Blazers Vs Thunder 11/1/09 Review

by Aaron Sass on Nov 1, 2009 8:38 PM PST

Tonight the Trail Blazers won but it wasn't a nice looking win. Though the Thunder are better this year and I think they'll grab the 8 seed in the west, the Blazers shouldn't have had as many problems with them as they did tonight. Though some of the problems the Trail Blazers had are out of their control.

One of the problems is Greg Oden getting into foul trouble. I've seen this since the season has started and I saw it again tonight. The referees are giving Greg Oden fouls based on a reputation not because he's fouling anyone. This needs to stop and stop soon otherwise it will hurt the Blazers in the long run. They need Oden on the floor.

I was pleased with Greg's performance though. 12 points and 10 rebounds is right where he needs to be. I think for the season he'll average right around that but maybe a rebound more. I also believe when the season is over Greg Oden will lead the league in blocks and be amongst the leaders in defensive and offensive rebounds per game. I don't think Oden will contend for the defensive player of the year, that will come in the next year or two.

Steve Blake stepped his game up tonight leading the Trail Blazers in scoring. I finally saw him not pass up on shots that he would normally take and that's what he needs to do. The Blazers need him out there shooting 3's. That's how he'll be effective.

Tonight was the first night I felt Andre Miller wasn't looking to score. I've been feeling in the first 3 games that he's just been looking to score and he hasn't been looking to penetrate and free up the 3 point shooters. The game against the Rockets on Halloween his shot selection was good for the first time in the young season. Tonight, I think, he had a decent performance. He didn't win the game for them, but he also didn't lose the game for them.

Brandon and LaMarcus didn't have huge numbers tonight. Obviously LA didn't because of the injury but Brandon just had one of those games where he, like Andre tonight, didn't lose the game but he didn't win it either. Brandon had a solid performance... Well, good enough to get them the win.

One player I'm surprised with and excited to keep watching is Martell Webster. He seems like he brings a lot of energy to the court and he can score now in more ways then just shooting 3's. I liked the dunk he had in the 3rd quarter I think and I would have gone nuts if that one he missed went down. He looks good and I hope he continues to play this way.

I also liked that Juwan Howard got some minutes. I really like Juwan. Though he didn't have an outstanding performance he didn't do anything stupid either. He's just that guy you can put in when you need him and he won't disrupt anything. He's a great fit for this team.

Overall, the Blazers won but I think they can play a lot better. But at least they got the win. But one criticism I still have of them is that they're not looking for the big guys enough. THEY NEED TO LOOK INSIDE MORE!!!!

Tweet Comment 12 comments | 1 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Good Post

I felt this way about Millers game tonite:

“We need atleast one PG to be hot everygame or it makes the game harder on everyone else. Lucky we had Blake because Andre Miller had another subpar performance as far as im concerned. For a guy who wants to be the starter, his play has not proved he deserves that position. His lackluster 20 minutes on the court produced 4 points, 3 rebs, zero assist, zero steals, 1 turnover and 4 fouls. Not starting type of stats.”

On Odens Performance:
“Another key for me was trying to establish some post presence. We did that tonight. LMA went to the rack with the ball almost everytime he got it. They fed Greg his touches as well and he managed to not let anyone down. Greg still had 3 turnovers but overall another great game by the big fella. Only 4 fouls in 29 minute aint bad either. Last year I dont know if Go played 29 minutes in any game.”

Who I thought needed improvment for us to win:
Steve Blake, Andre Miller, Travis Outlaw

What the Nate said of those guys:
“I think he’s going to get better,” McMillan said. “We’re running some stuff for him, and I thought he got us off to a start where he tried to establish that post, and we’ll learn how to get him the ball. I thought defensively he did a nice job of just playing big and defending that basket.”

Steve Blake scored 18 points, Travis Outlaw added 12 and Martell Webster had 10 for Portland.

In My Post I said:
Get Martell the ball as a key to a win and they did.

