3%. (Courtesy of AGDuck) "It's nice to see the ball go in," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said. "We've got guys who can knock down shots. We want to establish the inside. I thought we did that with LaMarcus, Brandon and Andre. I thought we played from the inside out. We knocked down our shots. When our shots are falling, we get aggressive defensively." I felt Roy would be more assertive on the offensive end of the floor tonight after letting him teammates handle the bulk of the load against Dallas and boy was Brandon in beast mode tonight. Every shot he wanted, he got, he took, and he made. He was shooting threes, driving to the hoop, mid-range isolations, and posting up smaller defenders. When he went to the blocks, demanding the rock, and just did anything he wanted out of the triple threat position, it was like watching Kobe Bryant dissect the defense, only Roy does it so much more efficiently. One game after shooting 5-7 from the floor, Brandon scores 28 points on an absurd 12-14 shooting and found his teammates by passing out 7 dimes while committing zero turnovers. Sportscasters and casual fans may believe guys such as Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant are the most potent offensive pure scorers in the game, but they are high-volume shooters. Brandon lets the game come to him and has to be one of the most efficient players in the game and I'll take that over 30 points on 25 shots any day of the week. "Coming in I didn't feel over aggressive," Roy said. "I just tried to make plays. I know early on they put (Marcus) Thornton on me. I just tried to get something going more towards the basket. My mid-range was falling so I think any time that's going it's going to be tough to defend." "They were trying to push me in the middle. I just tried to take what they gave me. ... I felt good. From that first shot he hit my elbow but it felt good. I was pump-faking and jabbing and when that mid-range is kind of going for me I'm in a really good groove. Making shots early helps because it gives you confidence." For the second straight game, Portland excelled in three critical categories: free throw attempts, points in the paint, fast-break points. Portland was aggressive and unselfish all at the same time, which culminated in the extra pass being made as either foul shot attempts or an easy bucket down low were the end result. Once again, Portland outscored an opponent in the paint, 42-38, and they did it as a team. It wasn't one-on-one drives to the hoop, rather it was ball movement, swinging from one side of the court to another, followed by a great back cut to allow that extra pass to be made. A 23-17 advantage isn't much at the charity stripe, but an eight-point differential at the stripe is as the Trail Blazers hit 20 of their 23 while New Orleans only managed to hit 12 of 17, including one ugly air-ball from Okafor. Scoring eight fast-break points is nothing to write home about, even for one of the worst breaking team in the NBA, but stifling the Hornets to only three points in transition when they possess two of the top point guards in the game, who always hoop with their heads up, is down right amazing. The hot shooting of the Blazers negated any chances the Hornets had to leak out as well as great transition defense, always finding their man and applying pressure. Watch out NBA, Portland is finally healthy and clicking. The team chemistry which aided in their 54 wins last season seems to finally arrived over this past month, seen by winning 12 of their 15 games since the Utah incident on February 21st. What clicked? Personally, three players have made the difference: Marcus Camby, LaMarcus Aldridge, Nico Batum. Camby's last six games have seen rebound outputs of 17, 7, 6, 19, 16, and 11. No longer do the Blazers have to expend all of their energy on the glass, which has seen a stronger Aldridge emerge on the offensive end. Speaking on Aldridge, he out-shined West tonight, and in many instances when I get excited about his outing, it had to do with his body language and ways in which he scored. Tonight he showed his touch from the perimeter but also worked the smaller David West in the post and had multiple drives to the hoop, something that will take him to elite status. All in all, his stat line read 24 points, on 11-16 shooting, and 5 rebounds all while, along with Camby, helping hold Okafor and West to a combined 8 boards. Finally, what more can we say about Batum? Last game he defends Dirk and tonight he locks down CP3. At the end of the half, Paul tried to do his shake and bake, quickly dribble between the legs, then fall away for the mid-range jumper. He tried, yet got denied as the length of Batum deflected the ball. He was a big reason why CP3 only was able to score 7 points on 3-8 shooting and only two free throw attempts. Be afraid Western Conference, be very afraid! Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers vs. Mavericks: Game 72

2010-03-25T10:01:00.000-07:00

After a three day layoff, Portland (42-29) heads home for a quick one-game stay against a team they have had surprisingly great success against this season, the Dallas Mavericks (47-24). After being swept last season, 3-0, Portland has accomplished something no one thought possible, winning twice in American Airlines Center and doing so under the most improbable conditions. The first victory, 85-81, occurred two weeks after Greg Oden went down with a broken kneecap and in the 2nd quarter, Portland saw their rock, Joel Przybilla go down with a similar, yet much more devastating injury. To prove the win in December was no fluke, the Trail Blazers pulled an even bigger rabbit out of their hat by dethroning Dallas again, this time in overtime, 114-112, behind 52 points from Andre Miller. Oh, yeah, the Blazers pulled this miracle off without Brandon Roy as well as not having the two big centers inside either. Will the Cinderella run continue tonight against Dallas or will another long break between games get the best of the Blazers again? Although Portland defeated Dallas twice already this year, you may almost want to throw that out the window this time around. Both teams brought in entirely different personnel since the last meeting in January and its safe to say both teams are significantly better, whether it be through trades, health, or any other factor. Dallas robbed Washington in acquiring Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood, while Portland obtained Camby and now have a roster full of healthy players, including Brandon Roy. In a sense, this is the first matchup between Dallas and Portland this season and will go a long way to seeing how we truly line up against the Mavs if we end up facing each other in the playoffs. Right now Dallas is 2nd and with a win, Portland moves into 7th. If the Blazers can somehow win these upcoming two games at home against the Mavericks, there should be no reason why Portland should not be favored to beat them in a playoff series. If the Trail Blazers are serious about catching some of these teams above them, they need to show it tonight. Lay it all on the floor. Although the defense was pretty good against the Suns, too many times did I see Amare rip a rebound away from one of our guys or Robin Lopez out-hustle someone and come away with the board. Dallas, although a lock for the playoffs, if fighting for their lives as well. They are in a virtual dead heat for 2nd place in the West with Denver and Utah, and obtaining home court throughout the 1st two rounds of the playoffs is a immensely important. Dallas needs this win just as much as we do and if we don't come out aggressive, they'll come into our house and take it right out of our hands. I'm not singling out any one player, coach, or member of the organization. Everyone needs to play with a little desperation tonight. Brandon Roy. I don't think there is a bigger key to the game tonight than #7. Anyone notice lately how badly we struggle when he is off his game and how much easier he makes the game for everyone else when he is his normal Roy-Wonder self? Take a look at the Trail Blazers 7-2 mark in March, where in Portland wins, Brandon averages 24.1 points, shoots 46.2% from the field (55-119), gets to the foul line 9 times a night, and only attempts 3.1 three-point attempts. On the flip side, during the two losses in that span to the Nuggets and the Suns, B-Roy tallied a mere 17.5 points on a very un-Roy like 28.2% (11-39), only manages 7 trips to the charity stripe, while shooting 4.5 threes. There are a couple conclusions derived from these statistics. First, only one team above .500 was defeated in the nine-game sample (Memphis), and when the competition heated up, Roy played his worst. Now, I wouldn't shoulder Roy with all the blame, as teams have been known to pack in on Roy, sending double teams at him constantly, forcing his teammates to step up. Basketball is a team game, so we can give Roy a little pass there, but what is a little unnerving is the fact that when Roy performs poorly, the foul shot attempts go down while three-point field goals jacked up increase. What Brandon needs to do to take the next step in his game is to find a way to the line, no matter how poorly he is shooting on the night. Guys like LeBron, Wade, and Kobe always find ways to put pressure on the D, even if their shot has temporarily abandoned them for the night. For Portland to walk away victorious, Roy needs to get to the charity stripe 10+ times, score around his average, but do so efficiently. It is a Thursday night on TNT, so chances are The Natural will be out in full force tonight. Outside of Roy doing what he does, there is no magical stat barrier the Blazers need to reach in order to get win #43. They just need to play tough, out-physical the Mavericks, even a few hard fouls by Juwan would help, and force the action inside. Obviously, we have to hit better than 2-17 from I-5 to ensure the Mavs don't pack the paint and beg us to shoot from the perimeter, but any chance we get to run, go! I'm going to go the optimistic route tonight and say the rust won't hinder the Blazers too badly and the Rose Garden crowd will be quick to forget the last team appearance on Friday. Portland fights tooth and nail with Dallas, but Nico will once again harass Dirk on those tough, fade away jump shots while Brandon will have an answer every time down to the floor for the Mavericks. It's Brandon Roy, TNT Thursday night, how can you not think he won't impress? Game 72 Prediction: Trail Blazers 101 Mavericks 97 Post-Game Thoughts After falling behind quickly, 6-0, to start the game, I feared for the worst. Portland failed to come out of the gate strong, Dallas would catch fire, and it would be an uphill climb the entire night with moments of momentum only to be stopped short each time. Luckily, it was just a bump in the road as Portland countered the Dallas 6-0 run to start the game with a 32-21 run to end the quarter. Once the lead was achieved, it was never lost. It took an entire team effort for the Trail Blazers to win their third consecutive game over the Mavericks as LaMarcus Aldridge (20 pts, 10 rebs), Marcus Camby (17 pts, 11 rebs), and Andre Miller (19 pts and 10 assts) all recorded double doubles while Brandon Roy had a quiet, yet extremely efficient and effective outing by dropping 17 points on only 7 shots (made 5), got to the stripe 8 times, handed out 7 assists, and grabbed 4 rebounds. "I just tried to be patient and take the looks that were good," said Roy, who scored 16, well below his 22.2 average. "This was a team effort. Everybody stepped up tonight." Not only did Aldridge rack up a double-dip, but also pitched in with 5 assists, 1 block, and a steal. It wasn't his offense tonight that blew me away, rather the defense played on arguably the best power forward in the league, Dirk Nowitzki. Standing 7'0" tall with handles like a guard, the quickness of a small forward, and range unmatched by anyone in the game, sometimes you just have to hope and pray Dirk is off his game while trying to defend him. Aldridge did about as good a job you'll see though. He bodied him, got a little nasty with him, maybe forcing him out of his comfort zone. LA never, ever let Nowitzki get free for an open look to get his rhythm and confidence flowing. I've said it before and said it again, when Aldridge plays like the star he can be, Portland gets taken to an elite level. Finally, there is someone else to take the pressure off of Roy, allowing him to dissect the defense. "I was trying to body him, not let him catch a rhythm," said Aldridge, a Dallas native. "The team did a good job of attacking him from different spots. He never really figured out our schemes." Three stats tell the entire story about the game: points in the paint, fast break points, free throw attempts. While Dallas got hot at times shooting jump shots, mainly Caron Butler (11-19 for 25 pts), they were stationed out on the perimeter all game long. I was proud of the boys for not settling for long-distance jump shots, rather forcing the issue inside which lead to a unexpected, yet welcomed 44-35 interior advantage. Dead last in the NBA when it comes to points in transition, Portland turned the tables around on Dallas and pushed the tempo. After the dust had settled, Portland torched Dallas 16-0 in the fast break department, picking and choosing their spots to run brilliantly. Andre Miller, in particular, had his head up the whole game, always finding a fellow teammate leaking out ahead or contributing with a "hockey assist". Not only did we run and attack the paint, but by being the aggressors, Nate's bunch got to the charity stripe 17 more times than Dallas. "We played a complete game tonight," McMillan said. "Our defense was good. We were the aggressors on both ends of the floor." After watching the "new look" Mavericks, I am totally sold on playing them in the playoffs. Although, I wouldn't bank on meeting Dallas in the playoffs as the West is so bunched up from 2-5 and 6-8 so anyone trying to predict the end of the season standings would have better luck putting team hats in front of a zoo animal and seeing which two at a time they grab. What makes a matchup so desirable against Dallas is the fact we are two similar teams with one true superstar surrounded by a good, deep cast of players. Dirk and Roy are on the same level in my opinion, but I feel like we have more defenders to throw at him than the Mavs do at Brandon. Give me Andre over Kidd and Camby over Haywood any day of the week and I'll take my chances on Aldridge outperforming Butler. What really is tripping up Dallas right now is the down year Jason Terry is having as he is scoring 3 less a night (16.9 from 19.6) and shooting has plummeted from 46.3% in '09 to 43.8% in '10. If any one of our young, promising players such as Rudy, Batum, or Bayless match Terry on a nightly basis, I see no reason we can't pull off a first round upset. Official Game Photos Box Score &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Trail Blazers @ Suns: Game 71

