Game 21 Recap: Blazers Not Enough, Celtics Too Much

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:16 PM PST Comment 312 comments

(That means a 93-78 loss, if you don’t know already.)

General Observations

The Celtics are the Celtics.

From moment one of this game their defense was spot-on and active. Even when the Blazers kept the game close they were struggling for every bucket. Portland also made life difficult on Boston in the very early going but the Celtics got enough leak-through baskets that you could see a clear difference (and that the balance between the scores wasn’t going to keep up the whole game). Boston prosecuted their offense opportunistically and efficiently. The Blazers were stuck in the mud with cement sneakers supplied to them by the opponent. Once the Celtics built a significant lead this game was over. You can ignore the short comeback in garbage time. It meant nothing besides making the score look a little more respectable. That often happens in the NBA. It doesn’t cover the truth for anyone who saw the game. The Blazers got whipped, pure and simple.

If you’re looking for technical reasons why this game flopped outside of how good Boston is, I’d offer these:

--The guard defense was poor all evening long. It started in the halfcourt with Rajon Rondo doing whatever he wanted but the real backbreaker was when our guards and small forwards didn’t get back in transition. We got burned by more unnecessary fast breaks tonight than we did all last month. The Portland smalls have a ton of soul searching to do about the defensive effort tonight. Part of it was the Celtics’ talent, but talent doesn’t prevent you from hustling back. Unless, of course, Boston has some weird kind of mind lethargy talent we don’t know about.

--The Blazers gave up a TON of offensive rebounds tonight. I was just as shocked about this as about the transition lapses. It was bad. Sure, part of it was Oden’s foul trouble but you didn’t see anybody besides the centers grabbing boards or even boxing out that well.

--The Celtics prevented the ball from moving which hurt our offense. This was exacerbated by our usually steady three-point shooters missing everything they threw up. I feel pretty safe saying that any game in which Portland shoots 2-11 from distance is a game the Blazers will have a hard time winning. Once we started missing we started hesitating. Once we started hesitating we were done. The ball moved slowly. Players were forced into awkward, one-on-one shots. Some of our usual heroes tried to bail us out but they faced a defensive swarm every time they made a move and they couldn’t get enough help to ease the strain. 11 assists on 29 shots is well below the norm for a good Portland game.

--When an opposing team’s fifth leading scorer scores as many as your leading scorer you’re going to lose.

--The Blazers disintegrated psychologically in the latter part of the second quarter and they never got their equilibrium back. We got beat mentally and emotionally as much as physically and talent-wise.

Individual Observations

I have a long-standing practice that on a night like this when the game totally falls apart nobody gets individual accolades. Anyone disappointed because they thought their favorite player did something nifty should also note that this means nobody gets lambasted either. Until the game went completely beyond reach I had a huge collection of notes about the shoddy performance of our individual players, including some that are fan favorites. No need to dwell on them at this point, I think.

Instead I will offer this observation:

We saw tonight not only that as a team we’re not ready for this level of competition, but that the same holds true of many of our individuals. I’m not trying to pin too much on this game. I am saying, though, that one of the penalties of having a bunch of young players like this is that when things start falling apart--or even deviating from the norm in some ways--they don’t know how to compensate. We saw that clearly tonight from many players who have had otherwise good seasons. All of the guys that people have been screaming to see more of in different situations got a chance tonight. None of them made a difference and hardly any of them came through. This is one reason people should be cautious when speculating that a player should be given more playing time and responsibility than they’re getting. Players exposed before their time don’t get better, they get slaughtered.

This is a point people often miss. Once of the great strengths of this coaching staff--and this has been true ever since they got here--is that they know how to put players in situations where they can succeed. Our coaches never, ever get credit for that. It’s horribly ironic. The better the coaches do their jobs by making sure their players are getting time in optimal situations that make them look their best the more they get yelled at for not playing them in other situations. There weren’t any optimal situations tonight. A game like this shows the readiness, or lack thereof, of our players to face that condition. Many weren’t ready. But this highlights how well we’ve seen these players used so far that little of that has showed up or affected the team and its record.

Final Thoughts (and there are a bunch of them)

1. This was playoff-level basketball. In fact I’m not sure the Celtics came as hard tonight as they would in a playoff series. The Blazers can learn from this for their own post-season ventures. We are more than ready for the regular season. We are ready to take a place in the playoffs and we will. But there’s a long way to go before we’re confident that we can succeed there. Fortunately there’s also a ton of season left.

2. Kevin Garnett had his bag of tricks open again tonight. The crowning moment came when he got down like a dog on all fours after Jerryd Bayless on an inbounds play late in the fourth. (I don’t know if the local TV cameras caught it but the ESPN cameras did.) The national announcers were flabbergasted, saying they’d never seen anything like that. I am not into giving Garnett credit or attention for his antics but that grandstanding, combined with the drubbing we took, needs to be enough. I will tell you that should that ever be repeated I would have zero problems with Bayless or anyone else turning and kneeing Garnett upside the head when he’s down there like that. Either that or fire a bounce pass hard off the floor and up into his face. I know a suspension would follow, but how long could it be after provocation like that? The guy was down on all fours crawling across the court in a game where his team was up by 13. If this were the old ABA back in the 60’s and 70’s somebody would have done worse than that. They probably would have slapped him in a headlock or laid an elbow across the back of his neck for showing them up and then the benches would have cleared. I’m not sure this new league is better because it takes away the correction for stuff like this.

Were I the Blazers--and I’m talking the players and not the coaches--this would be part of what I’d be talking about in a player’s only meeting on the plane or in the hotel tonight. I am not suggesting the Blazers start anything. But for their own good they need to respond if anything like that is repeated. This has gone far enough now and it’s starting to affect the reputation of this team, if not the team’s perception of itself. That cannot be allowed to happen. They need to show Boston, the league, and most importantly themselves that nobody messes with the Portland Trail Blazers.

3. The Blazers need to make a very good showing when Boston comes to the Rose Garden on December 30^th. I predict we will. In fact I bet we’ll win.

4. Beyond that, I will repeat what I said in the game preview. This really doesn’t matter that much. It’s one loss in December to the Celtics on the road. That’s it. What matters is what happens on Sunday in Toronto. 4-1 on this road trip matters more than this. Heck, even 3-2 on this road trip (which is guaranteed now) matters more than this. Every remaining game versus Denver and Utah matters a whole lot more than this. Shrug it off and put it behind you until you can do something about it on the 30^th.

Check out the Boston point of view at CelticsBlog.

You can find the Jersey Contest scores for this game and enter Sunday’s game right here.

--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)

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Here are my thoughts

I thought Nate’s decision to play the bench the entire 4th quarter was the right choice. The starters put the team in the hole in the 3rd quarter and the bench played well enough to cut the lead. The bench deserved to continue to play even after the Celtics put their starters back in the game because the Blazer starters played terrible most of the game. I was glad to see Bayless get extended playing time.

Observations
- The Blazer guards not getting back in transition really hurt the team. Especially Rudy and Sergio.

- LMA and Frye were non-existent on the glass. This is not very surprising, but it should give the team some pause about committing to LMA. I don’t think he will be very successful in the playoffs due to the physical nature.

- Blazer PGs were exposed for their limited skill set. Blake can’t do anything but shoot a set jump shot. Sergio can’t do anything except pass. Celtics scouted the PGs and did an excellent job of forcing them to do what they don’t do well respectively. Blake and Sergio also played Rondo entirely wrong. Don’t guard Rondo 40 feet from the basket, sag off on screens and force him to dribble all the way to the baseline. Rondo will make poor decisions by jump passing. To me, this was a coaching error or the players did not follow directions

- Bayless looked 10x better in his stint than before. It looks like he can and is willing to drive all the way to the basket. Something this team desperately needs.

- Oden and Przybilla were both caught out of position off the ball and the Celtics took advantage. I’m not sure if this was a scheme problem or just mental breakdowns.

I thought this was a good game. It exposed all the flaws on the Blazers roster and the Celtics exploited it. I’m sure KP watched this game and took plenty of notes. I can’t be too disappointed because the Celtics deserved to win this game. They played more physical and played with more hustle. The Blazer brass should use this game to evaluate the talent on this team, I think this game said much more than any 40 point win.

On to Toronto!

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:19 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Re: the bench in the 4th

Is this even in question? The game was dead by then…never got closer than double-digits. At the end of a long road trip with another game on Sunday plus Roy already having tweaked something and Greg fouled out, what were the options?

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Seems like some people thought Nate gave up

The game was over in the 3rd quarter in my eyes.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:27 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

NATE gave up?

Holy chickens dipped in alfalfa! What game were they watching?

Besides, Bayless did OK out there. And Frye SORELY needed the confidence boost after that horrific first half. And we outscored Boston 27-19 in the quarter as it was.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:29 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Were people waiting for the dreaded

41-19 quarter?

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:30 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Dave

My main issue with Nate in the 4th, was putting Ike in for Oden when it fouled out. The game was at 11 pts, and Joel should have got the call. Ike is terrible, (although not as bad as frye was last night) and as soon as he came in, he gave up an easy bucket on a simple screen and roll.

by usmcr3049 on Dec 6, 2008 8:24 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The game they were watching certainly wasn't the same game

Celtics were the far better team in this game. Not even close. I was just happy to see Bayless get some minutes.

As for Frye, I think he’s a lost cause.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I've been a fan of Frye

For all of the reasons that many in the media and fan ranks alike enjoy him. He’s pithy in an interview and an amicable guy in general, but sadly it isn’t his job to spearhead fan relations. If it were he’d be a failure anyway due to his poor showing on the floor. Again, nice guy, glad he wants to keep Portland weird, glad he wants to help me recycle, to bad his game is weak weak weak. I hate to him go, but I love to watch the Blazers win.

it's kind of hard to keep your composure when you're down 20 -Oden

by pxilpooshr on Dec 5, 2008 11:43 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

seriously???

You hate a tenth man?

Dude… that’s all i can say to you is dude.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:29 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I like Frye too

But he seems to be going through a crisis of confidence right now.

There are too many players on this team who are bringing more with their minutes than he is right now for him to get much time on the floor. He’s making Nate’s job easy though, when Martell returns. If he’s not shooting the ball well, he’s a liability. He made several mental mistakes last night that were very troubling. He wasn’t playing with intensity (he wasn’t the only one, but he was the most egregious), and despite people coming to his defense on this count here in the past, he is not an active rebounder all the time – he seems to get most of his boards then he’s playing at the center, which he’s not going to be doing anymore. Last night, no boards in 14 minutes. If they kept a stat called “offensive rebounds against” he’d be near the top of the league in the per 48 minutes stat.

That said, it’s a long season, he could just be going through a bad patch right now. The Blazers have been pretty lucky in terms of injuries to key players (no thanks to cheap shot artists like Garnett, with his “innocent” undercut on Roy), and we may need Channing to step up. If that happens, I hope he’s ready again, like he was last year. Right now he’s looking like an unlikely signee come summer.

by baduk on Dec 6, 2008 8:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Dave, I respect your opinion...

but your flat out denial of Nate’s having thrown in the towel is ridiculous. After Bayless scored at the 5:35 mark, the Blazers were down just 11 points. According to Bill James basketball deficit calculator, even in a college game, with 35 second shot clocks, the trailing team still has a 22% shot at coming back.

http://www.slate.com/id/2185975/

A one in five chance to take the game, only none of our starters saw the court. The Celtics starters went out there. Did their coach know something our coach didn’t? Like that it was still a game? This wasn’t just the players piss poor effort, Nate had a legitimately bad night out there. And the giving up part at the end, IMO was the most inexcusable.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:23 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

that put the BlYou want Nate to play the playersazers in that terrible position in the first place?

The bench got the team back in the game, albeit with a little help from the Celtics bench. What would cause you to believe the Blazers starters could muster anything better against the Celtics starters?

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:27 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Honestly...

it starts with Brandon Roy. The things he’s able to pull off in 4th quarters, and even in 4th quarters of games where he has sucked for the first 3 quarters. We all know how clutch he is.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:33 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

sorry

the celtics are better.

And frankly… i like the starters watching while the second unit pulls them close. I want their egos bruised. I also want them rested, healthy and TICKED when they take on toronto.

There are two teams in the league that will own the blazers. Lakers and Celtics. Both are flat out better right now. Sorry you can’t see that.

Nate made the right call for a number of reasons.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:31 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

I would probably add the Cavs to that convo with the ball they are playing

I'm a little confused by your tactics

by oderiferous emanations 74 on Dec 6, 2008 1:03 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

because they had played them closely for the first 15 minutes?

by LetsBlaze on Dec 6, 2008 5:34 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

And then proceeded to get blown out

The complexion of the game changes over 48 minutes, there’s no point in running your starters ragged if the Celtics aren’t going to take their foot off the pedal defensively.

"It never is, because I'm the Shogun. And before you get to the Shogun, you gotta go through a lot of ninjas."

by Ozzie Montana on Dec 6, 2008 10:43 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

how many times have you seen a star have a bad game...

and then pick it up down the stretch?