My earlier 2 posts— check them out.
http://www.blazersedge.com/2009/11/1/1110578/offense-or-defense-lets-see
http://www.blazersedge.com/2009/11/1/1110144/defense-or-offense-you-decide

The Dude: Hey, careful, man, there's a beverage here!

by cavejunctionblazer on Nov 1, 2009 9:03 PM PST reply actions

Dave writes these. you don't need to.

i realllllllllllllllly hate your sig :(
n o offense
-BlazerFan1

by TheTinfoil on Nov 1, 2009 9:54 PM PST reply actions

I, for one, enjoy the additional perspectives.

And I don’t think anyone is forced to read anything they don’t want to, so keep that in mind.

by TheStones on Nov 1, 2009 10:11 PM PST up reply actions

I enjoy the additional perspective too

On the other hand:

It’s nice to keep the conversation in one place, rather than scattered across two or more posts.
More people are going to read Dave’s analysis than a sidebar post, so if someone wants the widest audience for their opinions, they’re better off posting in the comments section of the recap than writing up a separate post.
Sidebar space is limited. It’s not really a problem if one person writes up a separate analysis, but if a bunch of people start doing it, fanposts will be rolling off the mainpage in no time flat.

by Corvid on Nov 1, 2009 11:00 PM PST up reply actions

Dave's isn't up yet.

What will I do with my life until then?

by Epimenides on Nov 1, 2009 10:13 PM PST up reply actions

agreed..its not like I have homework or a house to clean.

by tevisthe4th on Nov 1, 2009 10:57 PM PST up reply actions

Don't harsh on this post — there are plenty of sidebar posts worthy of that sort of attention, but there's some thought behind this one...

Go after one of the “FanPosts” that contains 47 words and sound like a mediocre thread comment…

"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal

by timbo on Nov 1, 2009 11:08 PM PST reply actions

you took the words right out of my mouth

some folks are harsh

The Dude: Hey, careful, man, there's a beverage here!

by cavejunctionblazer on Nov 1, 2009 11:34 PM PST up reply actions

Wow, people are testy around here

I haven’t watched the game yet, and may not have time to. I don’t mind the additional perspective at all.

I can tell you how to make an Excel spreadsheet that proves Portland wins 62 games this year.

by jscot on Nov 2, 2009 12:22 AM PST reply actions

Energy was good, execution was pretty bad

Blazer Fan

by leeroyjenkins on Nov 2, 2009 9:27 AM PST reply actions

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and perspectives

Rather than judge them (for or against) I appreciate reading what you have to say. It adds to the other perspectives (my own and Dave’s and others) and facilitates a broader picture of the team. We separate ourselves from other blogs when we reduce the need to conform everyone else to our perspective and when we see the contributions of each post as adding to the sum of our knowledge (even when we mostly disagree).

I do have one question:

THEY NEED TO LOOK INSIDE MORE

This game was unusual. With LA out of the game and Joel generally ineffective in the post (1 for 4 with 2 turnovers) and Greg with foul trouble and 3-second turnovers (at least 2 of his 3 turnovers, from memory) wouldn’t you rather find your scoring from relatively open outside shots and preserve Greg’s fouls and energy for defense?

It did require more penetration, from my perspective, and when Brandon did that it opened up the shooters. Was this what you meant by looking inside more?

"Either way we have two phenomenal units. I'm excited to play with either one." - Martell Webster

by lee3022 on Nov 2, 2009 12:47 PM PST reply actions

What I meant by looking inside more was....

To me it seems like the guards aren’t looking to penetrate very often. Even Brandon. Also to me it always seems like Greg has an advantage over the man who’s guarding him. It’s not like he’s playing Shaq or Dwight Howard every night. Greg can take most of the big men in the league. I want Brandon and Andre to penetrate more, but they also need to look for Greg more too. I’m not expecting Greg to score 25 points per game and get all the touches on offense. But what I do want is for them to go to him more. Greg is going to get most of his points on offensive rebounds, but if you establish him early as a threat in the post it will open up the shooters and they can really do damage. To me, Greg is the key to them winning in every game. He also is the difference to them being a really good team that can maybe get out of the first round of the playoffs every now and then, and them being a championship team. If they want to be a championship team they need to get him more involved in the offense.

by Aaron Sass on Nov 2, 2009 2:14 PM PST up reply actions