2010-03-21T11:45:00.000-07:00

After flirting with disaster Friday night against Washington, Portland (42-28) heads down to the valley of the sun to take on Phoenix (43-26). Normally the run and gun Suns have been a thorn in the Trail Blazers side, yet recently Portland has controlled the series, winners of four straight dating back to last season. Wins this season have included a thrilling, 105-102 come from behind win and a wire-to-wire 108-101 victory in US Airways Center before the All-Star break. Portland has exercised many road demons this year, San Antonio, Dallas X2, Golden State, and even Phoenix, where Portland had lost their previous nine trips. Recent history gives Portland the advantage going into tonight's battle, but it is extremely difficult sweeping a season series from a team, let alone winning twice in an arena known to be unkind to the visitors from the northwest. With only 12 games left in the season, every game counts ands means more as the season winds down, but I can't think of a more bigger game the rest of the year than tonight. The Trail Blazers are only 1.5 games out of 5th place in the Western Conference and only two games behind the Suns in the loss column. A win and the Blazers sneak within a game of the Suns while a loss puts them three full games back, nearly an insurmountable deficit with so little time remaining in the season. As mentioned, there are only 12 games left, and tonight is one of six swing games (Phoenix, Dallas x2, @OKC, @LA, @Denver), meaning Portland may not be favored to win but needs to pull out at least one or two of these "swing" games if they have any aspirations of getting as high as 5th in the West. Obviously the focus was lost somewhere between shoot-around and tip-off for the Wizards game, something that can not happen against the caliber of opponent like Phoenix. Two players will decide Portland's fate tonight, Nico Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge. If I were Coach Nate, I'd stick Batum and his long arms all over Steve Nash the entire game, hounding him at every opportunity, and making him work hard for everything he gets. The ageless wonder Nash has been battling back injuries and his stamina isn't once what it used to be. He is the ringleader of that offense, the pilot, engineer, etc, and if Batum can disrupt any of his rhythym, it could throw off the entire Suns offensive flow. While Nico will have his hands full with Nash, LA needs another gut check tonight against Amare Stoudamire. The L-Train was out in full force Sunday night in his head-to-head matchup with Chris Bosh, and he'll need to bring the same type of aggression and assertiveness needed to hang with STAT. Amare is coming off a once in a lifetime performance again Utah as he tallied 44 points on a insane 14-16 from the floor and 16-18 from the charity stripe. Its one thing if he's canning his jumper, but to contain him, Aldridge must not allow the blow-by drives to occur. Anytime you deal with the Suns, priority #1 is to defend the three-point line. As a team, Phoenix shoots the three at a .406 clip, good enough for tops in the league. Nash, Hill, Barbosa, Frye, Dragic, Richardson, Hill, and Dudley are all marksmen from deep and the Suns always have a minimum of three long-range shooters on the court at once, so the Trail Blazers can not be lazy on their rotations otherwise it'll be raining trifectas in the desert. I believe the key to victory is to hold them to around 35% from distance. Although Phoenix shot 47.6% and 36.4% respectively during the previous two meetings, allowing that type of shooting again is a recipe for disaster. I'm extremely excited for this matchup, more so than usual, considering I'll be in attendance tonight at the US Airways Center. I only wish we would have lost the last game in Arizona, because the chances of winning in the desert twice in one season are incredibly slim. I don't expect either Nash or Amare to completely take over, rather look for role players such as Grant Hill or Channing Frye to heat up and hit momentum boosting shots to keep Portland at bay the entire night. The Trail Blazers will be within striking distance, but the hot shooting Suns will always have an answer. Game 71 Prediction: Trail Blazers 98 Suns 105
Post-Game Thoughts
In a game the Trail Blazers just had to have if they wanted any shot at catching the Suns, they fell just short. The shooting eye deserted them the entire night, shooting a combined 32-88 (36.4%) and missing half of their total missed free throws with under five minutes to go in the 4th to seal the deal for Phoenix. Defensively, Portland couldn't have played too much better, outside of fighting through more screens, as they held a high-octane Suns offense to a miniscule 93 points and only allowed 7-23 from three-point range. Portland outplayed Phoenix in all other facets of the game, committing six less turnovers (10 to 4), stealing four more passes (5 to 1), blocking four more shots (7 to 3), and even winning the points in the paint battle by six (42 to 36). In the end, it was one strategic move by Coach Gentry which had Portland on their heels.
For about 42 minutes, Portland controlled the tempo by playing ugly and taking advantage of mismatches on the offensive end of the court. Andre was the catalyst to jump start the Blazer offense and tallied 22 points (7-2)),including 8-9 from the stripe, 9 assists, and 3 rebounds for the contest, doing most of his damage on the blocks against Stave Nash. As the jump shots weren't dropping, scoring in the interior was the only way to generate offense. Roy found his way to the rack a few times, Howard scored at least six of his eight in the paint, and the L-Train did most of his damage (16 points) by running the break or picking us loose balls for put backs. Through three quarters, this strategy was working, as the Trail Blazers lead, 68-64, heading into the final period. It was still a back and forth affair until Alvin Gentry caught the Blazers off guard by switching up his defense from straight man to man to a 2-3 zone.
Portland ended up only shooting a dismal 2-17 from three, which is why the zone was so brilliant. Really, the only way to break a zone is to shoot out of it. Portland seemed utterly unprepared for such a change in defensive strategy and failed to adapt on the fly. Instead of trying some high-low or flashing cutters to the open areas of the zone, the team got stagnant on offense and ended up forcing up contested jump shots as the shot clock winded down. While we struggled to muster any sort of offense in the 4th quarter (19 pts), Phoenix rode the hot shooting of reserve forward Jared Dudley for I believe eight straight points at one juncture of the 4th quarter to give the Suns the lead for good.
"Our defense was great; their defense was great," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "We did a great job in the zone. For the most part, we made them take tough shots."
What is most alarming/upsetting about this current groups of Trail Blazers is their philosophies on offense compared to their actual strengths. As a team, I'd say our biggest weakness is our outside shooting. Honestly, I think we lost three of our top four long-range shooters off of last year's team in Channing Frye, Steve Blake, and Travis Outlaw. Batum has become pretty accurate and has a beautiful stroke, but Webster, Rudy, and Aldridge seem to have taken a step back in consistency this season. Essentially, we are a jump-shooting team without any real sharp shooters. I know I harp on this a lot on this blog, but please, can we attack the rim a little bit more? Our guards especially, Roy, Miller, and Jerryd, are much more suited to get to the cup than simply stroke jumpers throughout the game. I'd rather see them initiate the offense by driving and setting up our more spot-up shooters in Marty and Rudy.
Notes: As mentioned, I did attend the game in Phoenix, AZ and must say that we, as Trail Blazers fans, should feel very blessed about our team, fan base, arena, and everything about the Blazers. The atmosphere inside US Airways Center was sporadically mediocre at best, as fans only stood for a few seconds when the jumbotron told them so. They have no Todd Bosma and their game operations during timeouts and halftime were uneventful. Even the famous Suns Gorilla hardly did any tricks at all and wasn't present for much of the game. Their fan shop was larger and much more roomer than ours and I love the fact they have an open concourse inside the arena for any fans, even ones without tickets, to use and take part in activities before the game. Finally, do not take for granted the stat board! While the RG has stats for both players and teams at your every disposal, in the US Airways Center, there were many boards, but they cycled through the different stats, meaning it took a while to see what you're looking for. Although, their out of town scoreboard knocks ours out of the park as it was much larger, easier to read, and actually provided the top performers for each team as well as the time and quarter. Overall it was a fun experience seeing a different venue, but it only made me appreciate the Rose Garden that much more.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers vs. Wizards: Game 70