There is no way we had a better shot to come back from 11 down with Roy on the bench. No way. As soon as Doc put his starters back in, Nate should have countered by putting Roy in at the very least, and probobly Joel and LMA also.

Very unlikely that this cost us the game, but I agree that Nate gave up. If he was sending a message to his starters, then I’m ok with this, however.

Boomshakalaka

by jksnake99 on Dec 6, 2008 10:27 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

makes you wonder if he was waiting for one of em to ask to be put back in....

speculation of course, but….ya never know.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 10:59 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I've seen this done year after year

I’ve seen lots of blowouts where the scrubs get the team back within an unlikely comeback and the scrubs get to stay in. The only time I’ve seen the scrubs get taken out was when they were tired. The scrubs were playing better than the starters so they earned their playing time. It’s not that hard of a concept to grasp. Every starter was ineffective except for Roy, who was hurt. Nate didn’t give up, he is a fair coach with common sense.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:08 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

+1

Unlike the people that think Nate gave up – the coaching staff is seeing the big picture. The injuries, the game in Toronto, and the dire situation of the game.

Get real.

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:13 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I ain't tryin to say that nate gave up,...just that nate was giving brandon and the rest of the starters the opertunity to take their lumps and get back out on the court...

by demanding to be re-inserted into the game.

AND that none demanded to do so….the team was beat and gave up, not nate.

again, just a speculation and a pretty far fetched one at that. ;)

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 12:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You keep bringing up the 22% thing

And it had no relevance whatsoever in this game. Maybe against Toronto or Golden State. But not against the Celtics or Lakers. Not happening. Not with where there heads were and ours. Never

"I saw him in the face" Sergio's quote on the latest alley-oop to Rudy.

by blazermaniac32 on Dec 6, 2008 5:30 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe Nate spared our Starters from the most embarasing moments of their lives...

All of em were giving a little jaw to the Devious Green jersey’d guy’s….roy, aldridge, shoot, even oden (who gets a pass as he fouled out and left it all there despite it being little)…

And if you’ve ever talked a big game and then fell flat on your face….it’s tough to get up the next morning…. Anyway, I think maybe nate was protecting the starting team from their own emotions…cuz I swear if roy was put back in, he’d have punched someone…..

he’s the leader of this team, and when he can’t get crap rolling in the right direction and it don’t even get a little better…..it get’s stressful…then throw in a kg and a peirce…. down right unbearable…

nate maybe saved us from a 3 player suspension for a few games…ya never know, we’ll certainly play brandon 45 min come the portland meeting.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 6:44 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

If only Ike had punched out K.G.

That would have made the whole debacle of a game palatable. At the very least, he should have kicked K.G. in the sack when he was doing his whole dog imitation.

I’m seriously wondering why K.G. didn’t get an automatic ‘T’ for unsportsmanlike conduct for his behavior.

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:41 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

how bout one

for being a jerk……That would have been 2 and out…..He’s was a jerk when he walked onto the floor at tip off….Come to think of it, he wouldn’t finish many games…….Pierce is not much better…..the NBA could use some work on it’s image …I mean I guess young kids watch this game…..this stuff is so immature…..If nothing else they should give them a public spanking…..shake the letters off their jersey’s and make them stand in the corner with a Blazer ball cap on…(next to Oden)…..

'Liability on defense, is an asset on the bench" a quote from my basketball coach, who believed good defense won games and made the offense a product of it

by 67 on Dec 6, 2008 5:28 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

With two relatively evenly matched teams

Such as you typically find in College hoops games, then you might have an argument. The other reason College games can turn on a dime so quickly is that most collegians play very poor defense, with a lot of zone. Put that together with a shorter three point line and you’ve got yourself a 22% chance.

Seriously, there was less than 1 half of a percent chance the Blazers could have come back from an 11 point deficit against the world champs on their own court, not too mention the suffocating style of defense they play. That eleven point lead might as well have been fifty.

by nikolokolus on Dec 6, 2008 8:02 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The people questioning it

In, like, 3 fanposts or so, are the WE SHOULD WIN EVERY GAME OR EVERYONE SUCKS crowd.

If you aren’t allowed to lose to the Celtics in their own building, when are you allowed to lose? I don’t understand ’em.

Mortimer

by Mortimer on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 2 recs

Fine to lose.

Hard to be totally dominated.

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Funny

They seem to totally dominate a lot of games.

If we made it to the Finals, and got blown out by 40 in the last game, it would be hard to be totally dominated.

But it still would be an incredible accomplishment and a great season….

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 12:19 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Sure, if under the above criteria

Oh well, we were due a whipping, hopefully we can learn from it. I am sure the coaching staff will make sure of that. Maybe the best thing that could have happened to us.

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:27 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I agree with this

We’ve played some bad games and got the win. It is good for a team, in the long run, to occasionally pay a price for a bad game. Especially if it happens on national TV. That leaves a taste in your mouth that you never want again.

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 12:29 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

That would be a total misrepresentation of most of us

Allowed to lose? I don’t even understand that concept. Its not life or death, the problem wasn’t that we’re allowed to lose, its that Nate gave up. He had apparently thrown in the towel 5 minutes earlier so he either didn’t realize how close the game actually was, or he really thought Bayless and Frye gave us a better chance to win (c’mon really? we know thats not true). It was a flat mistake on his part, and even though most of us are fine with the loss, and quite frankly expected the loss, it hurts that not only some of the players gave up, but the coach gave up. On a team like this, the coach CAN NOT give up.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

It was a blowout

Our starters sucked.

You think of tomorrow, the next game, the next month. You don’t put in a hurting Roy and other ineffective starters to try to come back from a double digit deficit against these Celtics.

That ain’t giving up, that is smartness. We lost. Play for the future.

Not every game has someone to blame, aside from not being as good as the other team. I think our talent will match theirs someday soon, but their experience and defense just trumps ours.

The coach playing guys who haven’t played much in game 4 of a 5 game road trip, or guys actually doing decent, is not quitting. You don’t burn out your best players (who ain’t playing their best) when the game is clearly lost and the trip ain’t over.

I think there are groups of fans who, at least immediately after or during a loss, find such a thing unacceptable and not allowed. They get too upset over reasonable losses that are totally expected, and try to assign blame for the loss. In a game like tonight, there is a reason we lost: they are better than us. There’s often no reason deeper than that.

It isn’t the coach (what else could he do?), the individual players, or anything else. We lost to a better team.

And just so everyone knows, we’re gonna lose 20-something more games this season. Those won’t be a big deal either.

Mortimer

by Mortimer on Dec 6, 2008 12:39 AM PST up reply actions 11 recs

This game wasn't over by any stretch.

As the numbers indicate. 20% with a 35 second shot clock.

The thing about it was, in their half court sets, we were doing a mighty fine job shutting them down. Throw in a Roy drive or two, and a bomb from Rudy or Blake, and we’re down 5 with 3 minutes left. Not having Roy in that game down 11 with 5:35 left is inexcusable in this kind of game. Again, I reference Doc Rivers. Why on earth was HE putting in his starters? He clearly didn’t think the game was over. Nate should stop thinking half empty with this roster full of talents, and start realizing this teams potential. We are one of the best teams in the league at 3 pointers… we should’ve at least taken a shot with the players that would’ve given us the best chance to win.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:47 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Those numbers

were not accumulated against the Celtics, who are not only World Champions but the best defensive team in the league both this season and last.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:49 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

And if they're measured by a 35-second clock

they weren’t accumulated in the NBA either.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:52 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I understand what you're trying to say, but...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMk5sMHj58I

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 1:01 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I thought it was possible at 8 min left and were down by 11, but I only thought that way until I seen travis

look up at the clock/scorboard and shake his head in defeat….he did too….he glanced up…did the math in his head (it was cool cuz you seen the numbers in the back of his head) and then once he had the figure “down by 11” he looked at the clock and shook his head as if saying, “not possible”…and then I turned down the t.v. and admired jerryd….(I was mad libbing his lips) and I esspecially liked the little shove he gave perkins and garnet to get through their little fun baracade after jerryd made his layup…..he was like ,,,“get the $*%&#^ out of my way” and they were like…who’s this short dude….then he shoved his way through em….it was great……AND HE DIDN’T BOUNCE A BALL OF HIS FOOT!!!!

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 6:51 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

They just kept us on a string

They put their starters out and scrubs in with a 25 point lead. Then but the starters back in with about 13 or 11 for a few more minutes, incl. the setup of KG for the alley-oop. Then the scrubs came back in for the last two minutes. If they had wanted to not rest their starters, they could have kept and probably increased the 25 point lead. There was nothing to be won in that game after three quarters.

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 7:00 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

P.S.: This is not to criticize faith’s comment, more in the general direction of the “we could have won this game if Nate didn’t screw it up in the last quarter” camp.

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 7:02 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

ohhhh no...

not me man, I knew at the end of the first half that we had our mojo stolen.

I kinda like toms comment down below, we learned from last year, but apparently only learned enough for 1 quarter…we still need to learn the other 3 quarters from the celtics…

or something to that effect….my repsponse was…great!! that sucks!

or something like that. :)

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:36 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Stats aren't completely representative of the game situation

also. There’s a huge difference between hanging around close all game and finding yourself down 11 with 5 min to go vs. getting blown out and then having a team’s 2nd string ease up on the gas a little bit. If the celtics and blazers had both played a normal rotation (all starters playing normal minutes and sub patterns), the game would never have gotten that close to begin with.

by Royster on Dec 6, 2008 12:52 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

That and

what were the chances of a full comeback? The margin would have had to be 41-19 instead of 27-19. That’s not too far off of our once-in-a-lifetime “Perfect Quarter” against San Antonio back in ’91. Besides Greg being out and Brandon maybe not at full strength (so who are you putting back in?) how many minutes do we get to see guys like Bayless and Frye play lately? You want to take them out when they were doing well in order to make a basically impossible comeback try in a game you were never really in against the World Champs at their place?

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:49 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I didn't realize most here were ALSO in the business of giving up

Are you really trying to feed me the story of getting to play guys like Frye and Bayless at the expense of a potential win in the standings? It would’ve been hard, but we’ve already had a less improbable thing happen this year (Roy’s Rainbow). The Celtics are great, but make them finish us off.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:57 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

you're looking in front of your nose

and you can’t see the horizon.

REasons to bench:

Injuries: What would you say if roy came back in and then was out five games due to making his injury worse?

Pride: The blazers got killed and the BENCH came in and pulled the blazers back. How do you think they’d feel if benched? How do you think the starters feel WATCHING that? The second unit has the pride that they started coming back and forced the starters in. The first unit has the bruised ego. That’s motivation for the future.

Rest: Blazers have another road game. I don’t know if you know it, but we just rested players for that game. We rested simmering ready to pop players.

The long haul: This is about winning multiple games, not just one. In chess you lose a piece to gain a bigger advantage. We would have lost that piece anyways. If this were the play-offs, I’d be much more likely to agree, but this is one game and that means a much longer view of things than you’re taking.

Celtics are better. Flat out hands down. That will change, but not likely this year.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:38 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

ok

Injuries: Are part of the game, you can’t coach because someone might get hurt.

Pride: Maybe the bench used up all its energy in their comback? They had been on the court most of the 4th. Besides putting Ike in after Oden fouled out was the white flag, Joel should have gone in.

Rest: The team has a day off today, and they stayed overnight in Boston, which means they should be rested enough for Toronto, it is not that long of a flight.

The long haul: One game at a time my friend. You can’t look ahead, you have to play the game in front of you to win it.

In the end, YES the Celtics are better. I don’t think we would have won if we put even all the starters back in, but putting in Ike instead of Joel was a mistake as right after that move, we gave up 3 layup/dunks, which Joel wouldn’t have allowed, or at least put someone on their butt.

by usmcr3049 on Dec 6, 2008 8:32 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Just FYI

Joel is hurt also, just like Roy.

In an effort like this, I don’t think Joel woulda’ helped. Hell, we needed to outscore them by a HUGE amount and we kept them to 19 points… Joel wouldn’t have been able to help THAT much.

Some games, you need to keep fighting. Some games, you need to show their players that they got work to do. We got work to do.

Morty

by Mortimer on Dec 6, 2008 8:47 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Joel's ankle

Has not been right for several games. Best not waste the troops in a massacre.

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:46 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Seriously guys,

Do you really think you are more capable of making the correct decision in that circumstance than McMillan? Do you think he likes losing?

So what if he determined that the game was lost by at the start of the 4th quarter? As11osu’s supposed 22% chance aside, Nate’s played in and coached more NBA games than all of us combined. I’m betting he knows when to throw in the towel and prepare to fight another day.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:06 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

and The Thunder would also have 22% chance winning against the Celts.

Roy got hurt by KG, and if Nate would put Roy in and he got season ending injury, everybody would be saying “what was Nate thinking”, since this game was lost at half time.

And Oden, once again, is a rookie, so non-stop fast break basketball is like fast-forwarding a song while he's trying to learn the lyrics.

by RipCity on Dec 6, 2008 1:09 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I'm sorry but

Getting down 25pts in the third and 20pts entering the 4th quarter is a close game since… when exactly? You have a weird definition of “close games.”