2010-03-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

After what has seemed like a longer than four-day layoff, the Trail Blazers (41-28) head back to the grind of the NBA schedule to face the Wizards (21-45). If Portland can overcome the obstacle of being rusty after such a long rest, the perfect storm could be brewing in the Rose City. The Trail Blazers are Red Hot & Rollin', winners of nine of their last 11 while the Wizards have dropped nine straight and are a sub-par 9-23 away from home this season. Not to mention, Portland dropped one earlier this year in D.C., 97-92, in a game in which they had no business losing.
We will get to see just how well Portland practiced during the week, because if they come out flat and lackadaisical, the focus obviously wasn't there at the practice facility. On the other hand, if our boys can jump on them early and look crisp and sharp, the intent and attention to detail was made a priority throughout the week. I only harp on this so frequently, due to the fact the team is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde when it comes to the 2010 season. Portland owns an amazing 13-3 record on the 2nd half of back to backs, but always seems to trip over their own feet if they get more than 2 days rest, only going 7-5 in such scenarios. The team has two huge games coming up, at Phoenix and against the scorching Mavericks, so it is important to not overlook the 2nd worst team in the Eastern Conference. I have no doubts the Garden crowd will provide the energy tonight as they have been like starved animals over the course o these four days without Blazers basketball and are ready to make some noise!
One player who can ruin this night for the Blazers is young, big man Andray Blatche. Since the Wizards had their fire sale, Blatche has answered the bell for Washington, putting up 24.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1 block per night since the All-Star Break. Although he is shooting 53.2% from the field in the same span, there is still not a shot he doesn't like and with the green light stuck on automatic for the rest of the season, he should be letting them fly tonight. It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to see Andray make his first couple outside jump shots, because then he may believe it is the spot for him to be shooting tonight and as the game stretches out, shooting percentages from outside tend to drop. LaMarcus needs to be physical with him in keeping him away from the paint and also make him work on the defensive end of the floor as well.
Honestly, Portland could get this win with their eyes closed and one arm tied behind their back, but if they want a solid building block, heading into the Suns game, the bench is going to have to lead the charge. Outside of Roy going postal on the rest of the NBA this past week, leading to Western Conference Player of the Week honors, the 2nd unit has really been clicking. If Rudy can continue not only his hot three-point shooting, but play-making ability in the open-court, Jerryd keeps working on that jumper of his to set up drives to the basket, and getting whatever we can out of Dante and Marty, the Trail Blazers will run away with this one quite easily. If the Blazer bench gets 30 or more points, this game will be a 15+ point blowout. I think the lower you see the bench points, the closer the outcome of the game will be.
After reading Marc Spears' piece about Brandon trying to find his inner ruthlessness, I have a feeling we are going to see B-Roy get downright nasty on the court the rest of the way. Look for Roy to assert himself early by getting into the heart of the Wizard defense, setting the tone right for the rest of his teammates. After he achieves that, the team will follow suit. Brandon could easily get 30, but he may not have to as the game could get out of hand quickly. Complimenting Brandon will be the L-Train. For whatever reason, I have a feeling this team is on a mission to not just make the playoffs but to be the hottest team heading into post-season play. Everyone, even Travis Diener, gets in on the fun tonight. Blazers win big!
Game 70 Prediction: Trail Blazers 110 Wizards 86
Post-Game Thoughts
"After (the game-winner), I was just laughing, 'Hey, I made a shot.' And it was one that won an important game for us."
Laugh. What more can you do after one of the sloppiest, most lousy performances ever staged on the Rose Garden floor? A game that saw a combined 150 points tallied, only three more than the snail-paced Spurs dropped on the Warriors the same night, on 35.4% shooting (55-155), including a dysmal 5-20 from long range, and a pedestrian 35-49 from the charity stripe (71.4%); a poor shooting display on all facets of the game. A game so poorly played and executed, the players should be ashamed for making the Basketball Gods roll over in their graves after watching it.
Portland looked as if they would run away with it after obtaining a 42-26 lead early on in the 2nd quarter. As usual, the Blazers failed to keep their foot on the gas pedal and let the Wizards of all teams sneak back into the game. Lazy rotations lead to Washington, sharp shooter Mike Miller heating up a bit, canning 5-11 shots for a team-high 16 points and a failure to fight through screens saw Rnady Foye heat up and nearly win the game single handily. He scored 7 of his 11 points all within the last three minutes of the game, including a three-pointer to give the Wizards their first lead of the 2nd half, 70-69. Time after time, each jumper was drilled off of the high pick and roll, so obvious even Brian Wheeler, Trail Blazers radio play-by-play analysis, knew the play was coming. It makes one wonder what is being watched at the practice facility, Spongebob Squarepants or game film?
Ever since being dealt for one another on Draft Day 2006, the two have been permanently linked to one another and for once it looked as if Randy Foye would enact some revenge and upstage Brandon Roy, seeing how Roy is known for his clutch game winners, team success, and personal accolades. Roy started out on fire, going 3-3 from the field, looking as if he was on his way to a monster night when the shooting eye deserted him. This was no normal mini-slump; Roy missed 14 straight shots after the torrid start. With the game knotted up at 74 and 20 seconds remaining, who else do you want to have the ball in their hands? "That's the guy you're going to live with," McMillan said. "He is very capable of making that shot. He plays in that situation a lot." Like the supertar he is, Roy confidently stpepped up and hit the game winning jumper, saving Portland from a terrible defeat in the ever-so-tight Western Conference race.
"We wanted to get Brandon in the pick-and-roll if they were playing him straight up," McMillan said. "Spread the floor and put the shooters out there and let him go. And he hit an unbelievable shot."
"I wanted to step back and shoot it, but he jumped so high, I had to step in. I could have tried to draw the foul, but he did a good job of jumping away from me. When it left, it felt good, but they all felt good. I was just happy it went in."
I'm not quite sure what to make of this current groups of Trail Blazers. Every time I expect them to figure it out and destroy a team they should, they play poorly and revert back to their old, terrible habits of being lazy on rotations and settling for outside, contested jump shots. On the other hand, whenever I seem to think they are overmatched, with not a prayer to win, they'll pull off a miracle. For whatever reason, we do not play crsip or sharp after more than two days of rest, so I'll chalk up this lackluster performance due to the long layoff, but only this one.What fans need to realzie, myself included, is the NBA schedule is a six month grind on the body, both physically and mentally, and over the course of an 82 game season, lapses are bound to happen. It's impossible to be 100% focused, 100% of the time. What separates the good from the great teams are the frequencies in which these lapses occur. Quite frankly, the Trail Blazers aren't a great team, yet, but with what has happened this year, I'll take a 42-28 record with a smile on my face.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Andre Miller: The Unsung Hero

2010-03-17T10:08:00.001-07:00

If a poll asked Blazer fans about their take on Team MVP, I'm sure the majority of votes would go to Brandon Roy, rightfully so, a reigning 2nd Team All-NBA performer and 3-time All-Star. A handful would select LaMarcus Aldridge as the most valuable, due to his ability to take the squad to a higher level when he is playing to his potential. The remaining few may point out the Trail Blazers recent trend of winning 9 of 11 has to do with Nicolas Batum being inserted into the starting lineup. Just as he was overlooked and passed by during free agency, Andre Miller ended up being the top free agent signee of 2009 and, to date, Portland's MVP.
While the likes of Hedo Turkoglu, Charlie Villanueva, and Ben Gordon headlined the '09 free agent crop, each of those players has not lead their team to winning records through mid-March, have seen their numbers drop significantly, and all garnered immense, multi-year contracts in the $50 million range. On the other hand, Dre had no suitors. His former team Philadelphia decided to go in another direction and was even passed over by Portland twice, thought of more so as a backup plan than anything else. Even at the time of the signing, it was thought KP was trying to salvage something with the team's cap space after being burnt twice already.
Feeling slighted already by the fact no one mentions his name as one of the game's 10 best point guards, Andre went about his business, using the feeling of being unsought after in the open market to fuel his fire. Not only were many other GM's guilty of failing to notice Miller's value, so were many of the Trail Blazer fans. The signing of Andre divided fans as the Willamette does the city of Portland. One side represented supporters of bringing in Andre, knowing his veteran presence and rock-solid consistency would be an asset to an already young Trail Blazer team. The other viewed Dre as a horrible compliment to Roy, who prefers to play with the ball in his hands and arugued Steve Blake was a much better fit due to his ability to knock down jump shots, a knock on Miller his entire career (.212 from 3). Nothing new to Andre, rather increasing an already large chip on his shoulder used to drive his motivation.
As the summer-long debate blew up radio airways and internet message boards, Miller quietly went about his duties heading into training camp when it was time to prove he should be the starting point guard. After a pre-season in which he completely outplayed Blake, Miller was still delegated to the bench after it was rumored Coach Nate sat down with both players, letting them know whomever will start will win the job during the pre-season. Media tried to spin it as a better "fit" as Blake could play alongside Roy while Dre could lead the younger, less experienced 2nd unit. After a lethargic and unexpected 2-3 start to the season, Andre was inserted into the starting line which propelled Portland to win six in a row. Only one catch, Blake was the shooting guard, pushing Roy to small forward, a move forcing him to guarding bigger, stronger, and faster players. Although the move resulted in the Blazers longest winning streak of the season, many knew it wasn't a long-term fit. Roy was getting unhappy playing out of his natural position, so the Miller signing still felt like trying to stick a square peg into a round hole.
After being added to the starting lineup on November 6th, just 15 days later on November 21st, Andre found himself back on the bench, despite being 7-2 as the starting point guard, as Portland went with a more traditional lineup, moving Roy back to the 2 and Webster replacing him as the small forward. Not only did Dre's production fall off, averaging pedestrian numbers of 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists through November, but the entire team was inconsistent due to numerous factors, from having too many players needing playing time to undefined roles. Suddenly the once thought-to-be darkhorse team to dethrone the Lakers had to worry about simply making the playoffs. After a 1-3 road trip putting the Trail Blazers record at a uninspiring 14-11, it was time for change. Insert Andre Miller.
On December 15th, Andre was the given the keys to the offense and this time he had Roy alongside him, not Blake. Andre's steady hand has lead the Trail Blazers to a 27-17 record since his permanent fixture as Portland's starting point guard as well as putting the Blazers on pace to win 50 games in back to back seasons for the first time since 99-00/00-01, an amazing feat considering all the injuries this team has dealt with. A season that saw both centers, Oden and Przybilla, end their seasons in December with kneecap injuries, felt the absence of Roy for nearly a month with a nagging hamstring injury, and only had Martell Webster and Andre Miller as the only two Blazers to play in all 69 games to date. While Roy was out the majority of January, Andre did his finest work as a Trail Blazer, posting season-high month averages of 18.8 points on 50% field goal shooting, 6.7 assists, 4 rebounds, and doing so by logging 36 minutes a night on his 33 year-old body. Highlights included his 52 point, superhuman performance in a 114-112 victory in Dallas.
The bottom line is even though Portland has more talented players, without the consistency Miller brought to the table every night, with every other Blazers seemingly in and out of the lineup with injuries, Portland would be no where near the playoff race right now. There would be no Rip City Uprise 2010. At a point and multiple points during the season where it felt like all hope was lost for the 2010 Blazers, Dre always made that one important play to secure the win and always keep our heads afloat in the Western Conference playoff race, never allowing the Trail Blazers to fall below the 8th and final playoff spot. At 33, he still has impressive numbers, averaging 13.7 points, 5.4 assists, and 3.3 rebounds in 30.7 minutes per game. Based on his Per 36 minutes production, his stats are as comparable if not better than the previous 3-4 years (16 pts, 6.4 asts, 3.9 rebs) so I don't think Dre plans on slowing down anytime soon. I doubt there will be any more debates as to whether Andre can play with Brandon or who should be the starting point guard for the 2011 Trail Blazers. For once in his career, he won't be overlooked or underestimated; he's earned himself that much.

Projecting The Playoff Opponents: Uprise '10

2010-03-15T13:37:00.000-07:00

With their ninth win in 11 games, Portland has earned themselves a 41-28 record, good enough to firmly entrench them in the playoff race. Barring anything out of the ordinary, it does seem like the Trail Blazers will be once again back in the NBA playoffs as they have a commanding five-game lead over 9th place Memphis (4 up in the loss column) and only two games back of the fifth place Thunder (4 back in the loss column). Realistically, I can only see Portland finishing as high as 5th and low as 8th, meaning there are only four teams we could end up seeing in the 2010 Western Conference Quarterfinals: Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, and Utah Jazz. An argument could be made about the possibility of playing Oklahoma City in the 4/5 matchup since they are only a half game out of 4th, but it would require us to leap-frog a Jazz team that is four games up on us already in the loss column and owns the tie-breaker, essentially meaning we are five behind Utah, an unlikely scenario. Los Angeles Lakers If the playoffs started today, it would once again be Blazers vs. Lakers, a clash of the bitterest of rivals which would certainly gain a lot of media attention. L.A. is a full three games ahead of 2nd place Denver and I don't see them handing over the #1 seed, meaning Portland would have to stay right where they are in order for this matchup to occur. Due to the unbalanced schedule, these two only duke it out three times, two of which already took place in the Rose Garden with Portland winning 107-98 and L.A. breaking their nine-game losing streak in the Rose City with their 99-82 victory. I see a lot of Trail Blazer fans calling for this series, wanting it more than anything. Maybe it's a sense of having nothing to lose, so why not dethrone Goliath? Whatever the reasoning, it is a grave mistake hoping this series takes place. I understand the sense of security Blazer fans have in winning all the home games against L.A., due to their 22-7 record over the Lakers since the Rose Garden opened their doors, but the Lakers are a totally different beast come playoff time. In fact, a Phil Jackson coached team has never lost a first round series, which is why I'd rather see them past Round 1. If we had a healthy Oden, I'd give us a much higher chance of defeating them, but currently, they have too much firepower. All of us saw just how physical Artest was able to play Roy in last year's playoffs and now that he's on the Lakers, he can focus 100% on his energy on defense and let others take on the scoring load. Don't get me wrong, the Rose Garden would be as hostile as ever for this series and Portland could play their guts out, but L.A. is too good to not get at least one win in Portland. Chance of Series Happening: 25% || Series Prediction: Lakers in 6 Denver Nuggets The most likest scenario to occur, because I see Denver holding off the Mavericks for 2nd place while I only see the Spurs falling enough for us to catch. To date, three of the four games have already been played and recorded with the Nuggets holding a 2-1 season series lead with their 97-94 win in Portland in late October due to many missed Trail Blazer free throws and last week's 118-106 massacre in the Mile High City. Portland enacted a little revenge with a sweet, 107-96, Christmas night win aided by Roy's 41. Unlike most out there, I would embrace this series as Denver is a little banged up right now, with both Ty Lawson and Kenyon Martin out indefinitely and the fact Denver hasn't faced not only a Blazer team clicking on all cylinders but this current team in general. Batum missed the two earlier games and Camby was out of the lineup in Denver. If he can stay out of foul trouble, there's not many other wing defenders I'd want checking Melo than Nico and I absolutely love the Miller/Billups head to head matchup. Also remember the Nuggets held Roy and Aldridge to a combined 28 points in the last meeting where Roy looked like his body was taken over by a 37 year old, overweight couch potato. Since, he has been awoken by teammate Martell Webster and averaged 29 points on over 60% shooting. Unfortunately, if there is one arena I hate playing in more than any other, it is the damn Pepsi Center. Of all of our "House of Horrors", it's the altitude of Denver which gives me the least amount of confidence in winning at. On the other hand, I don't think Denver would be able to win here either. It took missed free throws down the stretch for them to get their only win here since acquiring Chauncey. If Martin is indeed out for the playoffs, one has to increase Portland's chances of pulling up the upset, especially considering how Aldridge likes to pour it on to end seasons. I believe this would be a home dominated series with each team protecting their home courts. Chance of Series Happening: 35% || Series Prediction: Nuggets in 7 Dallas Mavericks Quite possibly the most unpredictable pairing of all realistic playoff opponents would be the Dallas Mavericks, because not only have they drastically changed since we saw them last, but the Blazers have as well. Dallas swung and hit a home run in their deal which sent Josh Howard to Washington for Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood which was vindicated by their recent 13 game winning streak, propelling them to a half game out of 2nd in the West. After being swept 4-0 last year, Portland turned the tide and is currently up 2-0 in the series by winning two straight in Big D. A bittersweet W came in late December, 85-81, after losing Joel to a torn patella and then Andre's out of nowhere 52 point heroic performance leading Portland to a 114-112 victory. The next two matches between these two squads on March 25th and April 9th will tell a lot about how both these teams truly measure up to one another. Portland sweeps, fans should expect a first round advance. Dallas splits and more than likely Portland scares the living daylights out of them before gallantly bowing out similar to the 2003 series. What should give BlazerManiacs hope in a potential series with Dallas is their lack of a 2nd star to compliment Dirk Nowitzki. Terry is one of the best 6th men in the NBA but is on the slight decline this year in comparison to his 6th man award winning 08-09 season, Kidd is no better than Andre Miller in my eyes, and like Terry, Caron Butler has regressed in all categories across the board from his back to back All-Star seasons the previous two years. I expect Dallas to win at least one of the next two this season, still giving Portland the 3-1 season win. They have absolutely no answer for Brandon while Batum has proven he can affect Dirk's shots down the stretch. It would be a back and forth series, neither team seemingly able to take control until the final Game 7. In the end, Roy and Nowitzki would likely cancel each other out, leaving the series in the hands of Portland's young, yet talented supporting cast versus the playoff tested Maverick core. A slight nod goes to the Mavericks due to their veteran-laden team, having played in such situations before, and having the Game 7 played in their home arena. Chance of Series Happening: 30% || Series Prediction: Mavericks in 7 Utah Jazz I know a lot of Blazer fans have been dreading a playoff series against a Jazz squad which destroyed, dominated, and devastated us during their four-game sweep this season (108-92,106-95,118-105,93-89) but have no fear as this scenario has the least probability of happening. Utah is two games out of 3rd and three out of 2nd, but a notoriously sub-par road team will thwart any hope of them moving up. Although, a relatively easy 16 games remaining on the schedule including 10 of those teams being up .500 gives Utah a puncher's chance at moving up the Western Conference Totem poll. Call me crazy, but I would welcome this playoff series with open arms. Like Denver, Utah has not played us when we were gelling and playing up to our potential. The one game they played us with Camby we had a 25 point lead in the 3rd quarter. I realize we choked the lead away but give me that scenario any day of the week and twice on Sunday's and I'll take Portland all day. Dealing Ronnie Brewer and Eric Maynor really weakened their back court. As promising as undrafted rookie Wes Matthews has looked, he hasn't tasted playoff type basketball yet. Also, Utah is at a disadvantage by having two of their top three players playing the same position, power forward. I could seen Aldridge feasting off of either Boozer or Millsap and if they want to play both together, the Camby-Man would do some damage blocking shots and keeping possessions alive with offensive rebounds. Deron Williams would be the X-Factor. Throughout the four-game season series against Portland, D-Will put up some nasty numbers: 19.8 points, 11.8 assists, and 5.5 rebounds. As good as Williams has played against us, I'd like to see how he would handle a seven-game series with Nic Batum hounding him for 40+ minutes. If Batum could disrupt Williams at all, it would stall the potent Utah offense which has absolutely carved us up this year, shooting an absurd 54.9% combined over the span of four games. While we could at least throw out Batum to fluster D-Will, who exactly is going to step up on challenge Brandon? For Portland to shock the basketball world with this series upset, Roy would have to play like his 2nd Team All-NBA self of 09. I like the Blazers to steal one of the first two games in Utah and hold serve at home court like the Rockets did last year to get out of the first round! Chance of Series Happening: 15% || Series Prediction: Trail Blazers in 6

Trail Blazers vs. Raptors: Game 69

2010-03-14T12:45:00.000-07:00

March 14, 2010. A day Trail Blazer fans have been waiting for patiently since the NBA schedule was released. Tonight embarks the first time Hedo Turkolgu sets foot on the Rose Garden floor since he spurned the Trail Blazers (40-28) only instead to sign with his wife's choice, the Toronto Raptors (32-32). I truly didn't think anything would be able to surpass the level of noise exerted when Darius Miles returned last year with the Grizzlies, yet we may hear an all-time level of anger, frustration, and told-you-so at the RG tonight. See, many Blazer fans didn't want Hedo in the first place or were not upset we didn't end up with him. What pissed off Portlanders and Oregonians is the fact he turned our city down to go somewhere else. We are people who are very loyal to our region and take pride where we come from. If someone doesn't think it is good enough, we take offense. Although Hedo won the battle back on February 24th by scoring a game-high 24 points, Portland won the war by obtaining the 101-87 win.
Portland has caught some bad breaks this year in terms of playing teams who were scorching hot, but I couldn't have asked for a better time to be playing the Raptors. They are clinging onto the 8th seed in the East after losing eight of their last 10 games, are playing on the 2nd half of a back to back as well as this being their last game of their four-game road trip, and have not won a road game since beating the Nets in New Jersey back on February 19th. While the Raptors are in a free-fall, Portland hasn't been this hot or consistent since winning six in a row back in late November. The Blazers are 8-2 in their last 10 games and Brandon Roy has been awaken by the words of close friend Martell Webster, which has sparked Roy into averaging 29.3 point on 62.7% shooting.
Even though the statistics say Portland only scores 0.5 more points per game on the road than at home (98.5 to 98), the trends lately suggest a much wider disparity. Over the last 12 road games, the Blazers are en fuego, netting 107 a night compared to 92.6 points per night on the home floor over a similar 12-game span. For whatever reason, Portland has been down right disappointing this year at the Rose Garden. Their 21-13 record at home is 7th worst in the West and lowest winning percentage of all Western Conference playoff teams. We all saw the team flirt with disaster on Tuesday by only scoring 88 on a Kings team which gives up 104.8 points. Toronto possesses an even worse defense, allowing 105.9 points, bad enough for 5th most in the league. If Portland doesn't feel like bringing it for a full 48 tonight, this time they won't be so lucky as to walk away with an ugly win. Just as bad as they are defensively, Toronto is that good on offense, averaging an NBA 4th best 104.4 points, meaning the Raps have enough firepower on offense to sneak up on the Blazers tonight if Portland is in their usual lackadaisical Rose Garden ways.
There are too many key matchups tonight (Aldridge vs. Bosh, Miller vs. Jack, Batum vs. Turkolgu) to choose from. What did Portland do out of the ordinary over their last two wins? Shot free throws and lots of them. On the season, the Trail Blazers only average 25 attempts at the charity stripe, yet against Golden State they got to the line 37 times and matched it the following night with 32 freebies. Known to shoot too many jump shots for my liking, when I see the Blazers tally 30+ foul shots, it shows me they are being aggressive and assertive in going to the hoop. In some ways, its not the jump shot that upsets me, its the way in which it is being taken. If it comes off of dribble penetration and wide open, I've got absolutely no problem in taking it, but those one-on-one, contested jumpers or the "hot potato" shots where the ball is simply swung around the perimeter with no movement is what irritates me. The Trail Blazers are 3rd best in the NBA by shooting 79.1% from the foul line, and if they get above their average of 25 attempts at the line, it should lead to a Blazers win.
Toronto will come out fired up after their superstar Chris Bosh erupted in the locker room after the recent performance of his team, but if Portland can withstand the initial burst of energy and effort the Raps come out with, slowly but surely Toronto's will to win will be diminished. It should be a close game heading into the 3rd quarter, then B-roy will take over: mid-range jumpers, slashes to the hoop, spot up threes from distance, and creating for his teammates should turn a close game into a Trail Blazer route. By playing such a weak defensive team, with no interior threats at all, it should be a field day for our scoring-first mentality players such as Rudy, Jerryd, and Martell.
Game 69 Prediction: Trail Blazers 105 Raptors 91
Post-Game Thoughts
Portland got the memo, came out, and shot the lights out. In a total team effort, six Blazers scored in double figures lead by Aldridge and Batum with 22 a piece and Roy's 20. The Trail Blazers had multiple 15 point leads throughout the night, but could never put the Raptors away. Toronto, down 91-80, with approximately eight minutes left in the game was able to claw back within 93-91 before Portland decided to quit playing conservatively and attack the hoop to close the door on win #41 for good. While it's a tremendous sign to see us finally rip cord inside the Rose Garden, please do not expect to go 12-20 from I-5 on a nightly basis. Besides a half-quarter offensive lapse in aggression, the Blazers did a great job of getting to the line 23 times (not the 25+ I thought we needed), making 21 to cement themselves as one of the top 3 teams in shooting from the foul stripe. On a side note, I give the Rose Garden fan base a solid 6.5/10 for their booing efforts of Hedo Turkoglu. It wasn't even comparable to how loud Darius Miles was booed, but Hedo still got booed multiple times during the game. Maybe Blazer fans are just over the whole situation, because we got the better, cheaper free agent anyways? So Thanks Hedo for not coming here!
All it took was one Rose Garden sign which read, "Mrs. Turkolgu, Thanks For Andre" to sum up all of our thoughts and feelings towards the entire Hedo free agency fiasco last summer. While still a sharp shooter at times, Turk's handling skills and court vision seem to be the first to go as he enters his declining years. On a night which saw him shoot 5-7 from the floor, including 4-5 from 3 for a total of 14 points, his impact was not felt anywhere else on the court. 5 rebounds from a 6'10" player along with 2 assists compared to 5 turnovers is not something you would want from your 50$ million man. I must admit, I thought Hedo would have been a nice fit here, but we dodged a huge bullet on that one and found an absolute bargain in Andre Miller, whom we found on clearance for only 2 years and $14 million total guaranteed. It was another typical stat sheet filler for Dre last night, going for 13 points (5-12), 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Outside of the obvious Andre for Hedo swap we essentially made this off-season, there is another swap which inadvertently happened due to Hedo spurning us at the last moment. Nico for Hedo. Who knows if we are seeing Batum's star shine so brightly right now with Turkoglu hording up 30+ minutes a night at the small forward position. I'd go as far right now to saw Batum is the superior player and Nico proved it last night. He was ridiculously efficient, going 7-9 from the floor, 5-6 from downtown for 22 points and his usual 2 blocks. Brandon is our best shooter when we need it most as well as making the difficult shots, but right now, I wouldn't want anyone else taking wide open jump shots, because Batum has it stuck on automatic.
"Nic played really good tonight," Portland's Brandon Roy said. "He was knocking down his open looks, and defensively, speeding Hedo up and making his job tougher."
"Nic got back to focusing on the defensive end of the floor, and he allowed the offense to come to him," Portland coach Nate McMillan said. "He's going to get open shots just because of who he's on the floor with. It's a matter of knocking down the shots. Tonight he did that. If he can continue, which we think he can, he's going to help us."
"My focus is on defense," Batum said. "That is my first job. Even in the fourth quarter, I just tried to stop Hedo first. But I try to take my open shots, too. Roy drives, and I am open."
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, LaMarcus has the ability to turn this team from good to elite all by himself. Roy has brought us back into the playoff picture, seemingly being the only star on the team, but when LA is on his "A" game, we are damn near impossible to beat; a true dynamic duo for opponents to deal with. Tonight, he came out like few times I have witnessed him before, in full on "beast mode". 22 points (9-21), 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block and quite possibly the best alley-oops I've seen LMA throw down courtesy of Rudy (seen below) propelled Aldridge into outplaying fellow Dallas-native Chris Bosh. He attacked the glass with a renewed sense of pride and purpose. If there was a rebound to be had, he made it clear it was his. His first few attempts at the basket were strong drives to the hoop or post-up moves which further fueled the L-Train. I'm not sure he can play with this type of aggression on a consistent basis (the $64 million question), but if he wants his jumper to flow better, I suggest he works inside-out instead of vice-versa. It seems when he gets a couple easy buckets inside, seeing the ball going through the hoop puts his jump shot stuck on automatic.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers @ Kings: Game 68