ROTUNDITYDOTNET

Founder of the "Crash Batumcoot" Movement.

by damir on Dec 6, 2008 11:17 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

What if he did?

There are more factors involved than than just what’s going on that moment on the court.

aAs Mort points out, Nate is looking at a bigger picture. So ask youself – who is likely to be better at evaluating the situation? You or Nate?

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 11:57 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

If I could rec your comment a hundred times,

then Mort, I would do so.

by champs2011 on Dec 6, 2008 1:06 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I don't believe you

since you CAN rec it once, and didn’t. ;)

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 1:41 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Im glad Blazers didnt loose to NY or Wizs but to the Champs.

If you loose to a bad team, its a lack of effort, and you cant learn to much from that. If you loose to a better team, its a lack of developed talent, tricks, and experience, and you can learn from that.

And Oden, once again, is a rookie, so non-stop fast break basketball is like fast-forwarding a song while he's trying to learn the lyrics.

by RipCity on Dec 6, 2008 12:28 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

i had switched over to channel 8

and so i missed the garnett provocation you mention. i can’t really picture it, either. down on his hands and knees? i don’t get it.

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 5, 2008 11:29 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Boston dunks the ball

Portland goes to inbound from the baseline. Garnett sneaks up on Bayless by going down on all fours and crawling behind him. I don’t think he got that close. The camera view switched away. But he did it. The announcers said they’d never seen anything like it. They also commented how Garnett had a thing for point guards.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Why wasn't that a technical foul?

Oden’s dunk and tap on the backboard is way less demeaning than being on all fours barking.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:38 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I don't think he barked

I think he was just showing us up.

But you’re right…if you’re not going to let the players solve it at some point the officials need to.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:39 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I saw him do this to Jose Calderon...

and i think barking was involved or something to that effect. i think Nate needs to have Maurice Lucas run 1 practice sessions solely based on “toughness” and “response” to these antics…

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:41 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Blazers need to make noise about this with the league,

if he’s done it before he’ll do it again. Someone does need to pop him hard with the ball right in his face they cant ignore that. Watching the ESPN game you heard alot of cuss words. Did anyone see the ref step between Brandon and Pierce when Brandon was shooting that freethrow. He yelled something like “are you guys done yet?”

by lethaldose on Dec 5, 2008 11:50 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

priorities straight

I strongly disagree about doing anything that would result in a suspension. Just do what it takes to win. Garnett’s antics don’t matter.

by cantdunk on Dec 6, 2008 12:05 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

that means Shavlik and Raef needs to be the ones doing the hurting...

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:09 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

Irregardless

it’s garbage, if Garnett were anybody but Garnett, he would have gotten straight tossed for that. I watched Sheed pick up enough techs for merely looking at officials after a foul to know how little it takes.

If the league is going to make Dikembe not wag his finger “at” a player without giving him a straight tech for taunting, at least have some consistency. I have no problem with players reacting passionately, but give me a break. You have to draw the line somewhere.

by Royster on Dec 6, 2008 12:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

please choose one or the other:

Regardless,

or,

Irrespective.

“Irregardless” is not a word.

"I would be in favor of trading LMA and Oden for a reliable starting PF at this point."

MT Suit, 11/25/08

by MT Suit on Dec 6, 2008 8:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Thank you

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:47 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You beat me to it.

Not sure why, but that’s one usage that I always feel compelled to correct.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:19 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

We have to use real words on this site now?

Gosh, I miss the good old days.

In all seriousness, though, my bad. It looks pretty ridiculous seeing the post title the morning after now.

by Royster on Dec 6, 2008 1:49 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

worry not

perfection is in the eyes of the beholders……but most of us don’t care….we got it, as is…… I figured it out, only .0003% cared (well maybe some cared, but didn’t feel it necessary to comment)

'Liability on defense, is an asset on the bench" a quote from my basketball coach, who believed good defense won games and made the offense a product of it

by 67 on Dec 6, 2008 5:48 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

yeah

Bayless has been such an integral part of this team. Somehow i think we could do without his services for a couple of games. Blazers can cover his fine somehow.

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:19 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LOL....

I say do it, and don’t think twice about it….

this remindes me of a cartoon back when clinton was in office,…

clintons standing there big chin and all. ….. the dearly departed sadam walks up and wacks of clintons tie with a pair of sissors, ….they chill for a second…then sadam gets a cup of tea….and throw’s it in clintons face…….they chill for some more, then sadam goes and blatently smacks bill across the face……

the final frame has sadam standing there with his arms up screaming “How much more of this do I have to take!”

I don’t know why that came to mind, but it did and I thought I would share.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:01 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

regarding the dog act

What KG did transcends all the crap written above about the league should do something, nate threw in the towel, etc.

At some point you can’t rely on anyone else taking care of your problem. You’ve got to deal with it. The blazers cannot rely on the league, Nate, the officials taking care of garnett, or any other f-*&^%g punk/thugs out there. They have to do it themselves and damn the suspensions! First and foremost they are men living in a very macho world. They wouldn’t take that crap on the playground and they shouldn’t take it on an NBA court. Kicking, punching, throwing a ball in garnett’s face or nether regions would have won them many games the rest of this season and in the playoffs. Now, they will just be challenged again.

They needed to man up and didn’t.

by rburg on Dec 6, 2008 10:16 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Oden needs to cut that out

If he focused less on the windup and follow through, he’d likely get a lot fewer dunks blocked.

He could take a page from Roy or Aldridge here, go up quick, power through, turn and defend.

by baduk on Dec 6, 2008 8:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

GREAT question!

He seems to be able to taunt at will and it’s okay. Just “part of his game”. disgusting.

My favorite teams are the Blazers and any team that is playing the Lakers.

by OCBlazerFan1 on Dec 6, 2008 9:21 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Anybody wonder why Garnett wasn't called for a tech...

… for hanging on the rim after his dunk, as Greg was?

I’m curious as to what the process is by which a team starts getting the ref’s to look at them differently and give them the benefit of doubt? Boston has a rep (backed by the stats) for being a tough defensive team. I can’t help but believe that this translates into a mindset by the ref’s that keeps them from blowing their whistle on a lot of contact.

I’m certainly not blaming this game on the ref’s. But it looked to me that Roy was getting mugged, held and grabbed nearly everytime he touched the ball. The play he was injured was a direct result of Garnett purposefully backing into him as he went up for the rebound. On the play they called the charge on Roy – a good call – he was grabbed at the top of the key as he went by his defender. You could see his jersey pulled away from his torso. No call. I realize that Brandon’s starting to get more calls as people realize how good he is. But apparently it’s not enough to trump the current version of Celtic mystic that has the ref’s a bit entralled.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:17 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Hmmm???

They also commented how Garnett had a thing for point guards.

When did we switch from discussing ESPN to Oz?

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:48 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Wasn't Rick Rox in that?

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:09 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

KG is a vampire.

He needs to suck others energy and confidence out, to feel good.

And Oden, once again, is a rookie, so non-stop fast break basketball is like fast-forwarding a song while he's trying to learn the lyrics.

by RipCity on Dec 6, 2008 12:31 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

How'd Bayless do Dave?

I was driving home from the pub, didn’t wanna buy a beer if I felt like throwing it…

Blazer's fan since '84, Currently exiled in San Antonio

↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A

by HurraKane212 on Dec 5, 2008 11:32 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Mostly I liked his toughness

It’s hard to measure his play in garbage time, because who knows who is playing hard against him? But he didn’t let Garnett take him out of his game and he hustled. Those are good signs to me.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:35 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

if blake or sergio ever sprain an ankle look out

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 5, 2008 11:37 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Bayless is in impossible spot

With Sergio’s trade demands and everybody worried that his departure will upset Rudy, and McMillan’s tendancy to stick with a proven vet like Blake over a rookie, Bayless isn’t getting a chance to show what he can do.

He will never be a Steve Nash or Chris Paul type PG. However, he is a MUCH better offensive player than Blake or Sergio could ever dream to be. I think Rondo did expose some weakness in Bayless ability to guard the “really quick” PG in the league, but he should be more capable than either Blake or Rudy.

McMillan’s in a tough spot. They really need to start looking at a line up with Bayless and Roy on the floor together. It would be one more problem for defenses to worry about. Honestly, I think with some experience, Bayless will just as deadly with the WIDE OPEN three’s that Blake is currently hitting, and is way more explosive taking the ball to the basket.

Finally, this team is missing some toughness. Tonight, even Brandon showed some weakness. Based off what I’ve seen of Bayless, this is not in his personality and he will NEVER back down to any NBA player including KG!

My hopes is McMillan starts cutting Blake and Sergio minutes and starts trying to get Bayless some regular minutes every night!

by RIP CITY on Dec 5, 2008 11:49 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

+1

Bayless raises the team’s ceiling, pure and simple.

I trust Nate and company to make the right decision for both the team and for Bayless’s development, but if it were up to me, it’s worth a few losses to get the kid on the court and see what he can do.

The team has proven this year that it’s a contender – for a top 5 seed in the West. But not for a championship. And until Bayless gets more time, I think WCF is the ceiling for this team. No way Portland has a realistic chance of getting past LA with Blake starting at the point.

Clearly, thinking in those terms THIS YEAR is more than a little premature. But what about next year or the year after? Is a year or two of experience going to change the dynamic? I don’t think so.

This team doesn’t seriously challenge LA for the next FEW YEARS until Bayless (or a player to be named) is running the point.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:09 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I like more than his toughness

I thought B-Rex looked GREAT.

I don’t think you can call it garbage time down 11 with 5 minutes to play. I don’t necessarily agree that you need to throw all the starters back in, as debated above, but there is SOME possibility of erasing that deficit, clearly.

Either way, Bayless looked decisive and comfortable out there, and he obviously has physical skills that most PGs (especially Blake) simply don’t have. That crossover off the pick-and-roll is lethal when he controls it. His explosion to the bucket and ability to rise up and knock down the pull up J remind me a little bit of a young Devin Harris. Given Devin’s recent play, that’s obviously a very, very good thing.

I thought Bayless looked for the first time this season like the confident, physically dominant player who owned summer league. It completely salvaged the game for me.

Losses happen, and bad losses happen, especially on the road to the 18-2 defending champs. But I think Portland may have gotten its first glimpse this season of the PG of the future, and it’s not going to take RLEC to acquire him.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:02 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

Good Comparison

Harris has a lot of the same attributes Bayless possesses, I think he could put the Blazers over the top if he develops over the next couple years.

by blazeraddict on Dec 6, 2008 9:45 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Wait...

Just a couple of months ago everyone was saying that the Greg was the one to put Portland over the top – passing the torch over to Bayless so soon are we?

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:15 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Parker/CP3/Nash stopper

I would help us a lot if we had a PG who could match up on the defensive end with some of the quicker PGs. Obviously, you can’t “stop” any of those guys 1 on 1, but Bayless has the tools to give them problems/make them work for everything they get.

by blazeraddict on Dec 6, 2008 12:57 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Nobody's passing the torch...

Oden (for all the criticism he gets) has already made a HUGE impact just by being out there. The Blazers were a bad rebounding team last year and now they’re fourth in the league in rebound rate. The Blazers were a bad defensive team to start the season (second to last in D efficiency) and now they’re back up near the middle of the pack.

Most of that is attributable to Greg’s presence (the change, I mean – Pryz does just as much for the D and rebounding, but the key is having them both).

Upgrading the point to an offensive weapon and a non-liability on D is just the next step, that’s all. It’s not meant to diminish Greg’s impact.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 1:08 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Harris was also

Widely considered the best defensive point guard in the league when he was with Dallas, on top of being a great great scorer (obviously) and a good passer. Bayless hasn’t shown two out of those three. He’s just quick, and Devin’s quick. Comparison over.

The Odenphant is true king of the jungle.

by maxmillian on Dec 6, 2008 11:51 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I think thats the best comment I've read all day

I gave you one rec and if you were here, I’d give you the best #$^ #$^ you’ve ever had in your life.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:12 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

he played well

he was tough and gritty…of course the game was well over and it was against Celtic scrubs, but he was one of the lone bright spots on a bleak night

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:36 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

in other words...

what Dave said.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:37 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Some of his time was against KG

Re: KG’s junkyard dog antics

I wouldn’t call KG a scrub. A toilet-scrubbing brush of a person, yes, but not a scrub. I mean, the dude made his own teammate cry for pete’s sake!

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:50 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

I thought he looked pretty decent.

He certainly wasn’t intimidated by the Celtics. For that reason alone it might have been interesting to have seen him get some court time in the first half.

It was obvious though that his PG skills need a lot of work.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:24 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Does the game mean nothing?

Certainly in terms of expectations, and the W/L columns, it’s just a drop in an 82 drop bucket. But I remember last year. I remember a very similar situation, with a streaking young team hitting the road as the hottest team in the NBA, losing a demoralizing game (but putting up exponentially more fight) and then wilting for the remainder of the season.