2010-03-12T12:47:00.001-08:00

After exerting a lot of emotion and energy during last night's win in Oakland against the Warriors, the Trail Blazers (39-28) stay in northern California for their second bout with the Kings (22-43) in just four days. Portland took the two prior meetings earlier this season at the Rose Garden, 95-88 and 88-81, but neither win was as comfortable as it should have been. Like most young teams, the Kings are a much different animal on their home floor, which has accounted for nearly 73% of their win total this year(16)and they have been prone to knocking off quality teams with wins over the Jazz, Raptors, and Clippers just in the past two weeks. Like last night's game in Oracle Arena, Portland must try to find a way to get a victory at Arco Arena, a place the Blazers have struggled mightily in as of late. The Trail Blazers are only 7-13 in their last 20 in the small, but vocal Arco Arena.
Looking at the Kings game logs, the key to beating them at home lately is to score more than 100 points. Dating back to their last 10 home games, the Kings are 4-6. In the six losses, five times did they give up more than 100 points and in the four wins, they held their opponent under the century mark. Portland only averages 98.1 points on the road but have scoring in triple figures 11 straight times with an average of 106.4 points during that stretch. To add fuel to the fire, the Blazers are 22-8 when scoring over 100 points, a .733 winning percentage. To put that winning percentage into perspective, only the Cleveland Cavaliers current regular season percentage of .769 would top the Trail Blazers mark of .733.
Although the players have to be exhausted after the late TNT start, especially Roy who willed the team to victory, seemingly doing everything for the team the entire night, this is a team which thrives on the second halves of back to back games. They are currently 12-3 in such situations. The slower tempo pace is one major reason why the Blazers have such success in back to back situations, because they don't have to change the way they play when they are tired. Also, the Blazer bench provides outstanding depth and added energy when the team needs a shot in the arm. During Tuesday's win, the bench for Portland was fairly mediocre, with only Webster scoring in double figures and getting outscored 22-23 by their Sacramento counterparts. Roy looks as if he's back, but I wouldn't bet on him scoring 40+ again, so the bench must achieve at least 25 points and completely outplay their fellow 2nd unit foes.
There's not really much more that needs to be said which hasn't already been covered four days ago. As long as Portland controls Landry on the glass, keeps Evans out of the paint, and forces the entire Kings team into contested jump shots, the game is ours for the taking. Even though the Blazers have struggled to hit 100 against these Kings this season, their recent road scoring trends lead me to believe an offensive outburst is in order for tonight. I think the 4th quarter of last night's game finally awoke this team from their nonchalant, casual ways. Make no mistakes about it, the Kings will come to play and fight hard all night long, causing this matchup to be a back and forth affair. I have a feeling we'll see a much more efficient Aldridge tonight as he will lead the team in scoring en route to another back to back win. Also look for Miller to come up with crucial "stop the bleeding" type of plays and the back-court of Bayless and Rudy to bring the noise off the bench.
Game 68 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Kings 97 Post-Game Thoughts
Who was that team and what did they do to the Trail Blazers? For 48 minutes, it was like watching a completely different team than we have seen over the past couple of months. There was focus, intensity, purpose, and a will to win tonight. Finally, for a full 48 minutes, Portland put together a complete game, succeeding in all facets. A lot of the credit must be handed out to Roy for his assertive tone he set tonight. Instead of the team running their early offense through Aldridge, Roy was the pace car tonight, leading the way for the Blazers to come away with a 110-94 victory. As Roy said in his post-game interview, the team looks to him for guidance and when they see him passive, they have the tendency to do the same. To thwart this from happening, Roy was in attack mode from the get go and really let it be known how the game was going to be played out from the opening tip.
"Just trying to give the team a spark. Try to tune myself up. Try to play with confidence, play with swagger, give this team some swagger."
I really didn't think Brandon would be able to play up to his superstar level on the 2nd half of a back to back, mainly due to the rustiness from the near month long departure from the hamstring injury, but I was wrong. Brandon's baaaaack. I almost forget just how unbelievable his game is, because he hasn't strung together games of this nature since his late December run. Outside of LeBron, if there is a more efficient player in the league, please show him to me. Again, Roy scored 28 points, yet only took 13 shots, making 10 of them. Not only was his mid-range game on point, a great sign for Trail Blazer fans as it is the staple of Roy's offensive game, but he was aggressive and forced the defense to send him to the line 6 times, hitting each one of them. When Roy is at this level of play, it gives me hope of competing in the playoffs. Without a 100% Roy, it has been so difficult to watch as the opposition knows they have a superstar to lean on when they need a bucket while we were scrambling to find someone to keep our heads afloat. No longer do we have to worry.
"I'm trying to get it back. I missed a lot of games there," Roy said. "In coming back from injury, sometimes you feel like your game is on and others days you feel like it's nasty. But I'm starting to think my aggressiveness is coming back."
"I wanted to be patient, and get guys involved," Roy said. "To take what the defense was giving me and continue to be aggressive even if that means to pass and put pressure on the defense."
Not to be out-shined by Roy was the Trail Blazer bench. Not only did I want to see 25 or more points from them, but also to destroy the King bench in every aspect of the game. Although the box score tells one story, Sacramento bench outscores Portland 2nd unit 44-36, the game told another. It was the outstanding play of Bayless, Howard, and Fernandez which really helped pull Portland away from the Kings in the 2nd quarter, while the Kings bench did most of their damage with the game already in hand. Juwan ran the break like he was rockin' the high-top fade, long shorts, and maize, Michigan jersey, Rudy kept his hot three-point shooting rolling (3-5), and Bayless was anywhere and everywhere on the floor. A big momentum boost occurred at the end of the 1st when Jerryd took it cost to coast and managed to draw a foul as he was shooting from distance. He stepped up and knocked down all three free throws to give Portland some breathing room.
Not only did Portland improve to 13-3 on the 2nd half of a back to back, but they have now scored 100+ points on the road for an incredible 12 straight games. The team just had it flowing tonight and it wasn't just another "we're on fire shooting jump shots" games. Portland was incredibly lethal from three-point land in limited attempts, going 5 of 9, and shot a combined 38-74 from the floor, good enough for 51.4%, but neither were the main reasons why the 110 points were achieved. The Trail Blazers got the Kings into the penalty early and often and obeyed the Schonz by making 29 of 32 free throws. With the addition of Camby, the Blazer defense should be a little more formidable, but if the offense can continue to carve up defenses with an array of plays, Portland will be the team no one wants to play in the first round.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

March 3rd Holy Backboard Podcast

2010-03-11T12:33:00.000-08:00

The Blazers are winning again, but what does the future of this season bring? Find out what we think with our latest Holy Backboard podcast. We talk 4-1 road trip, the emergence of Nicolas Batum, and the balance of power in the West, as well as the Blazers playoff future. Take 5 minutes to listen, and feel free to share your thoughts.