Will that happen again? Or have we grown enough to rise to the occasion and learn from it? I don’t think we can discount the potential psychological effect of taking it to our bully and losing again, and in a humiliating manner.

by zaruga on Dec 5, 2008 11:32 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

We've grown enough

And we have more talent. The bond is too tight. I’m not saying we won’t lose more, but that may have happened anyway. But we’ll overcome this.

Last year it felt like we HAD to win this game because we were on such a supernatural roll you knew it wasn’t real and the first downer was going to break it. This year we’re winning solidly, for repeatable reasons. That won’t disappear.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:34 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I've been focusing on that aspect too.

Last year, a large chunk of our wins during the streak were either last second coin flips, or against poor teams (sometimes simultaneously). We had some great wins, but there was some luck involved. This year our wins have been more solid top to bottom.

What bums me out most I guess (other than the fact that my self esteem is tied to the successes of this team in an inextricable way, and living in Laker land means several more weeks of abuse for this loss) is that all year long, Brandon has been experiencing this awakening. He’s taken the challenges of last year very personally. I mean, did you see him taking it to Artest, the guy who was his poison all last year? Or trading buckets with D-Wade? I thought of all the affronts from last year, the Celtics provided the most egregious. I was eager to see what magic Brandon had in store.

Of course, in the first act of every great sports flick, the good guys have to get spanked by the jerks, so they can rise up, come together and beat them in the finale.

…

I said the same thing to myself last year when this happened though.

by zaruga on Dec 5, 2008 11:42 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

on the ESPN

broadcast, did you see ROY jawing with Pierce, then blow by him for the easy jumpshot? ROY is maturing, and growing up as THE all-star of this team. I didn’t have much of a complaint about Roy in this game. He was 3-11 but almost all of his shots were at the rim, and he was hit on most of them but only got 3 foul calls. Your not going to get many of those calls though against the C’s, so maybe more mid range jumpshots were in order. However I have a huge problem with LMA in this game.

1) He floated toward the 3pt line on almost every drive by our guard, when he should be diving toward the hoop. The c’s were helping off him to cut off the drive, but their rotation was so quick that they could get back to him before he got off a shot if he was passed to. If he would have dived to the rim it would have been a dunk, layup, or foul. I am tired of watching him constantly go away from contact.
2) He didn’t help rebound at either end of the court. He was flat-footed many times and let smaller players take rebounds away from him, Rondo did it twice!
3) His rotations on defense were even slower, he seemed caught trying to think about where he should be, and that is a death sentence on defense against a team like the Celtics.
4) There were many more times I was yelling at my TV because of LMA, but I can’t remember them this morning, which is a good thing. Before the Blazers even think about giving him a big time deal, they need to see an improvement on his toughness. His floating toward the 3pt line is the worst, he does that on almost every play.

by usmcr3049 on Dec 6, 2008 8:42 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Liked the Roy stepped up on that one play, but...

Seemed like overall he let Pierce get in his head. Brandon’s game is not to get into a one-on-one deul with Pierce or anyone else.

That play was just before the 20-0 run that wiped the Blazers out. Part of the reason was that Brandon killed a few possessions dribbling the ball around gearing up to rob Pierce of his manhood.

That is not the Blazers game. Ignore Pierce. Tell him to shut up, but don’t let him influence you to get into a pissing contest. That’s what he WANTS.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:13 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You must have been watching a different game?

And exactly how can you tell that one player has let another get into his head?

USMCR’s observation on Brandon getting mugged is more on the mark than the assumption that Roy was taken out of the game mentally.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:29 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Not saying Roy was taken out of the game

I’m saying there’s a fine line between not backing down to crap-talkers like Pierce and getting caught up in a one-on-one battle that distracts from what you normally try to do.

I think Roy, at times, went back at Pierce in a good way. Let him know there’s a changing of the guard on the way.

Other times, though, I just thought Brandon tried a little too hard to put it back in Pierce’s face.

That’s different from saying Pierce “got his head” or dominated Brandon or something. Sometimes getting fired up at a trash talker can cause you to be more aggressive in a way that disrupts the gameplan. A few times, I thought Brandon seemed to be playing mad.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 1:17 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Bingo

That’s my take too.

If you’re a top flight striker, you don’t start a bout with a grappler by getting on the floor.

by zaruga on Dec 6, 2008 4:00 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You could be right.

The problem I have with this is that Brandon is probably the least likely guy on the team to do this. His maturity and unflapability have been a hallmark of his short time in the league.

For me, some of the things you point out are exactly what Brandon does every game. When Portland seems to be stuck on offense or not playing well, it’s Roy that looks to get his shot, drive to the rim, or break down the defense to get an easy assist. He usually does this against the other team’s best defender.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 7, 2008 11:15 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I have to disagree with you Dave

I feel this type of game shows the talent gap in the rotation especially at the PG and PF position.

With the PG position, I think everyone understands that Blake or Sergio cannot be the starter on the Blazers as a contending team. They both have limited skillsets and their strengths don’t compensate enough to mask their weaknesses. At least there is hope in Bayless as a potential starting PG.

Regarding the PF. I think this comes down to how you think about LMA. I’m not afraid to say that I don’t like his game. He’s soft, doesn’t rebound, defend, or finish well around the hoop. I think the Blazers should think very hard about committing to LMA, he’s not a playoff power forward in my opinion. He’s strengths again doesn’t offset the variety of weaknesses in his game. I think his strength and motor will be an issue throughout his career.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:48 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I'm with you about the PG position.

I think LaMarcus will be fine. I don’t think you could trade him for someone who would produce equal value, know what I mean? It’s not like you could upgrade him for Bosh, Boozer, Duncan, or Stoudemire.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 5, 2008 11:51 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

It comes back to youth for me.

I mean, Drexler was drafted in ‘83, but we didn’t contend until ‘89. That team was already a playoff bottom feeder, but our ascension curve is on a much steeper incline. I’d rather wait and see an actual playoff series or two before proclaiming any of our players playoff flops.

Cliff Robinson was a playoff flop. We didn’t know for sure until he disappeared in the playoffs four years in a row though.

by zaruga on Dec 5, 2008 11:54 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Don't you see the same thing with LMA?

His game is not for the playoffs. It’s for the mediocre teams with no big man to push him around. He’s not physical and backs away from it. Starts shooting 20 footers and doesn’t get to the line. I don’t care how hard he dunks when no one is around him.

His game has playoff failure written all over.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:57 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LMA is fine. They just need a backup 4 that plays a TOUGH style -- Frye is a joke and Travis is a half-competent 3 that plays at the 4 so he can exploit slow defenders.

It’s just a matter of Point Guard Pritchard and Point Guard McMillan figuring out that THEY NEED MORE MUSCLE IN THE PAINT.

Pryz is FINALLY getting his due this year. It’s not too much to hope that the little light bulb will blink on…

Frye should be gone FAST and FAR AWAY.

"Now with a non-provocative footer!"

by timbo on Dec 6, 2008 12:06 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

3 Rebounds is fine? Letting the Celtics control the glass is fine?

Averaging 6 Rebounds for PF playing over 30 minutes is fine?

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:08 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

AND TRAVIS!!!! NO GO COME PLAYOFFS!!!!...

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:05 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

nope it is not

He needs to improve it, or not only will he not get a max money deal, he might just be traded.

by usmcr3049 on Dec 6, 2008 8:44 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LMA's shooting efficiency stinks

flat out stinks. He’s a pretty good 3rd wheel, but we really need Oden to develop so that he only has to be the 3rd wheel and not the 2nd.

Frye is bad and today he was worse than bad.

Boomshakalaka

by jksnake99 on Dec 6, 2008 12:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Exactly

Some nights, LMA looks like a great second option. But that seems to be the exception rather than the rule. The problem is that, when LMA isn’t scoring well, it heavily impacts the other areas of his game like rebounding (already a major weakness even when he does give it 100%) and defense.

Learning to keep your motor revved even when the shots aren’t falling is part of the maturation process.

Unfortunatly I don’t think my boy Oden is going to become that type of offensive force this season or next. His abilities will steadily increase, but he shouldn’t be the offensive focal point for probably 2-3 years. At least.

I think the more likely option to add firepower is to get B-Rex into the rotation. He has the offensive skills to alleviate the pressure on LMA and company.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:18 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Bring back Lucas!

Anyone have a spare time machine in their garage? I mean, we’d have to wean his 1977 version from wearing short-shorts, but he would have taken out Garnett like the punk he is.

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 9:52 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Here's another truism

to stick in your Big Book of Dave Sayings:

It’s hard to know whether someone is a big-game player when they’ve never played in a single big game in their NBA career.

This is something those who are hoping for post-season success this year have to remember. There’s a psychology and intensity to big games that it’s hard to prepare for. Not everybody fares the same. Not everybody picks it up at the same pace. What the Blazers will be trying to do this spring in the playoffs will be akin to trying to fly a plane having read about it and spent a few hours in the simulator but never having actually done it. How many people on our roster have even played in a single playoff contest? Meanwhile they’ll almost certainly be going up against teams who have spent a fair number of hours in flight already.

Can talent overcome that? It can, perhaps. But not unless it’s pretty dominant and even then probably not easily.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:13 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

I see your point

Wouldn’t you agree this was a big game for the team? It seems like the fans, coaches, and players saw this as a significant game.

I expect LMA to shoot 20 footers and fadeaways. I’ve accepted that part of his game. I don’t like it, but I accept. But what the rebounding? 3 rebounds? He’s a terrible defensive rebounder throughout his entire career. I don’t have any confidence this will change in a big game. It’s not psychological. Rebounding is position, hustle, and strength. LMA is missing all three of those things and a big game can’t bring it out if you don’t have it in the first place.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:21 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Hard to say about the Big Game thing

I think this was a noticeable game for them, yes. But who knows how they were prepared or how they assessed the situation. Truth be told they could have been thinking as much about how tired they were after an ungodly number of games on the road in the last month as they were about the ramifications (or critical importance) of beating the Celtics. In a playoff atmosphere that wouldn’t have happened.

We know this wasn’t a big game for the Celtics, so at least that part of the equation was missing. I guess part of my definition for a true Big Game is that everybody knows it and prepares for it. And I don’t think any of them happen in December, unless maybe it’s the winner and runner up from last year’s Finals facing each other on Christmas or something.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I hate to say it, but I disagree a little

at least about it being a big game for the celtics.

They were on a 10 game win streak coming in, we’ve been riding high as the challengers to their, Cleveland and LA’s “dominance” and are sporting are own 6 game win streak, and it’s on their own floor. Maybe it wouldn’t have been the same as them playing LA or Cleveland, but I definitely think the circumstances made it bigger for them than just about every regular season game outside of matchups between the aforementioned teams. I mean, I know that’s nothing compared to a playoff elimination game, but on some level, I think the celtics saw this as a “big game”, at least.

by Royster on Dec 6, 2008 12:30 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

He's raised his game plenty of times

I don’t worry much about LMA, since he is gravy— we aren’t relying on him to carry us like we do with Roy and eventually Oden.

He’s stepped up in games against all Texas teams, the Lakers, Hornets, anyone we’d face in the playoffs. He has sucked against KG, but that’s ok.

I like how (besides his slump this year) he has always bounced back HARD from bad games in the past, and works to improve his PF play. I think his defense has been instrumental in our successes this year, and he’s a perfect match for Oden and Roy (and Oden and LMA really haven’t learned to play with each other yet, always getting in each other’s way… it’ll only get better).

If he was “the man” for us, I’d worry… but he’s brought it when the it needed to be broughten plenty of times.

Mortimer

by Mortimer on Dec 6, 2008 12:13 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Aldridge

Guys in his third year. I’ve been disappointed in his year this year, but people are seriously expecting insane things from the guy. Wait and see if Aldridge recovers by the end of this year. If he doesn’t, I may agree, but he’s right in line with what Chris Bosh has done and that guy became more and more dominant.

I too would like to see more post and more dominance though.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:43 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Bosh is a year older than LMA.

LMA is not close to being in line with what Bosh was doing last year. Or how Bosh was his third year, if you want to compare years in the league (which is a less legitimate comparison). You could maybe equate LMA’s production at age 23 in his 3rd year with Bosh’s at age 20 in his 2nd year, but I don’t think there’s a good justification for that as the baseline.

by howlingfantods on Dec 6, 2008 10:08 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

people are expecting him...

… to have more 8 for 15 games and less 5 for 15 games. They are expecting more 9 rebound games and less 2 rebound games. I don’t think those are insane expectations.

Boomshakalaka

by jksnake99 on Dec 6, 2008 10:31 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

LaMarcus Aldridge is nowhere near the level of Chris Bosh.

Anyone who thinks otherwise should check their sanity in at the door.

by AK1984 on Dec 6, 2008 12:17 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LA is near Bosh

Bosh is tier 1 and LA is tier 2, they’re practically neighbors.

by tominhawaii on Dec 7, 2008 3:19 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Toront game will be the measuring stick...

We played 4 great quarters in Detroit, sub-par in New York and Washington…and 12 ok minutes in the Boston game…at least OUR players didn’t physically cry on national tv…(hahah had to put that in)

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:33 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

what will toronto measure?

that we can beat bottom to mid level teams? we already know that. boston was the measuring stick and we’re like a foot short dude

Brandon Roy: 22 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, drives us to a win. I don’t have to say anything else. You already know the story. The way he gets to the hoop is poetry. How he gets that open is a mystery. He’s the leader and heart of this team and it’s translating into wins right now. That’s all there is to say.
-Dave

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:41 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Toronto measures

whether, like the great golfers, we’re able to put this past us and just play our game or whether we let it stick with us and lose two games for the price of one. A loss in Toronto wouldn’t necessarily show that’s what’s wrong but an abnormal loss (as tonight’s was) would cause suspicion.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:43 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs

I mean, if we recovered from the LA game (not right away but our record looks great)

I would think we’re past something like that. but you’re prob right, it would be nice to see them turn around and smack the crap out of toronto

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:44 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Right

If you lose, it need to be because Toronto beat you, not because you left your brain and heart in Boston.

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 5, 2008 11:45 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

"needs" not "need"

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 5, 2008 11:45 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

That's a tight word to throw down to the cousins!!!

thanks jscot!

n,..no I don’t like asparagus.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:08 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

One of the great quotes from

Buck Williams (at least I think it was Buck) back in the day was that the Blazers were good because you’d see them lose one every now and again, but never two in a row. These Blazers aren’t THAT good yet, but the same general principle applies. Win or lose, a good game in Toronto would be a good sign of this team’s stability. I think we’ll see it.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:45 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

well i do wanna see some carry over from this loss

our guys should be pissed off. I hope they can harness that and use it. take it out on those unsuspecting raptors

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:47 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

They'll be angry, too

They’ve just had some really bad blowouts on the road, and this will be their first home game after those blowouts and a coaching change.

This game could determine their season, possibly. If we whip them bad, then the bad times have come home, and the coaching change didn’t help — it can destroy a team’s confidence. If they come out and put a pasting on us, it can turn their whole mindset around.

This one could be very easy, or it could be very tough. I hope we come to play from the start, and get them in a hole — we might be able to win it in the first four minutes.

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 12:25 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Utah had no big problem beating Toronto

So a win or close loss would at least show we are still in discussion for the NW division. And I expect the Blazers to be fired up for this one to show that Boston was a misstep.

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 7:05 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

one challenge with the Toronto game...

I think it’s at 10 am. That’s gonna suck since our new ritual on the road is for everyone to sleep in.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:14 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

10am PST

I think Toronto is on EST, maybe CST. So it would be Noon or 1pm game.

by mannyfresh1 on Dec 6, 2008 2:22 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

yeah but the team stay's on pacific time...

right?

so it’s still a 10 am game for them…meaning they’ll be up at what…7-8 and they’re still in boston right? flying out today it’s what like a20 min flight? k, maybe 1 hr.

still early. but toronto just took a little butt romping at the hands of utah, so…..they could be feeling a little frisky too.

this toronto game will be difficult too….given toronto got beat on utah’s court, and are returning home to try and dispatch us. we got beat on bostons court, and now got to go play on toronto’s court, after a tough road loss for toronto….

it’s going to be a heated game again….I expect the team to lay into em early and for toronto to come out in the 2nd with a new attitude…

we need to stay on our toes. I think.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:14 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

time zone means nothing

they should come out with fire in their eyes and blow toronto away. that’s the perfect response to last night.

by rburg on Dec 6, 2008 10:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

toronto...

bosh, oneil, caulderon they’re pretty talented.

I agree that we should come out and physically show we’re not weenies, but don’t underestimate toronto. D fence D fence!!!

AND GREG NEEDS TO QUIT KICKING HIS FEET OUT!!!

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 11:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

@ stop slapping the backboard please. ty

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:05 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I think he should always do it

I’ll take 15 dunks a night and 15 technical foul free throws a game just so Oden can mark his territory. It’s kind of like the USC and the home jersey thing.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:15 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I thot that's what urinating

on the home team’s lockers before you leave the arena was for. :(

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:19 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Kudos to Nate for keeping the starters on the bench.

What in the world is wrong with Garnett? Someone needs to do something about that. Remember when he slapped Tim Duncan in the back of the head? I don’t think he ever got suspended for that. The music on the link is NSFW.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpgB7cN12i8

Take away Blake’s 3 point shot and he’s pretty worthless. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but there’s a big difference between a playoff quality PG and one who does pretty well in the regular season. The fact that Derrick Fisher couldn’t contain Rondo is part of the reason Boston won that series. Blake is going to get absolutely killed on defense come April.

Playoff Teams
Tony Parker
Chauncey Billups
Chris Paul
Derron Williams
Jason Kidd
Steve Nash
Steve Blake

That’s not going to work.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 5, 2008 11:37 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

wow that list of point guards really makes blake stick out like a sore thumb

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:39 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You forgot

Derek Fisher…

by premthegrem on Dec 6, 2008 1:39 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Fisher doesn't count.

We aren’t playing LA in the first round. Jordan Farmar would kill Blake anyway.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 6, 2008 6:33 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

well, I really tried to prepare people for KG's Doucheness

yet still there are surprised people amongst us. when freaking DAVE is talking about a player deserving to get kneed in the head, you know somethings up. I can’t believe there were people on blazersedge defending this guy and talking about how great his emotion and intensity is. there is no freaking way I would want that guy on our team. I’ll take his production, but not that attitude/personality/mouth.

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:37 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

I'd love him on our team

But I would also understand if somebody from another team kneed him in the head and started a bench-clearing brawl for something like that.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:38 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

haha I could imagine being in the stands for that one

hey thats a blazer getting his butt kicked! ah, he had it comin.

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:39 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

the enforcer!

and luke walton’s namesake (or is it the other way around?).

michelle you look good tonight.. ANYTHING IS POSSIBAAAAAAAAAAL!

by hossticles on Dec 6, 2008 12:44 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

oops

that was supposed to be under your next comment about an assistant coach.

i’ll go climb under a rock now.

michelle you look good tonight.. ANYTHING IS POSSIBAAAAAAAAAAL!

by hossticles on Dec 6, 2008 12:45 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

What happens in a bench-clearing brawl?

Does the entire team get suspended?

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 5, 2008 11:41 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

Which is why you don’t have them. Which is good, I guess.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:44 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

maybe a certain assistant coach

could just come off the bench…

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:45 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I wouldn't want him

He has no class and never shuts he mouth. like I said in another post They (Celtics) can still be that intimitating, tuff team without all of the talking and stupid antics. I really think they can get there message across with there physicall play and the occassional comments at the right times. Kg is the worst of them all, followed by PP. The Sadest part of all is it looks like they are starting to rub of on that nice kid rondo. :( If jesus shuttlesworth starts being a jerk then I will give up on the NBA.

by jcoop85 on Dec 6, 2008 12:08 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

lol..

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:17 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Yup

that’s pretty much where i’d be coming from too. At least we’d finally have someone tough.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:46 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

KG

Ought to be fined and suspended. He needs to be hammered the first two times he gets the ball in Portland.

No cheap shots, no injuries, just a hard enough foul to knock him on his rear end.

—-

Toronto got hammered in Utah in Jay Triano’s first game as coach. They aren’t going to be happy, and this will be their first game home after the change. A major test for Nate and the team, to get their heads into this game. The talent is there, the teamwork is there. The problems in this game were largely mental. We need to get mentally cranked up, fast. This is the NBA. The Raptors will want to come out hard and hammer us.

This game could have happened to LA or anyone else. These kinds of games happen when you play away to a team that is going to win 65-70 games. It doesn’t mean much unless you let it.

We’re better than we let them make us look. We’re not good enough yet to keep them from making us look that way. Maybe in Portland….

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 5, 2008 11:40 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Anything IS Possible!!!

Just play this over and over on the big screen when they come to portland just to show how ignorant he is.

by jcoop85 on Dec 6, 2008 12:12 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

ooops link

by jcoop85 on Dec 6, 2008 12:13 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_r0OLoK0NZk

by jcoop85 on Dec 6, 2008 12:19 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

by jcoop85 on Dec 6, 2008 12:18 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Questioning Nate's Coaching

did nate call a single timeout in the second half? did he call more than one in the first half? his team was hauling for him tonight, yet he and his assistants didn’t seem to be doing much on the sidelines. seriously, we’re down by 12…13 with four minutes left and he has no – NO – words of encouragement for his young players who have played a collective 10 minutes for the season?!?! doesn’t think his starters can dig out of this hole with four minutes left? against any other team i think the coaching is different. plain and simple, nate got psyched out and out-coached. the onus is on him. period.

by amitrain on Dec 5, 2008 11:42 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

I can see why you would think that...

but it’s probably not the case. You can’t be sure what was said on the bench. Who knows what words of encouragement he had for his players.

Plus, come playoff time all records become equal. It’s just one game and Nate has to be looking long term.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 5, 2008 11:46 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

sure

but you can think/coach long term and still recognize that you’re playing in a game that’s actually happening presently. really? a timeout when we’re in the midst of going scoreless for 5+ minutes wouldn’t have done anything at all? REALLY?

by amitrain on Dec 5, 2008 11:52 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

No, it wouldn't have helped at all.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 6, 2008 12:02 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

This is ironic.

Because Nate called a timeout a few minutes into the third quarter.

honor rasheed wallace

by Cablinasian on Dec 6, 2008 12:52 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

and it didn't help.

honor rasheed wallace

by Cablinasian on Dec 6, 2008 12:52 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

timeout wouldn't help...

we had the whole half-time to recoup and we came out with a 5 min drought….when you are in the dessert, hard to find an oasis no matter what you do.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:57 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

Dave you made a great point

mentioning a players only meeting. man the guys could use one of those right now because I don’t know what else nate could tell them. at some point someones gotta grow a spine and do something,

by chrischa on Dec 5, 2008 11:43 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

yeah...

like the coach

by amitrain on Dec 5, 2008 11:44 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

amen

exactly on point. and it’s not the coach we’re talking about as amitrain below thinks.

by rburg on Dec 6, 2008 10:31 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Does Garnett lay it on extra thick to the Blazers?

I’ve watched other Celtics games in the last year and a half and he’s never as amped up (smack talk, etc) as he is against the Blazers.

Is it that we’re young and he knows his games will work?

If you're paddling upstream in a canoe and a wheel falls off, how many pancakes fit in a doghouse? None! Ice cream has no bones!

by Arby on Dec 5, 2008 11:49 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

definitely..

because you can see Pierce was adding to it too…he doesn’t typically do that so KG must have said something to him about the ability to get into our heads.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:50 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

brandon and oden are young and have received a lot of hype

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 5, 2008 11:52 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Brandon earned it...no hype there...

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:57 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

brandon is underhyped if you ask me

Greg is overhyped. Rudy is normal hyped.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:58 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

and LMA is a hypeless wonder.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:59 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

It strikes me that two teams were mentioned in connection with KG tonight

Toronto, long known as one of the softest teams in the league, and Portland…also not exactly known for tough guys who want to go at you. I would bet KG is always annoying but saves his biggest displays for select teams.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 5, 2008 11:58 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Right,

you wouldn’t see him doing that against LA. Truth is we still haven’t proven anything yet. So what if we have a good record. We are just not an elite team yet we sure didn’t prove it tonight.

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

we'll prove it by 82 games...

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

i don't think KG talks much against Chris Bosh...

Predator is pretty tough…I take him in 2010!!!

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The 76ers are struggling.

Maybe we could trade for Reggie Evans. He knows how to hurt a man’s pride.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFcinlrgojk

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 6, 2008 12:05 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The Celts only play the Blazers twice a year, ONCE on their home court...

…………………… This was THEIR ONE AND ONLY chance for them to send the Blazers a message about what playoff basketball is all about.

"Now with a non-provocative footer!"

by timbo on Dec 6, 2008 12:13 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

so timbo predicts a home town rompin of the celts?

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:20 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I predict a narrow Blazer victory, subject to change closer to gametime.

……………. Hawks squeaked by them at home x3, got blown out in Boston x4 in the playoffs last year.

"Now with a non-provocative footer!"

by timbo on Dec 6, 2008 6:45 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Typical bully

Garnett will try to take as much ground as the opponents give him. He’s the epitome of a paper tiger – if you step up to him, he backs down like a little punk. I mean, how much of a tough guy can you be when Za Za Pachulia can walk you down (I love how KG waits until there’s about 15 guys between them to start talking again. We need to toughen up, and it needs to come from one of the frontcourt guys.

by blazeraddict on Dec 6, 2008 9:54 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

My dad's advice on bullies

Punch ’em in the nose.

Ike? Shavlik? We’ve got a job for you…

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 10:01 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

Link to clip

Sorry, forgot the link to what I was talking about. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6JNQHZSkfE

by blazeraddict on Dec 6, 2008 10:08 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I smell a trade proposal post brewing

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:18 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I sure would like to see Buck Williams added to Nate's staff.

He could be assistant coach for on court enforcement. No yapping. No stupid theatrical attempts at intimidation. Just the development of tough, you’re either stupid or a fool to mess with me, manliness.