Trail Blazers @ Warriors: Game 67

2010-03-11T00:23:00.001-08:00

Portland (38-28) heads to the Bay Area for an important two-game road trip. Up first are the troublesome Golden State Warriors (17-46) in a nationally televised broadcast on TNT. Although the Warriors posses 3rd worst record in the entire league along with only 13 home wins, the 2nd lowest total, the Trail Blazers must be hexed while playing in Oakland, because they have lost eight straight games at Oracle Arena. It seems ever since Don Nelson re-took the reigns of the coaching position, Golden State's frantic, freestyle up and down tempo give our team fits. During this dry spell in the Bay, it has been the Warrior guards who have bested their Blazer counterparts by baiting them into playing the way they prefer, fast and furious. Guard Monta Ellis has been banged and beat up all year long, causing him to miss nine of the team's 63 games with a various assortment of injuries, the latest being back pain which has kept him out of the lineup since February 25th. It appears as if Ellis is going to give it a go, but it doesn't really matter as random D-Leaguers are now scoring 20+ a night in that system.
If there is a team who has been more injured than Portland this year, it could be the Warriors. Currently, counting Ellis, Golden State is without the services of eight players whom are either out for the season or just indefinitely, causing them to call on the services of four players from the NBA's Developmental league. Like Portland's Miller, the one constant for Golden State has been rookie sensation, Stephen Curry. Although beat up and having lost seven of their last eight, I couldn't have thought of a worse time to play this squad and it is based solely on the fact of how well Curry has been playing. Playing so well he climbed to the #1 spot on NBA.com's Rookie Rankings. Over his last 10 games, Steph is putting up 21.4 points, 6.8 assists, and 5.1 rebounds per game. No, Curry is not the best player in the game or even the best point guard. It's even debatable whether he is the top rookie, but he is the perfect player for a system known to carve us up on a consistent basis. As terrific as he is, he is still a rookie and I would throw an array of defenses at him and keep them changing frequently throughout the night, keeping him on his toes. He is averaging 3 turnovers a game, so maybe a few half-court traps can lead to shaky passes and easy, fast-break buckets.
Somehow Portland found a way to hold Golden State 18 points under their seasonal average back on the 2nd of January with a 105-89 victory in the Rose Garden. Considering the Warriors are 3rd in the league with their 107 point scoring average, holding them to 89 was the exception, not the rule. For the most part, teams must outscore Golden State in order to beat them. Of course an emphasis on defense needs to be made, but very rarely can you stop the Warriors from putting the ball through the hoop. The key for Portland is tempo. If the guards can stay away from the temptation of getting caught up in the run and gun, green-light offense, settle down, and run their offense, points can be had against Golden State. They allow the most points in the league, 111, by a large five point margin. Even with a nearly healthy team, Portland only managed 94 points in their 14 point loss earlier this season, mainly due to being a jump shooting team. 19 three-point attempts is too many against a team which usually has four guards on the floor at all times. You live by the jumper, you die by the jumper. Aldridge needs to get physical inside, not settling for fade-aways, and the guards, Bayless, Andre, and Roy, need to be aggressive in their attacks to the rim.
While an offense ran like a well-oiled machine wins the game for Portland tonight, a lot of intensity and effort must be put forth on the defensive end. Just because Golden State scores 110 at home, doesn't mean we have to give up more than that just like we did in Denver last Sunday where they scored six more than their home average. What the Warriors do best is bomb away from distance, as they attempt 19 per night and make them at a 36.7% clip. Outside of Ellis, if he plays, and Curry, Portland must zero in on Anthony Morrow. He is the 4th most accurate three-point shooter by hitting threes 45.2% of the time. Golden State is going to shoot them, with a hand in their face or not, so it's the Trail Blazers job to make sure to make the attempt as difficult as possible. All it takes is will and desire to close out on shooters, which Portland has struggled with at times this year. I'd rather not see many double teams unless they are quick traps, because if they get rolling from deep, we could be in for a long night.
It seems so easy on paper to close out on shooters, disrupt Curry's rhythm, and keep the game at our own pace, but sometimes game objectives fly out the window as soon as that ball is tossed in the air. The Blazers will really need to be focused and disciplined tonight if they want to execute their game plan to the fullest extent. Unfortunately, I haven't seen enough from my Blazers lately to think they'll get the job done. Too many mental mistakes has me believing the whole team is not on the same page which could be the cause for the sporadic play lately. This is without even mentioning the vicinity in which the game is being played in. Call me skeptical, but I'm not predicting a win until I see one in Oakland. Every time it seems so easy to take advantage of their small-ball lineup, yet we lose focus and end up playing a style not tailored for our team at all. It should be a close one with Golden State leading by six-eight throughout and a few dagger threes late in the game should seal the deal in the opposition's favor.
Game 67 Prediction: Trail Blazers 102 Warriors 113
Post-Game Thoughts
It wasn't pretty, it wasn't dominating, and it wasn't easy watching three quarters of action. But a win is a win and I'll take it! Through three and a half quarters, Portland played this game to a tee as they always have in Oakland: bad shot selection, no hustle or energy, and giving into the temptation of playing the Warriors way. If it wasn't for foul trouble knocking on the Golden State door, as Curry, Maggette, and Ellis all battled it throughout the night, and Brandon Roy literally putting the team on his back and carrying his teammates, Portland extends their losing streak to 10 games at Oracle Arena. What got Portland clicking in the 4th was a brilliant move by Coach McMillan to switch up the defense and throw a zone at Golden State. It tripped them up, causing them to score a season-low nine points in one quarter. Also, the defensive intensity was raised more than a few notches. Finally it was the Blazers grabbing all the loose balls and playing with a desire and purpose. The turning point occurred with about three minutes left in the game when his teammates finally found him. I'm talking about Rudy and his flair for the dramatic. He stepped up and knocked down two huge, momentum boosting threes to push the Blazers over the top.
"I'm happy it's over, but I'm happier about what we did," McMillan said. "The game plan we talked about executing, we did. We pounded them on the boards, we got to the free-throw line, we went inside with [Andre] Miller, Brandon and LaMarcus [Aldridge]."
"This is the first time I think we ever really guarded them in the fourth quarter," Roy said. "Having Camby and LaMarcus, being able to switch out on guards, that was big for us."
There must be something about TNT on Thursday nights and Brandon Roy. Roy's most spectacular and improbable performances happen late into the night hours. The 30 foot three-point heave to knock off the Rockets, 52 points in a come from behind win over the Suns, and now a 41 point barrage to help Portland exercise more road demons this season. What is most impressive about Roy's game is how efficiently he operates, like a surgeon he slices up the defense on his own terms. It only took him 22 shots to drop 41, making 14 of them, and got to the line 17 times with 13 hits. Scoring wasn't the only facet of his game in rhythm last night, as he grabbed 8 rebounds, handed out 3 assists, and had 2 steals. If the Trail Blazers are serious about moving up in the West, it's a damn good sign to see Roy looking like the Roy-Wonder pre-hamstring injury.
"The biggest thing was, I was trying to be more patient," said Roy, who had read some of Ellis' quotes and filed them away. "I felt like in the [Nov. 20] game, I settled for too many outside shots. ... The defense gives you jumpers, but tonight I just wanted to be patient and make sure I got as many easy baskets as possible."
The two unsung heroes of the night go to Andre Miller and Marcus Camby. Again, Miller can lull you to sleep at times with his play, but you look up at the box score and see he's stuffing the stat sheet. Tonight was no different as he compiled 15 points (4-15), 7 assists, and 6 rebounds. Often in the earlier portion of the game, he was one of the only players getting his hands dirty by going inside and fighting for the offensive rebounds. While Dre was doing a little bit of everything, Camby is starting to live up to his hype of being a rebounding monster. A monstrous 17 boards were gobbled up by the Camby-Man, including 9 on the offensive glass which helped give Portland a sizable 22-11 edge on the offensive glass and a 53-36 total advantage. I still see too many Blazers standing and watching, assuming Camby is going to gran the rebound. He is a beast on the boards, but he can't do it all. The entire team needs to start helping him out a bit more often.
Entering the 4th quarter, Portland saw themselves in a fairly large hole, down 13, on the road in a hostile environment where the franchise has not won in since November of 2004. For a lack of a better term, the Blazers were sleepwalking through the first 36 minutes of the game. Whatever Coach Nate did or said, probably yelled, needs to be bottled up and stored for the rest of the season. The Trail Blazers were lucky they were playing against a team who is prone to losing double-digit leads, as this was their 13th loss I believe after being up 10 or more, because if they think they can flip it on or off at their dispense, it's going to get ugly against the good teams. Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Nico Batum: The Video Compilation

2010-03-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

Ever since Nico has returned from his shoulder injury, he has been taking his game to the proverbial next level. In honor of his outstanding play as of late, here are a few videos of Batum doing work. A big thanks to Trail Blazers employee Stephen Moon for compiling these videos and to check out more great video footage click here. &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt; &amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers vs. Kings: Game 66