Buck is and was a gentleman at all times, on the court and off. But he didn’t get messed with and generally, the rest of the team didn’t either, as few in the league were willing to take on Buck.

Speaking of manly toughness, anyone else miss Ime from time to time?

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:45 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

+ 1

It would be great if someone on this team fills the role Buck had in his era. Closest thing we have to that right now is Joel.

by blazeraddict on Dec 6, 2008 12:54 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Buck is a great example of someone that was tough without being a jerk.

It bothers me that some people think toughness is synonymous with jerkishness.

by zaruga on Dec 6, 2008 4:02 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

i read the Celtic's Blog and comments...

and most said the young Blazers look “leaderless…” i hate to say it, but I couldn’t agree more…Joel looked like our leader out there today but he too was flabbergasted by our defensive rotations and their guards constantly breaking us down.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:50 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

even Broy has off games

He’ll come back. I think he was hurting from the hammy a lot more than he let on.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:50 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

i think we panic...

we went to the Broy 4th quarter ISO, post players on the block, in the 2nd quarter.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:51 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeh way too much iso tonight

definitely not enough of our usual screen and roll and good ball movement

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:53 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

yeah, what happen to the "Roll" part of the pick and roll?

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:54 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeh for sure

you can’t get our offense rolling without it (lame pun intended)

seriously though, that is key. I just was doing some “scouting” (playing NBA LIVE 09) and it seemed like i scored every time I ran a pick and roll. Isos with Brandon and Rudy and LMA failed consistently.

It’s basic fundamental basketball. You pound them inside, wait for them to over-correct, and shoot outside. Pick and roll, pick and roll, pick and pop, pick and roll. Pass, pass, bucket. Back down, pass, pass bucket.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:56 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

you should play 2k9...

and when they dump it into Oden or LA, where’s the cutter??? Martell is the BEST at it on our team.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:58 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

yeh I'm guessing Rudy does a pretty fine job as well

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 6, 2008 12:00 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

We did this to open the game. I wonder if last night was another case of Nate changing things up when going against a top team. He did the same against the Lakers to start the season and we have been killed both times.

Brett Pill - Lord of the double.

by malarky on Dec 6, 2008 10:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

not that that's any excuse

but I do think it was bugging him. Of course, on a night like tonight, I don’t think anyone was very explosive

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:52 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

the bad guard defense really stuck out to me

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 5, 2008 11:51 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Don't listen to other fanbases analyze your home team

They have no clue.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 5, 2008 11:51 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

just an observation that i agree with...some of us have no clue either...

myself included.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 5, 2008 11:52 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

well if anyone from boston is reading this, I have an accurate assesment of your team

You guys are big and prideful, and one day you will fall. Hard.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:54 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

that day is the 30th.

mark it down. we will run an uptempo game and sneeze them by 30. hopefully its on national tv.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:02 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Tough teams win, wimps lose

After Brandon got knocked off the court by KG without so much as a hard foul at the other end, the game was decided. KG went doggy-style to show how little respect he has for the Blazers toughness.

Portland’s Tall Forwards (not ~~power~~ forwards) in 48 minutes LMA – 3 rebounds, Frye – 0 rebounds. KG in 31 minutes – 11 rebounds. KG could have out rebounded both of them while crawling on all fours.

"But we need a center", Inman said. "So play him at center!" Knight yelled back. - Bobby Knight on Michael Jordan prior to the Blazers' 1984 draft pick of Sam Bowie.

by BlazerFanSince1970 on Dec 5, 2008 11:52 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

uh, we're 14-7. most of it on the road.

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 5, 2008 11:56 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

true, but you have to admit

we were abominable against KG. We played scared.

That is really hideous
--jscot

by prezofdeath on Dec 5, 2008 11:57 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

We didn't show up against LA or Boston

I can forgive the LA game because it was the opener. But Boston kicked our butts twice last year in the same way and we learned nothing from that experience. Tonight they just continued to embarrass us.

"But we need a center", Inman said. "So play him at center!" Knight yelled back. - Bobby Knight on Michael Jordan prior to the Blazers' 1984 draft pick of Sam Bowie.

by BlazerFanSince1970 on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Here are the guys to play against Boston: Rex, Roy, Marty, LMA, Pryz.

Guy who should not even be in uniform for that game: Frye.

"Now with a non-provocative footer!"

by timbo on Dec 6, 2008 12:15 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The team learned a lot from last year

They just didn’t apply it for more than 1 quarter.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 3:34 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

so we got 3 more games like this comming from defending champs?

that sucks.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:23 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Hmm

I’m not sure it will take that long to learn. I think they learned a lot last night. I bet they They won’t be pushed around that much again.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 8:17 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I wish

But I said that after the first Boston game last year… and then after the second… and everyone was talking about it before this game. I have no reason to believe we will be able to compete with Boston on the 30th.

There is no reason to believe we can compete with them, at all, on the 30th.

by TimG on Dec 6, 2008 1:00 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

There is no reason to believe the Blazers cannot compete with them as well

Martell will be back by then so the Blazers won’t be starting two rookies. The Blazers will probably have more favorable calls from the officials, and the entire roster got a wake up call as to what it is really like to play the Celtics.

by tominhawaii on Dec 7, 2008 3:24 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

that stunk

I’m not shocked we were bullied and beaten on the glass, but I’m surprised it was that bad. I’m not surprised we struggled to score. The transition D was just appalling though. That was a really bad effort and I was surprised they didn’t show up for this one. I expected a competitive ballgame.

I’ve put it behind me now, though, and I’m ready for Toronto.

Boomshakalaka

by jksnake99 on Dec 5, 2008 11:58 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

next time...

hopefully we can eliminate some OFF boards and run on these guys…that’s our best chance of getting open looks versus their set defensive schemes.

i think we (coaches, fans, players) over-hyped this game to our detriment.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:01 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

it seemed like most had it pencil'd in as a loss but then became overexcited

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I think the hype is fine

There’s needs to be expectations on the team so the players don’t feel complacent and happy with where they are.

I rather there be hype and fail miserably then no hype and fail miserably.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

i guess hype is not the right word...

more anxious…i had an anxiety attack before the game.

"I'm pooping a win for the Blazers too!" - my 1yr old.

by broyposse on Dec 6, 2008 12:06 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Haha...it looks like the players felt the same

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Blazers confuse me

I want all of the Blazers in rotation to learn to catch and pass. Not catch and dribble and pass. Catch and pass. And under pressure…This enables the whole group to develop a sense of rhythm and learn how to move without the ball when the pressure is on.

And I hate 20’ fall-away jumpers.

Go Blazers!

by Blazin' on Dec 6, 2008 12:05 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

this stuck out to me in jason quick's recap article in the oregonian:

The Celtics entered the game as the toughest team in the NBA to both shoot and score against, and the Blazers quickly realized why. The Blazers said the Celtics pushed, nudged and grabbed all night, taking away two of their strengths — their ability to drive and kick to shooters outside the three-point line, and their ability to get offensive rebounds. As a result, the Blazers made a season-low two three-pointers and were outrebounded 43-31.

This great defensive strategy the celtics employ is nothing more than a whole lot of pushing, nudging, and grabbing. So why can’t the blazers adopt this “style” of defense? would they not get away with it? where are the refs in these games? why would they call it in 80 games out of the year but let it go whenever we play boston? I wonder if our guys consider this dirty defense. would they not stoop to their level? I mean, really, why don’t we do some of this grabbing/holding/barking at people on all 4s…

by chrischa on Dec 6, 2008 12:14 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Everytime we actually do it

We get called for it. I know the refs didn’t lose this game and I know there’s some star treatment for teams of that caliber, but I got frustrated watching some of those calls. Especially that technical on Oden. How often is that actually called?

by Jerb on Dec 6, 2008 12:20 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

When we can go deep in the playoffs

we might start seeing some respect but until then….

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:21 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Well the veterans

who make up the core of that team wanted to send a message to a young team, and they did.

Just like the big brother who take on one on one for the thousandth time. But it been a long time. Yet this time you finally feel like your faster, better, and sure to win. Well he just does what he’s always done. Kills you yet again….

by lethaldose on Dec 6, 2008 12:39 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I suspect

the Celt’s defense is a little more than that, but to the extent the assessment holds, a true story:

I am a guy. I grew up with a reasonable amount of physicality as a routine part of my life. Sometimes, as a guy, I give other guys a punch on the arm or whatever in fun. I’m generally decent at gauging how much is the right amount to be noticed but not to hurt or be rude.

My wife did not grow up with said physicality in her background. Sometimes she will go to playfully hit me on the arm in reponse to teasing or what have you. 99% of the time she either misses entirely or cracks me so hard it nearly leaves a bruise. She just doesn’t have the innate sense of how to do it well. (Eventually I just kind of asked her to, you know, stop doing that.)

The Blazers as a whole are far more like my wife than like me in the sense of their physicality on defense. If they try to do what Boston does (or old New York, Miami, or Detroit did) they are either going to have no effect or do it too obviously and get whistled.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:22 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I haven't thought of it like that before.

That would really make sense why we’re always called for it. But I still hate watching our players drag theirs around while they grab our jerseys. It’s like when going through a crowd you grab your biggest friends shirt and have him drag you wherever you’re going.

by Jerb on Dec 6, 2008 12:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

What I wonder

is how much the Blazers can learn. These guys are athletes. Some of it has to be there. But in general I think there are guys who can get away with crap and guys who can’t. The Celtics have a lot of guys who can, including the guy who’s pretty close to the King (assuming Shaq is the Emperor). The Blazers, I think, have a lot of guys who can’t.

However there is something to reputation and winning record that makes it easier. I agree that once this team has been to the Conference Finals or at least the second round it will become easier to get some of these things by.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:29 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I certainly some of this is teachable

The Celtic players weren’t exactly this stiff defensively until a certain coach was on the bench.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:31 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

And KG came

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:31 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

True

You have to admit some that defensive grabbing and holding is taught. I see all the players doing it.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:32 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I am waiting for that guy

to come to the Blazers who teaches them all to be semi-nasty cheaters and get away with stuff. I can just imagine the chorus of, “Wait…you can DO that?”

Of course with enough games against annoying vets like KG they’ll begin to pick it up on their own. And I think Nate probably tries to teach them a thing or two. He wasn’t considered a great defender just for his pretty smile, you know.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 12:36 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Too late

to lure Oakley out of retirement?

by Royster on Dec 6, 2008 12:36 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I would love it if Nate was a sly dog and keeping some awesome coaching tactics in his back pocket

Like you think we’re good now, wait until I really start to coach.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:38 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

This was just the sort of thing...

Danny Ainge, and later, Scotty Pippen brought to the team. It’s exactly why a few of us were agitating for a “wiley veteran” a couple of years ago. I think it’s hard for so many young guys who are really just learning the NBA game to learn these little things from each other.

At this point, though, I guess that’s a bridge we have mostly already crossed.

"I love this game!" -Moonbeam, from 'Rollerball' right before he was knocked into a permanent coma

by -ken on Dec 6, 2008 3:18 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

RODMAN RODMAN RODMAN RODMAN RODMAN!!!! DENISE RODMAN!!!

1000 times over….cut raef, and sign RODMAN!!!!

I swear, all we would have had to do was put him in at pg, and let havoc be laid…..k maybe not pg, but really,

DENISE RODMAN!!!

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:29 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Now that would bring us on the front page of every major news publication for a day ;-)

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 7:41 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Think Bowen would like a change of venue?

Maybe he can be a big brother / mentor to someone on our team…

by DonkeyShins on Dec 6, 2008 10:04 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe we bring back Ime Udoka

… after he’s had three or four season’s learning from Bowen’s bag of tricks.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:52 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

certainly think...blah...I'm getting tired

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 12:31 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

"The Blazers as a whole are far more like my wife than like me in the sense of their physicality on defense"

That is all the recap you needed for this game.

"But we need a center", Inman said. "So play him at center!" Knight yelled back. - Bobby Knight on Michael Jordan prior to the Blazers' 1984 draft pick of Sam Bowie.

by BlazerFanSince1970 on Dec 6, 2008 12:26 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

After watching what Rondo is able to do out there defensively...

did any of you have a hankering for a Ricky Rubio in the future? I know its tantamount to treason around these parts, but I’d give up LaMarcus straight up for the kid.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:30 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

If your left leg was lost in an accident would you trade your right arm to get a new leg?

Blazer's Edge Ambassador to The Dream Shake Blog
It is Official! LMA is BACK!!!
39:33 Mins 11-19 FGs 5-5 FTs +23 3 Off 4 Rebs 2 Stl 1 Blk 27 Points! - LMA vs Det 11-30-08

by LaMarvelous on Dec 6, 2008 12:50 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

UH?...mmmm....well.....

YEAH?

I like being able to move…but now I’m thinking about typing….mmmm, k I can get a prostetic for a leg, and it’ wouldnt’ get too noticed except for the limp…..but if I lost an arm,…..

NO!!! I"M KEEPING MY ARM!!!!.

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 7:31 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LMA for Rubio is too much.

Rubio probably isn’t even going to be in the top 3. Guys like Hasheem Thabeet (7-3) and Blake Griffin are just going to be too tempting. I don’t think you give away a future all star for a top 10 pick.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 6, 2008 1:09 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I would love Rubio however.

If the Blazers can’t find a PG on the market I think there is a good chance KP will just wait and try to find one in the draft… again.

by Nick Van Excellent on Dec 6, 2008 1:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

We already found him

He’ll be starting instead of sitting within two years, max. A few glimpses in this game of what he’ll be.

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 1:43 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

LMA hater

hahaha you’ve made an absurd amount of comments on this page, all of them about dumping Aldrich for someone. Look I’m not sold on the guy either, but you wanna just toss em for Rubio? You could get better than Rubio.

The Odenphant is true king of the jungle.

by maxmillian on Dec 6, 2008 12:08 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You must have me confused with someone else...

That’s the first time I’ve ever stated anything about any type of LMA trade. I just happen to like the things Rubio brings to the table. Also he’d be much cheaper, and that would leave us enough room for a 2010 Max Free Agent.

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 12:59 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Like Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire or Dirk Nowitzki

by as11osu on Dec 6, 2008 1:02 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I really like Bayless out there tonight.

Not his play necessarily, but his attitude. Once he starts getting regular minutes he seems like the kind of player that can spark our team. He’s really aggressive and he doesn’t back down and at the same time he doesn’t needlessly jaw with the opponent. How can a team not get inspired by watching him take it right at guys like KG and act like it’s nothin’? All of our players have shown flashes of aggressiveness and toughness but they don’t bring it on a nightly basis. Bayless seems like he could set a standard when he’s ready to play more minutes.

I’ll stop my ramblings there, sorry if it became incoherent.

by Jerb on Dec 6, 2008 12:44 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

This game was kind of expected, wasn't it?

1. We played the Celtics. The Champs.
2. The game was in Boston.

Doesn’t that summarize it?

I liked Bayless, not because he played well against their second unit, but because he wasn’t intimidated by the Celtics. He was unfazed. We desperately need that kind of mentality.

And… he didn’t look terrible running the point. His skill set definitely fits our team… Sergio v Bayless will be decided soon. Or Rex will eat Sergio. Either way, a resolution is coming.

honor rasheed wallace

by Cablinasian on Dec 6, 2008 12:59 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

What about Bayless v Blake?

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 3:40 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I love Blake

But to me, over the long haul, it doesn’t seem like much of a contest. Blake will start this year. All year. But either next season or the season after that, Bayless will be the starter.

In the meantime, I think he’s learning great lessons from Blake. Bayless has physical tools that Blake will never come close to having. Blake knows things that Bayless can learn.

Once he does learn those things… watch out.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

That's kind of how I feel

I said all summer that Sergio would improve, Bayless is the point guard of our future, and Blake will retire as a Blazer. I was right on one point and of course, hope I’m right on the other two.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:20 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Thats the thing...

If “we played the champs, in Boston” summarized it, I think we would have about %80 fewer angry frustrated people.

We also were showed up in front of the coutnry, exposed as frauds. If we played Boston 50 times, Boston would win 50 times.

I thought we were good enough to at least compete against anyone—but we have not improved at all in comparison to how we played Boston last year,, and the Laker game I’m now not so sure was a fluke—We are not good enough to even expect to compete with the best teams. I have now chalked up every laker and Boston game as a loss… I wouldn’t have done that until this game.

by TimG on Dec 6, 2008 1:13 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

So you're saying the Blazers are only going to lose 4 more games the rest of the year?

Sweet.

by tominhawaii on Dec 7, 2008 3:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Nice Recap..

Look guys I LOVE Blazers as im one of the followers of this team (though im avid fan of Boston and Spurs too).

Theres a lot of things needed to become a championship caliber team. Blazers are already have some of it and. But ill put some important points on how and why Blazers is not yet (But i hope that it will be Blazer and Celtics on Finals as i hate FAKERS).

1. CHampionship Caliber Team must have Toughnes (Physical game & mental Game)
2. Dont show Your Frustration, just continue playing
3. Look at all past Champions, what type of player they have:
Detroit – Original Badboys (isiah,Mahorn,Long,Rodman,Laimbeer) Tough-Dirty
Spurs – Bowen & Horry (tough & dirty
LA LAKERS (Shaq-Horry-Fox-A.C. Green)
Boston – KG-Perkins-Powe-Paul
Chicago- Rodman and more

I dont say you need to be dirty just to win a Championship, but if you will watch the games from 1980’s and early 90’s you will see how tough basketball it was. You see how Larry Bird got wacked from the air by Detroit Badboys and no Technical just a plain Foul. It extend up to Chicago, that MJ survive from NY Knicks, Detroit toughness.

Last night what ive seen was completely frustration from Blazers Face Mostly with Brandon (he shouldnt show that, he should lead the team even they are in Bad situation). Blazers are still young, and yesterday all the weakneses has exposed.
Im not dishin Fernandez for 1 or 3 games, but if your shot aint fallin then try to do on other way including DEFENSE. Ray Allen never got a good hands but they shift to other things rather than be upset. What we’ve seen last night we could just say that ROOKIE MISTAKES, and Blazers can Fix that on the next games. I Love to see Portland vs Boston in the Finals as they deserve each other on Win than Lakers, but for the Blazers to do that, they need to start playing as ONE, Tough and SOLID. Coaching And Staff should encourage thier Young players than sitting on the Bench like they lose already (beginning of 4th quarter). Even when they got some Run on Late, I never see any encouragement from the Players and Coach and STAff..
Go Blazers, as Boston Go!!! I wish you reach Finals and Face us..

by spoiled on Dec 6, 2008 1:32 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Crawling KG aka The Grudge

Crawling in front of David West.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Dec 6, 2008 1:36 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

To me

it looked worse than that tonight.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 2:10 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I definitely saw a choke factor out there tonight.

I thought I was watching game 1 with the L*kers again. We looked good at the beginning, but then Boston went on that 180 to 0 run and it was over, (hmmm, I think I was off by one zero…180 to 00).

Was it just me, or did Boston seem like they had a lot more length on the floor, and very athletic length at that?

GO
THE TEACHER ......come into my classroom "THE PAINT" for some tutelage.

by Blazer1342 on Dec 6, 2008 3:17 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Man

some of the blazer fans here…

I’m amazed at how many people want to blame so many people. “do this, no do that”

Guys, we played the better team. We’re doing amazingly well and maybe some of you should pause, breath, and sit down for a moment to REALIZE how well this team is doing. As much as you might like, this team will NEVER win 82 games in the regular season.

I’m so sick of reading about hate towards our team and players. These guys are awesome. Fans like you with no patience are how we got in the Jailblazer situation to begin with. I’m so thankful KP has a longer vision and approach than some of you vocal fans.

I’m out.

Greg Oden, where posters happen.

by ratbastird on Dec 6, 2008 3:54 AM PST reply actions 2 recs

+1

I was joking at the time, but maybe my suggestion of having a poll to see which fans need to be shot is not so bad an idea.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:56 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Wow

Has anyone seen the movie Friday Night Lights? An awful lot of Blazers fans remind me of Tim McGraw’s character. I honestly hope many of the angry fans don’t have kids or at least don’t have kids that play sports.

I am amazed that people cannot grasp the concept of a superior team beating an inferior and less experienced team. I also love how somehow people think the the loss is Frye’s fault. He played just over 14 minutes. I think the blame should be shared by everyone except maybe Joel, Bayless, and Ike. The game was already lost by the time Bayless and Ike entered the game.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 3:56 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

I would definitely say experience taught inexperience a lesson tonight.

Boston was zipping the ball around the court at lightening speed on some plays and the Blazers looked like Freshman trying to play against Seniors.

You can’t go over 10 minutes without a bucket and expect to win against most teams, let alone Boston.

It’d be nice if we didn’t see Boston for another 30 games, but that rematch is only 11 games away.

GO
THE TEACHER ......come into my classroom "THE PAINT" for some tutelage.

by Blazer1342 on Dec 6, 2008 5:30 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Channing Frye is the poster boy for "soft" play at the Power Forward position -- loosely defined in his case.

………………………… You want to beat KG? You need to BEAT KG!!!

"Now with a non-provocative footer!"

by timbo on Dec 6, 2008 6:50 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Game thoughts:

It looks to me as though not enough blame is being assigned to our horrid transition defense. It’s what put us in that hole we dug.

I too was shocked by Nate throwing in the towel so early. Hell, I’ve seen him multiple times call time outs at the end of games with practically no time remaining and a zero chance of winning the game. Did he really think Bayless and Fry were our best chance to win this game? No, he had given up on winning the game. I was disappointed.

Considering Bayless’ performance: There is so much hype here being given for so little. Some seem to be ready to hand the PG duties over to him right now. It takes more than an ability to drive to the bucket to be a good PG (you do remember Jarrett Jack?). And Bayless’ great performance tonight occurred after Nate had already waved the white flag.

Oden deserved that technical. I don’t like how he always tries to put so much emphasis on his dunks by hanging on the rim and kicking his feet out like that. He’s also had the ball knocked out of his hands at least a couple times when he brings it back over his head setting up for the big hammer dunk. Just put the ball in the hole Greg as quickly as you can. Forget the showboating. Sometimes Greg looks so lost on defense and he is way too slow at transitioning to the other end. Earlier I thought Greg should be starting, but I don’t any longer.

Nobody’s mentioned that Outlaw had a decent game. I always like Pryz’s effort. Absolutely terrible defense on Rondo by Blake, Sergio and Bayless although Sergio’s was the least painful. Brandon seemed to have a lot of balls just roll off the rim tonight on his drives. I absolutely LOVE his game! He makes me proud.

by TwoDeep on Dec 6, 2008 4:17 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Poor brandon, he really looked like he wanted that game.....

Bayless looked better and better every second he was on the floor.

I know I ain’t been the biggest Bayless supporter, but I say when we play The Celtics Again…

START BAYLESS!!! a little pitbull he is, didn’t take a second of it off of kg or company…they gave him a little jaw, he gave them the bayless face, with a little quote for the night…..

anyway, I see what everyones been yappin about….GO B REX!!!

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 5:36 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Disappointed in Roy

I am a huge Brandon fan, as you can tell by my screen name, but I believe that Brandon did exactly what everyone talked about not doing. No matter what Pierce was saying to him out there, Brandon fell prey to it. I am not saying that any of it impacted his play, but as a leader out there, with all the talk about not letting Garnett get into LMA’s head, I believe that he did nothing to show the team how to play through that. I am almost in tears saying it, but Brandon did not show his leadership and I am disappointed in him. But I can forgive him very quickly.

by #7 on Dec 6, 2008 5:56 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

i think bayless should start against guys like fisher

bulkier PGs like rondo and fisher call for someone with some heft and defensive spark, but until webster is back and starting, i don’t see nate starting 3 rooks

by appel82 on Dec 6, 2008 8:39 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

Brandon fell into Pierce’s trap. He let himself get into a manhood contest and it took the Blazers out of their offensive rhythm. He scored once or twice, but by getting him into that mindset, Pierce won.

It’s a learning experience. Brandon’s learning how to be “the man.” For a third year guy, he’s doing AMAZINGLY well at it. He’s years and years ahead of the curve.

I think games like this, in the long run, will help him.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Dec 6, 2008 9:30 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

The taunting has gone far enough I agree. I think Aldridge needs to throw elbows into Garnett's chest. Roy needs to

get in Paul Pierces face. When he did it to David West the Hornets got knocked down a notch. Being high character doesn’t mean don’t stand up for yourself and not take abuse. The Blazers need to toughen up.

by BRoyInThe4th on Dec 6, 2008 6:16 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Reason to keep your chins up:

a) 14-7 while playing one of the toughest schedules in the league
b) Nearly 40% of this season’s road games are over
c) The team is still improving
d) Brandon Roy will be an All-Star again this year
e) The addition of Rudy Fernandez
f) The Greg is slowly getting its mojo back
g) Martell will be back soon
h) The emergence of Przybilla this year
i) Darius Miles hasn’t sighed with anyone
j) Channing Frye will never play that poorly again
k) Kevin Pritchard
l) So many trade options
m) No one else can beat LA or Boston, either
n) One of the best fan bases in the league
o) Awesome logo
p) The Rose Garden is loud!
q) First Place in our division
r) This was ONE game
s) Did I mention 14-7?

In a sick & twisted way, i sort of enjoyed what i was seeing. Situations like last night are what this teams needs for the prosperity that lies beyond the horizon.

As the saying goes, pressure is what turns coal into diamond. These young Blazers are far from being coal, but they have a ways to go before they’re diamonds.
Last night’s pressure situation was what they needed.

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 6:28 AM PST reply actions 1 recs

Dave,

I appreciate your extended presence in the comments section after this loss. You are being an excellent Papa Bear after a tough loss for us fans and it doesn’t go unnoticed.