2010-03-09T10:18:00.001-08:00

Tonight marks the first game of a five-game stretch where Portland (37-28) needs to make up ground on the teams above them in the standings. Up first is jump-start Sacramento (21-42) and Rookie of the Year front-runner Tyreke Evans. The two teams will get acclimated with one another quickly and frequently over the next 25 days as three meetings are schedule to occur, including two matchups this week. In the only prior meeting earlier this year on December 15th, Portland outlasted a strong effort from Evans behind 25 points a piece from Roy and Aldridge to pull away 95-88. Although the Kings have 21 wins, 15 of those have came at Arco Arena, giving them only six road wins, the 4th worst in the entire league.
One of the more underrated moves made at the deadline that got swept under the rug was Sacramento's move to essentially swap out Kevin Martin for Carl Landry. Since the move the Kings haven't noticed the results on the win/loss column, but they have been playing very competitively lately, even pulling off upsets over the Jazz and Rockets. By moving Martin, it allows Evans to slide over to the 2-guard, his more comfortable and natural position and brings in Blazer-killer Landry. In his four games against Portland this year as a Rocket, Landry put up 17.3 points, on 46.9% field goal shooting, and 5.5 boards. Luckily for the Trail Blazers, it appears Marcus Camby should return from his one-game absence with another sprained ankle. No matter who is in the game, they are in for a war. Landry was shot in his leg on March 17th and returned to action less than a month later on April 7th. The same player who took an elbow from Dirk Nowitzki, disengaging multiple teeth hard enough causing them to embed into Dirk's elbow. Most players would have been out at least a week, yet he returned to the court after a one-game hiatus. LaMarcus, Dante, Juwan, and Marcus better get their war paint on tonight, because he plays with a reckless abandon and will do anything to get the loose ball.
The marquee matchup tonight will feature Roy vs. Evans. Both shooting guards with point guard handles and play at their own pace. Each seemingly can get to the rim at will without extraordinary athleticism. A surprisingly good rookie class, even without Blake Griffin hooping this year, Evans is head and shoulders above the rest. If he can up his assists marginally, he will be only the 4th rookie in NBA history to average 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, joining Jordan, LeBron, and Oscar Robertson. For Portland to have any chance in this game tonight, Brandon needs to mentally zone in to the task at hand. I mentioned it in the Denver post-game thoughts, but he didn't even look 80% out there and his body language wasn't uplifting either. No one but Brandon knows how badly his hamstring is bothering him, but if he can't go harder than he did on Sunday, I recommend he sit, because Evans is a load to try and keep out of the paint. If Roy is back to normal, then he must assert himself early and teach the young Evans a few things, because even though Tyreke has the potential to become better than Brandon, Roy is the superior player now.
With their 106 points against Denver, Portland eclipsed the century mark for the 7th straight time, an impressive feat for the 21st scoring team in the league. I believe if the Trail Blazers do not score over 100 tonight, something terrible could go wrong. The Kings allow the 5th most points in the NBA at a little over 105 a night and with no real shot blockers inside, Portland should look to abandon their jump shooting philosophy and attack the hoop at will. Along with watching the Roy/Evans battle closely, my other main interest is seeing if guard Jerryd Bayless can build off of one of his better performances as a Trail Blazer. If NBA teams were smart, they would take the tape from the Denver game and watch how they took Roy and Aldridge out of the game and made others try to beat them. It will be up to the likes of Bayless, Batum, Cunningham, Webster, Miller, and Rudy to make the Kings pay for putting all their attention on the big two. It should be noted that Aldridge needs to swing the back in a much quicker and timely manner than he has been lately. Without a quick pass out of the double team, it doesn't even give the other players a chance to take the shot, because by the time the ball has arrive the defender has made up the ground and is now in their grill.
I don't think we'll be seeing any blowouts tonight like we saw against the Pacers, due to the Kings mentality. Coach Paul Westphal has them believing in leaving it all on the court, not tanking, and playing the part of spoiler. Roy will definitely make it a priority tonight to make amends for his porous outing on Sunday and the bench will bring it in full force tonight in front of the RG crowd. Look for a tight game throughout the half, but once the subs are made later on in the 3rd quarter, the Bayless/Rudy back-court tandem will go to work and put the game out of reach.
Game 66 Prediction: Trail Blazers 105 Kings 96
Post-Game Thoughts
Another game, another nearly blown lead. What is up with this current group of Trail Blazers? They jumped all over the Kings, 12-2, to start the game and lead 73-62 entering the 4th quarter. In both instances Portland allowed the Kings to go on runs of over 10-0 to get right back into the thick of things. Not surprisingly, it was the offensive output letting down the Blazers once again. I thought something horrible could happen if we didn't eclipse the century mark against a team who allows 105 a night and by only scoring 88, we were close, too close at times, to losing that game. If it wasn't for Camby's defensive prowess in the 4th and Roy's 4th quarter wake up call which saw him close out down the stretch offensively and soared high to grab numerous clutch rebounds, the Kings would have walked off the Rose Garden floor victorious to a stunned Rose Garden crowd.
"It wasn't our best effort, but any time you play against those teams that are playing for nothing, you pretty much get their best effort," Camby said. "We were fortunate to get away with the win, while understanding we can play a whole lot better."
"Even though his stat line wouldn't knock your eyes out, Camby really dominated the game for them on the defensive end and was very much the difference," Sacramento coach Paul Westphal said. "He was a big impediment to our offense."
Through three quarters I was wondering if we made the correct trade or not. Travis was a known 4th quarter scorer while Steve spread the defense with his three-point shooting ability while all I saw was Marcus throwing the ball away at every opportunity, including a careless inbounds pass which was thrown in no one's vicinity. In total, Marcus has committed 17 turnovers in 8 games, a high number for a player who has the ball in his hands very little and more than his combined 13 made field goals in his tenure to date with the Blazers. Who knows what got into him, but he won it for us last night. His five blocks closed down the interior for a team, in Sacramento, who makes their living scoring in the paint. A couple times, Marcus handed out a couple of what I like to call "man blocks" where he bodies his man straight up and smashes the ball right back into their face. He had a few weak-side and even one from behind, but those "man blocks" really send a "Not in my house!" message to the Kings and ignite the crowd.
B-Roy stole the show down the stretch by scoring inside or out (19 points) and pulling down some clutch boards amongst the trees (8 rebounds), but someone who flew under the radar and isn't getting noticed for his great impact last night was Nico Batum. 14 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists isn't going to jump off the stat sheet and wow many people like his back-to-back performances last week did, but he is incredibly efficient. He shot 6-7 from the floor, not once forcing a shot and becoming a deadly mid-range shooter. Another facet of his game which can only be appreciated from watching the game and not found on a box score was his defense on Tyreke Evans. 'Reke did score a team-high 18 points but it took him shooting 8-19 from the floor to accomplish that feat and only got to the line three times for a player who ranks 15th in the league in free throw attempts per night at 6.5.
When the Blazers are struggling to put away a 21 win squad, instead of yelling or going crazy over something I can't control, I think. Last night's topic was playoffs. A few times during that game I was kind of hoping for Draft Lottery, because if we come out with that level of effort or intensity during a playoff game, the Lakers, Mavericks, or whomever are going to flat-out embarrass us. Personally, I am a big fan of making the playoffs, even though chances of advancing are incredibly slim, mostly due to the fact our whole team can use as much playoff experience as possible. On the other hand, as a fan, I can't take a four or five-game series defeat. It strikes too close to home and brings back memories of all of those hopeless first round exits from 1993 and on (sans for the 2003 7 game series against Dallas). There is absolutely no shame is bowing out in the 1st round as long as you put up a fight, but the past two games have lead me to believe otherwise. I wish I could sit here and pinpoint the problems we have or what we are lacking, outside of Gregzilla, but I just can't put my finger on it. The team is missing something this season and the fans can feel it. The Garden hasn't been the same hostile environment it was earlier on this season. We have two absolutely huge road games against sub .500 teams and if we can look like a playoff team in defeating Golden State and Sacramento then the playoff juices will start to flow within, but as of now, I shall proceed with caution.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers @ Nuggets: Game 65

2010-03-06T23:42:00.001-08:00

After a much deserved three day rest, Portland (37-27) heads back to the hardwood to face divisional rival Denver (41-21) in a nationally televised broadcast. The two teams split both games earlier this year at the Rose Garden with Denver edging out Portland, 97-94, due to missed free throws down the stretch and Portland exacting revenge on Christmas Day, 107-96, behind Roy's 41 points. In a season that has saw Portland get monkey's off of their back in historically difficult arenas to win in (San Antonio, Dallas x2), the Trail Blazers will get another chance for a improbable win. Since the 1999-00 season, the Trail Blazers are a disastrous 3-17 in the Pepsi Center. Really, the Nuggets haven't been competitive since the middle of the prior decade, but they have always been one of those thorns in our sides, regardless of team record. A combination of the altitude and historical bug-a-boo will make this one of Portland's toughest games played to date.
With Kenyon Martin out for an indefinite amount of time with a partially torn patella tendon, an already limited Denver front-court now becomes razor thin. Looking back at their last game against Indiana, Denver inserted Joey Graham into the starting lineup in place of K-Mart with seldom-used big men, Johan Petro and Malik Allen, getting left over minutes. If Aldridge is on his game, being aggressive in wanting the basketball and attacking the hoop, the Nuggets will be in a Catch-22 situation. If they try to stick the 6'7" Graham or 6'8" Anthony on LA, he will simply shoot over them down in the post with either the baby hook across the middle or the fade away from the baseline. Want to try Nene on the L-Train? Be my guest. A better defender than the previous two, Nene may be the more logical answer to solve the problem Aldridge will cause Denver. If the two ever get matched up, look for LaMarcus to either take him outside for the jumper or try to out quick him off of the dribble. Most of the time I want Aldridge on the blocks at all times, but maybe being on the perimeter may not be the worst of ideas if Nene is assigned to him. It would force Nene to stay away from the paint, which will allow for more offensive rebounding opportunities and clear the lane for drives by Roy, Bayless, and Miller.
Denver possesses three of the deadliest offensive players in the league which scare me to death when thinking of trying to defend them. Melo, Chauncey, and J.R. Smith average approximately 64 points combined and if Portland wants to have any chance at getting a win they must find a way to not let them exceed that average. Anthony, in particular, has abused the Blazers this year. In the two previous games, he has put up averages of 36.5 points, on 50% shooting, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. When he gets hot, Carmelo is a rare breed of NBA scorer whom can't be stopped, unless he isn't allowed to touch the basketball. As soon as he gets his man in the triple threat position, it's over. He's quick enough to blow right by his defender to get to the hoop and has one of the smoothest mid-range jumpers in the game. Although he has lit up Portland like a Christmas Tree this year, the Blazers should take some solace in knowing their top man defender Nicolas Batum was absent for both games. We've all seen what Batum can do to disrupt dominant shooters, most notably his 4th quarter/overtime defense on Dirk Nowitzki. If Nico can keep Anthony out of the paint and force him into tough jumpers, his length should be enough to bother him. Great defenders can only do so much though. Let's hope he isn't having another one of "those" nights.
For the Trail Blazers to get a much needed victory in hopes of moving up the food chain in the Western race, their bench needs to completely outclass Denver's. I don't think Brandon is completely 100% back yet, so banking on him heading into the phone booth only to re-emerge with a cape and carrying us to a win is not a smart bet. The key for our bench is to not only match but exceed the energy Carter, Smith, an Birdman play with, especially at home in front of their frenzied fans. Already without Martin, it looks like the Trail Blazes will catch another break as Ty Lawson is listed as out indefinitely with a sore shoulder after injuring it last Sunday in L.A. Obviously we'll need one or two of our 2nd string players to get hot from the field, but tonight, it will all start on the defensive end of the court. Bayless must pester Anthony Carter for 94 feet, Webster and Rudy must always find J.R. Smith in transition and consistently put a hand up on his 3 point attempts, and imperative that Dante keep the Birdman off of the offensive glass. If Portland can thwart a very productive Denver bench, it will force an already depleted Nugget starting five into exerting much more effort than originally planned. The bottom line is Portland must either outscore the Denver bench or hold them under 25 bench points.
The Nuggets average 107.47 points per game, good enough for 2nd best in the league, but that number increases to 112.2 a night when they play at the Pepsi Center. Unsurprisingly, Denver not only scores more at home but wins at a much higher clip playing in front of the home crowd. They are 27-5 when trying to protect home court, 3rd best home record in the entire NBA. If those stats don't put the Blazers back's against the wall enough, we do not fair well in uptempo, high-scoring affairs. When we allow our opponents to score over 100 point, only 4 wins in 19 attempts are the results, bad enough for a .211 winning percentage. With all that has been presented, it looks like the deck is stacked pretty heavily in Denver's favor. On one hand, I love our chances against a Nuggets team missing Martin and Lawson, but we could be without Marcus Camby after he rolled his ankle in practice. On the other hand, past and present trends have shown Portland fares horribly in the altitude of Colorado and against teams who score in bunches. Call me skeptical, but I'll take the latter as the most likely scenario occurring tonight. The game will be tightly contested throughout, but I just don't think we'll be able to match them basket for basket. Prove me wrong Blazers!
Game 65 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Nuggets 109
Post-Game Thoughts
Anytime your two stars shoot a combine 9-28 for only 28 points while playing in one of the most difficult arenas in basketball, it will be a recipe for disaster. Denver came out like a team on a mission and it was evident in their basketball moves and decisions on the court. Each shot, pass, or drive to the hoop was made with quickness and decisiveness, while Portland was slow to react to everything the Nuggets threw at us. It was their game plan to take Aldridge and Roy out of the game and force our role players to beat them. Job accomplished. While LA was slow kick it out of the double teams, Roy was literally non-existent on the court. I truly hope it was the hamstring bothering him, because he looked a step slow all night, lethargic, and really not completely into the game. If it weren't for Rudy, Bayless, and Miler, it would have been a 40 point blowout on national television.
"We didn't establish an offensive rhythm the entire game," Roy said.
Speaking of those three players, it was nice to see them, for the most part, stay in their comfort zone and not try to do things out of their skill level. When we cut the 21 point lea down to 7, it was Bayless scoring from inside or outside, getting to the line at will, Miller pushing tempo at every single opportunity, and Rudy spotting up from distance and killing it outside. Outside of a few jump-pass turnovers, this was one of Jerryd's best games as a Trail Blazer. When his jump shot is on, he is one of the most difficult covers in the league, as well as crazy efficient. In just under 24 minutes, Bayless dropped a team-high 24 points, on 6-10 shooting, including 3-3 from beyond the arc and 9-11 from the stripe, 5 assists and 2 rebounds. Although the score, 118-106, was not indicative of how badly Denver outplayed us, I wasn't too upset after this loss, because games like these are evidence that Jerryd Bayless is going to be a very good player in this league and our future floor general.
The Nuggets shot the living daylights out of the ball, to the tune of 58.9% and even getting a few shooter's bounces, but that is to be expected when a team scores 112 a night on their home floor. I thought Billups, Anthony, and Smith needed to be held below their combined 64 points for a chance to win, but Portland did nothing to even slow down one of them as they tallied 73 points. Even though Melo got some very questionable superstar calls, he was the aggressor all night, always getting to the line or finding a way to put the ball in the hoop to stop the bleeding. Letting Melo get 30 and Chauncey 21 is acceptable, because really the only people who can stop players of their caliber are themselves. What really got ticked me off was our defense on J.R. Smith. Do we not watch game film or pay attention to player tendencies? I lost count of how many times Smith was left open in transition, given way too much space, or was not closed out on. In the end, Smith was a smooth 4-8 from 3 which always seemed to be a break the backs of our Trail Blazers.
"Every time we would get it under 10 we would turn the ball over, missed some free throws or did something to allow them to get momentum back," Portland coach Nate McMillan said.
Portland's next five games (Kings,@ Warriors, @ Kings, Raptors, Wizards) are all winnable, but after the loss in Denver, the Trail Blazers now see themselves four games behind the Spurs in the loss column. Luckily for Portland, the Spurs have an incredibly difficult remaining schedule and must play without point guard Tony Parker who fractured his 4th metatarsal and is now out for six weeks. The bottom line is if Portland can't catch San Antonio for the 7th seed with everything seemingly in their favor, I'm not sure we even deserve to make the playoffs. I didn't expect the Blazers to win the game last night, but I expected it to be a much more competitive game than it really was, especially considering their injuries. If we don't start beating some of these +.500 teams, a little bit of doubt is going to creep into my head about this team. We have been so resilient this year, which is why I have hope we will bounce back from this loss, but these next five games will tell the story for the rest of the season. There is no easier stretch of games for Portland than these upcoming five, where we need to win at least four of them if we want to be taken seriously in the playoff picture.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.