"I try to help with everything," Fernandez said. "If the coach says go rebound, I go rebound. I work for the team."

by sergioFTW on Dec 6, 2008 6:47 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

70

I try to help with everything," Fernandez said. "If the coach says go rebound, I go rebound. I work for the team."

by Dragonage on Dec 6, 2008 7:14 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

KG is a moron

I used to respect the man but the more I see him play the more I realize is that it’s less about TEAM and more about KG’s fringe pysche. He’s a mental case and I wonder what the kids think when they see a man they consider important disrespecting and cursing his opponents.

Blazer Fan

by leeroyjenkins on Dec 6, 2008 7:23 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

And the game while disappointing isn't the end of the world

Think how fun it’s going to be Dec. 30 when Boston comes here. I hope you all go to the game and tell KG what you think of him.

Blazer Fan

by leeroyjenkins on Dec 6, 2008 7:26 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

No Biggie we are what we are

We are lacking toughness and that mentallity. We got rid of the jailblazers but I guarantee this Celtics club would not have tried that on them because nobody on that team would have let it go.

Maurice Lucas, Kermit Washington, Kenny Carr, Otis Thorpe, Buck Williams, Brian Grant, etc etc. Portland had a history of bad arse pf’s/ protectors we do not have an enforcer and have not had one for quite awhile now,and Nobody on this roster is going to become one in the near future, I admired Bayless’s attitude but thats all it was. Attitude without action is just attitude, Portland is not in a championship window so this is probably just a venting session, we really don’t even have a true Identity other then were a jump shooting team that is very soft(80’s suns anyone)theres still plenty of time to shore alot of things up but we still dont even know what we have, the best part is we will be a playoff team this year, and the only ones who should be dissapointed are the ones that thought we were a finals contender. Not happening.

My only question is? How do you teach toughness? When do you tell a child thats its not ok to give the school bully your lunch money? Why was Roy shooting his mouth off to Pierce? Punch him in the mouth dont sit and jaw about somthing(I mean that literally)Pierce completely took Roy out of his game on that one posession,,,,

I try to help with everything," Fernandez said. "If the coach says go rebound, I go rebound. I work for the team."

by Dragonage on Dec 6, 2008 7:37 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

And that's why Brandon, Nate, and the reporting about this team is amazing (probably got posted somewhere already)

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2008/12/quick_lakers_and_celtics_are_n.html

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 7:38 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Gameflow

http://popcornmachine.net/cgi-bin/gameflow.cgi?date=20081205&game=PORBOS

B-Rex bandwagon begins

by Norsktroll on Dec 6, 2008 8:02 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

thanks for the links

Norsktroll. Always appreciated.

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 10:33 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I have read so many posts complaining about KG and the league and the refs and the actions that deserve a T

but lets get real. The Blazers played emotionally week. This is like a bleeding baby seal floating in the ocean all alone , how can the Great White Shark resist.

I am only frrustrated that the team let this get stupid. Garnett is no different than last year or the year before. He doesn’t even bother me that much. Yeah, I wish he would just let his game speak but that’s not who he is. I dont know if he is not smart enough to channell his emotions properly or if he just does not care but he is who he is and complaining will do nothing.

The Blazers needed to come out and not have a mental break down. THey needed to be agressive. THey needed to focus on the game not on who was saying or doing something crazy.. Of course they didnt . Not even close. That is because the team is mentally weak. it is now not so incomprehensable that Oden has had some confidence issues. It’s not as if he’s working with anyone that he can emulate or draw energy from.

This is by far the dumbest game this year because everyone from Brandon the Oden to Przy to LmA played like scared green rookies out for their first time.
There was a thread that Ben posted calling Big Baby’s tears pathetic but I will have to respecfully disagree , the Blazers were PATHETIC.

Sophia

"Feminism encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcreaft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians. [speech at GOP Presidential Convention 1992] Rev. Pat Robertson

by BlazerFan1 on Dec 6, 2008 9:16 AM PST reply actions 1 recs

Are you a dominatrix in your spare time?

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Huh?

Why did you include “in your spare time” in that question?

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 12:49 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

You guys kill me.

In a good way.

hakkaa päälle !

by timg56 on Dec 6, 2008 12:58 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

come back off the ledge..

Wow…chill

It feels to me like everyone is hyper analyzing this game, and our team, due to the undue hype leading up to the contest.

This is one game in early December. This was a BIG game in the media and the blogosphere only.

In reality, it’s the 4th of a 5 game road trip playing in the house of the defending world champs. We’ve got 3 rookies getting regular minutes playing their 21st game of their respective careers.

It sounds like a lot of folks need to come back in off the ledge, one, and two, use a little discretion when calling out your beloved young Blazers.

I, for one, was impressed with the way we came out of the gate last night. We were scrappy and we played with decent physicality. We played pretty well with the C’s for the first 20+ minutes. Yes, there were some glaring individual ‘weaknesses’ in some guys games, that lead to the C’s huge run- namely rebounding and transition D, or lack thereof.

That said, to call out our team as being ‘mentally weak’ is just off the mark. We are who we are right now in the evolution of this young team, and that includes some very specific areas of weaknesses that need to be corrected or addressed. Like almost any other team in any sport.

Finally, just because the C’s and KG are bullies, doesn’t mean that we got bullied.
We got outplayed by a better team on their home court in the midst of a brutal schedule. And the C’s are a MUCH better team now, than who we faced last year.

Looking forward to some home cookin’ on Dec 30! Until then, come back off the ledge, chill, and enjoy watching this young team grow up.

by gardenofoden on Dec 6, 2008 12:58 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

This just isn't true

Aldridge was pissed, Brandon was pissed, Frye looked so completely lost like I have never seen before, we got beat over and over and over again by their guards down the floor—We did not just simply lose a game against a championshi[ caliber team, we got totally embarrassed, shaken, and totally taken out of our game. We were NOT mentally tough enough. We know, now, that we are not able to compete with Boston.

The smartest bet in the sporting world would be to take Boston when they play the blazers next. Take out a home equity loan and put it all on Boston, because we CANNOT compete with them.

It’s not the end of the world, or the season—we’re still having a GREAT season. But we are not ready to compete against a physicaly and mentally tougher team. Sophia is right, and I don’t know why people want to bury their heads in the sand, saying it was just a loss against a better team. It was much, much more than that. It was an embarrassment.

by TimG on Dec 6, 2008 1:30 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Of course those guys are pissed...

they got their behinds handed to them in the sport in which they are paid to play. Sure it was a bad, even embarrassing loss.

And Channing was bad, but not THAT much worse than he’s been. As I mentioned, we have issues that need to be addressed, and there is one of them.

However, where I disagree, is that you can extrapolate from this one game that we are mentally weak, and have no business competing with the Celtics. They are simply a better team than we are now, but it’s not because they are strong and we are weak (physically or mentally).

I just don’t think it is fair, based on this one game, to make generalizations about our player’s mental state or manhood. Particularly when you’re talking about studs like B-Roy and Joel.

KG is not strong, he’s a punk. When anyone has ever stepped to him in big games, he has recoiled into a shell.

But again, it’s not about that. It’s about us improving in areas where we got beat last night….tangible basketball areas. Could we beat Boston in a playoff series right now… highly unlikely. Can we compete with them? A resounding YES.

See ya back here on the 31st…

by gardenofoden on Dec 6, 2008 1:46 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Sure, it was an embarrassment

It will happen again, too.

But I don’t know how you can be so sure that a young team won’t learn something from it. And all it takes is a few big plays and guys start to say, “Yeah, we can take these guys, we weren’t ready then but WE ARE NOW.”

Will it happen on the 30th? Probably not, but who knows?

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 2:22 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

There are many ways to lose. It was less the size of the the lose to Boston, than how they lost that concerns me. With the exception of Bayless, Prez and to some extent Roy, I didn’t see much mental toughness out there for the Blazers.

Part of that toughness includes moving aggressively toward the basket on offense and toward the ball on rebounds. Oden is still finding out how to score which means the only other big we have to consistently score low is Aldridge. Because he was content to float outside, he put little pressure on KG at the Blazer end of the court. This lack of pressure down low is reflected in the free throw differential. Blazer bigs shot 4 for 6; Boston 10 for 15.

Others have commented on the rebound differential. I was struck at how often on the Boston side of the court, Blazers were following missed shots with their eyes, but not with their bodies. Rebounding is mostly about working for proper position when the ball goes up and working to collect it when it careens off.

And I have a question that someone who paid more attention than me might answer. Ray Allen leaked out for easy baskets three times on missed Portland shots: whose defensive assignment was he?

by Trutherlizer on Dec 6, 2008 9:42 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

i think he was rudy's

someone correct me if im wrong.

ignacio

by ignacio on Dec 6, 2008 10:24 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Things are more fluid in transition

Generally guards and the small forward share the responsibility for getting back and slowing down anybody who runs out for the opposing team until the rest of the defense can arrive. If, for instance, the point guard penetrates then the off-guard and/or the small forward is supposed to start running back when the shot goes up. Whoever is not penetrating—whoever is farthest away from the offensive basket and closest to the defensive basket when the shot goes up—has to get back. It doesn’t matter who you’re assigned to guard.

Also if you shoot a three-pointer as a guard your very next step is to start back on defense. You don’t stand and see if the shot goes in. Woe be unto you if you stand even longer than that. You’re on the perimeter. Unless you shoot from the coffin corner that puts you closer to the opposite basket than most everybody else.

In other words, transition defense is a team responsibility as much as an indivdiual one. Against Boston none of the good things happened for the Blazers and all of the bad ones did. I was astonished, frankly, because I had not seen that all season. It got so bad that the ESPN commentators called out a couple of guys by name and they seldom, if ever, do that.

As a side note, it’s things exactly like this that used to keep Martell Webster and Travis Outlaw firmly anchored to the pines in their younger days and kept Sergio from getting tons of extra minutes last year.

—Dave

by Dave on Dec 6, 2008 10:40 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

KG is a pundit.

He hilariously called out Corey Maggette for being a selfish gunner the other day:
http://nba.fanhouse.com/2008/12/04/meet-kevin-garnett-nba-whistleblower/

When he showed us up last night, he was sending a message. That message was he thinks we’re soft. We sent a message by not responding to him. That message was that he’s right.

by howlingfantods on Dec 6, 2008 10:19 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

And all these complaints about how he should be fined or suspended?

Classic wimp responses to a bully. Go crying to the teacher.

The way to prevent being showed up? Get tougher, not go crying to Principal Stern.

by howlingfantods on Dec 6, 2008 10:22 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Stern has a job to do

and he should do it.

But I agree that we need to dish out a couple good, hard fouls in Portland. The “you go sit on the floor there” kind of fouls.

Do you like asparagus?

by jscot on Dec 6, 2008 10:44 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs

just one bell esque foul...just one. :)

The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out burns out farms and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.

by faith on Dec 6, 2008 11:07 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

This team needs to play Boston

more often. They learn little to nothing when playing the Clippers and Bobcats of the league aside from they’re able to bring 80% to the arena and still probably with on skill level and depth, alone.

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:02 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

*win on skill level and depth, alone.

whats with my grammar this morning??!?!? Bartender, I was poisoned!

when i get sad, i stop being sad & become awesome again. true story.

by Net Ranger on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe a game like this is exactly what we need at this stage of our growth

We’ve had two games against elite teams now and both were the same. We have wanted to write off game 1 against the L*kers, but here is the same kind of story against the next elite team we play: the opponent played freakin’ playoff caliber ball instead of their normal game against us, because they know their normal regular season game won’t be enough. There are enough samples now that we can’t write off our poor performance against elite teams any more, and that can only benefit us.

As good as our team played against Detroit and New Orleans, sustained team effort is not something we are seeing from our Blazers for 48 minutes a night. While I don’t want to denigrate the team growth one bit, our guys are winning as much through their huge talent differential that is blowing away the opposition as much as through their play together.

I only had the opportunity to see the couple of Blazer baskets bracketing the Celtics’ 21 point run, and missed the rest of the game. And strangely somehow it gave me hope. It was evident we lost because of our inexperience and immaturity. This is correctable with more experience, some of it painful, and learning. Now that we’ve had another game to put the blowouts against elite teams in a better perspective, with the work ethic our guys have I can’t see them doing anything but combing through the films of these two games over and over again for lessons about how to get better, how to work together, and how to bring intensity for 48 minutes every night. Our guys are going to be completely awesome in a year or two if they do so.

GO BLAZERS!!

by jaywalker on Dec 6, 2008 12:03 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

This isn't an excuse and also sounds lame

It honestly seemed like there would be three or four Blazers under the basket and the ball would rebound about two to three feet from the rim to the only Celtic around the basket. I noticed that just before the Celtic threw the ball to another Celtic under the Blazer’s basket.

If I did see what I thought I saw, then I bet Nate made a big deal about rebounding before the game, and then never made an adjustment regarding the break away Celtic. I can’t just blame Nate for the team getting back, because the dang players are smart enough to know what is going on.

I hate young teams. We should just trade straight up for most of the older Pistons and Spurs.

by tominhawaii on Dec 6, 2008 12:30 PM PST reply actions 0 recs