Trail Blazers vs. Pacers: Game 64

2010-03-03T11:03:00.001-08:00

After an impressive and much needed 4-1 road trip, Portland (36-27) heads back home to take on the struggling Indiana Pacers (20-40). Up until last season, historically the Pacers had the Blazers number, winning nine straight in the season series spanning all the way back to the 2003-04 season. Portland has turned the tide a bit, winners of three straight in the series, including a comfortable 102-91 victory back in early December. It must be noted that Indiana's most dangerous player, Danny Granger, was out for that game as he was still nursing a foot injury.
The Trail Blazers better be careful tonight and not overlook the Pacers. Just as Brandon said after the win in Memphis, the team needs to treat this game against Indiana like the last game of a road trip, because the first game home after a long trip is always prime for mental letdowns from the home team. Also, the team is only home to play one game before getting a nice three-day break before heading to Denver, which really does feel like another roadie. Not to mention, Portland has fared extremely poorly, by Rose Garden standards, at home this year. We are a pedestrian 19-13 at the RG to date, bad enough for 4th worst in the Western Conference.
Indiana is a tired team with absolutely nothing to play for, except the spoiler role, which may or may not motivate them considering the two franchises are no where near rival status. After getting drubbed, 122-99, last night in Los Angeles, I can't imagine the 4th worst team (record wise) would be enthused to give it another go tonight. Along with being on the 2nd half of a back to back and accompanying a 7-24 road record, 5th worst in the league, all the Blazers have to do tonight is show up and assert their dominance early on in the game to crush the Pacer spirit. Poor squads with no chance at the postseason will only show signs of life if the door is left open and they get the feeling tonight may one of the few remaining nights left on the schedule to get a feel-good win. A classic example happened just about two weeks ago when the Pacers went on the road and defeated the Rockets, 125-115, after Houston failed time and time again to put them away. The lead was only 11 at halftime and they weren't able to shut the door on Indiana's hopes and it bit them in the butt.
Portland can pick and choose any part of the Pacer defense to exploit, but if I were Coach, I'd let Aldridge get the scalpel out and go to work on the vaunted power forward tandem of Troy Murphy and Josh McRoberts. Murphy, more known for his perimeter scoring and relentless effort on the glass, and McRoberts, most recognized for dating Lauren Conrad for 3 hours, will not put up much resistance to Aldridge's efforts to back them down in the post if the L-Train gets aggressive. One player LA must always keep an eye on is Indiana center Roy Hibbert, who is 10th in the league in total blocks with 103, and will surely be looking to make something happen off of the weak side. If all goes as planned, Aldridge dominates either Murphy or Granger for multiple possessions, which forces Hibbert to come over and help out. Once this happens, LA needs to expand his court vision and just rack up the easy dimes to Camby or Howard for easy buckets in the paint.
Like the Chicago game, Indiana possesses a player whom can take over a game at any time and put his team on his back and carry them to the win. His name is Danny Granger and would be the 9th leading scorer in the league had he played in enough games. Batum has earned his paycheck the previous two games by going crazy on the offensive end of the floor, but if he can simply contain Granger tonight, either holding him to under 20 points or forcing him into an inefficient, high-scoring night, consider it a job well done.
Normally I'd be terrified heading into the first home game after a long, hard fought road trip and considering we have lost four of our last five in the RG, but I really believe Brandon when he says he is going to get these guys ready to play tonight. They know they are barely hanging on by a thread in the West race and would rather face the Lakers later on the in playoffs, instead of right off the bat, and losing tonight will not accomplish that goal. Portland has done a good job of beating teams they should lately and I think a strong start from Aldridge with Roy taking the torch from him in the 2nd quarter will put the Pacers away early. Indiana allows the 3rd highest opponent 3 point percentage at 36.6%, which could mean big nights from Martell Webster and Rudy Fernandez spotting up from I-5 in transition, off of Aldridge double teams, or out of dribble penetration. Throw all the 3 point opportunities in a hat and pick the best one, because it is just going to be that kind of night for the Trail Blazers tonight. Finally a huge home blowout for the RG faithful to get excited about.
Game 64 Prediction: Trail Blazers 103 Pacers 87
Post-Game Thoughts
"It’s tough to come back off a road trip and get that win. This one could have easily gone the other way," Miller said. "Luckily we found a way to play some defense, get aggressive to the basket and force them into a lot of turnovers."
Let's all admit we thought "Here we go again?!" after seeing the Pacers jump out to an early 18-11 lead due to some very lackluster play and effort from the Trail Blazers starting unit. Insert Bayless and Fernandez to come and and breathe life into the team which looked like they were sleepwalking through the first eight minutes of the game. Bayless brought a bulldog-like toughness on defense, pestering T.J. Ford up and down the Rose Garden floor, taking any and every opportunity to get up in his face to disrupt any rhythm he would have had otherwise. While Jerryd was out making Ford's night a living nightmare, Rudy was pouring in triples from I-5, five on the night, each seemingly made at opportune times to keep Indiana at bay.
Although Brandon had me worried he re-aggravated his hamstring injury as he sat with a towel over his shooting shirt for the entire 2nd quarter, he came out and put to rest any doubt about his healthy with a typical Brandon Roy take over performance. With Portland only up 12 at the half, still way too close to comfort for Blazer fans this year after a few monumental collapses, Brandon made every effort to abandon the jump-shooting mentality of this team and went to work in the paint. He took advantage of his size and posted up the smaller Dahntay Jones or went around the slower Brandon Rush and always seemed to be in complete control with the rock. All in all, Roy filled up the stat sheet to the tune of 22 points (6-16), including 10-11 from the foul line, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and an impressive 3 blocks. I still don't think his hamstring is 100% but either the hammy is getting stronger or he is masking the pain much better. Either way, we'll need more outputs like this tonight in order to be competitive in the playoffs.
Speaking of the playoffs, it is becoming more clear as the season winds down to the finish, Portland looks to be a near lock (*knock on wood*) to make the post-season for the 2nd consecutive year. Houston has been dropping home games to sub-.500 teams, Memphis can't win a home game post All-Star Break (0-5) and by the time CP3 returns to the Hornets, it may be too late to catch up. The Blazers have finally put together a nice stretch of games, winning five of their last six, but with no more consecutive home games, sans the final two games of the year, and road games against West powers L.A., Denver, and Phoenix sprinkled in with teams notoriously known for being bug-a-boo's in Sacramento, Golden State, and the Clippers. Bottom line is I'm not sure our schedule sets up for sustained winning streaks with the hopes of moving up in the standings, but our seed in the playoffs shouldn't matter. Instead of scoreboard watching, which should be left up to the fans, Portland needs to just focus on upping their level of play and getting everyone on the same page to boost team chemistry and scare the living daylights out of their 1st round opponent.
"We're trying to get back to the way we played here last year," said Portland forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who had 19 points and seven rebounds in only 26 minutes. "When teams come in here, we want them to know we're going to play well, and we're going to play our game."
“I think it’s going to be a tight race. For us, our focus is on us. We’re in the driver’s seat regardless of what they do. If we take care of our business, we’re going to be okay. To start watching the standings like that – we know where we are and it’s like watching the market. It goes up and down and you can go crazy with that. The focus for me and the team is on ourselves, making sure we take care of business and try and have a strong finish.”
On a final note, I feel for Indiana Pacer fans, because that team has no hope, no future. Their only building block, Danny Granger, is about to head into his prime and I'd be shocked if he didn't find a way to get out of that situation as no one wants to rot away their prime years in an awful situation. T.J. Ford is a shell of his former self, Murphy and Dunleavy are overpaid role players who start, and Tyler Hansbrough doesn't strike me as a lottery talent to build around, rather a nice energy player to bring off the bench. All Blazer fans can relate to their situation as we have endured seasons starting the like of Sergei Monia, Charles Smith, and even the man, the myth, the legend, Ha Seung-Jin with no hope on the horizon.
Official Game Photos
Box Score

Your browser does not support iframes.