"Once again, I can say- It's a great day to be a Blazer" - Brian Wheeler (the voice of Trail Blazer radio broadcasts)

Ok, ok. So what? Our lovable Portland Trail Blazers dug themselves an 18 point deficit in the second quarter, which they trimmed down to just 2 points at 1:02 minutes left in the game, but stil managed to lose. However, in spite of this hearbreakingly close loss, I will explain why Blazers fans still have a reason to celebrate.

In the Blazers' 98-94 loss to the surprisingly good Houston Rockets, elite scorer and All-Star guard Brandon Roy contributed 24 points and 5 assists, while forward LaMarcus Aldrige posted 21 points and 8 rebounds, and rookie Nicolas Batum gave his team 14 points, 1 steal, and 1 blocked shot in less than 27 minutes of play. Despite all this, the Blazers managed to lose.

An offensively sluggish first half (only 43 scored points, compared to the Rockets' 60) provided the Blazers with a deficit that was too difficult to overcome, despite a brilliant last half both offensively and defensively for the Blazers. Rockets' guard Ron Artest was forced by the Blazers to prove himself at the foul line 4 times. Any miss would lead to a potential tie forced by the Blazers. Artest certainly did prove himself, sinking all 4 free throws in the fourth quarter and running the Blazers' deficit up to 6 points with his steady clutch free throw shooting.

In spite of this disenheartening loss, Blazers fans still have a reason to smile at the end of the day.

Firstly, Blazers fans can rejoice in the fact that their team was better than last year's team- they have new talent, and their young players have matured yet another year.  Rookie Nicolas Batum gave the Blazers his all today, shooting a brilliant 3 for 3 from behind the arc, as well as having a great game defensively, matching up with the likes of Ron Artest. Secondly, in only five minutes of play, rookie Jerryd Bayless was able to post two assists. (I believe that he should get a lot more playing time, as he is a point guard with limitless potential and that the Blazers should build around him.) Also, Travis Outlaw had a decent game, posting 15 points for his team. Outlaw is learning how to be a consistent player, which is what the Blazers need from him (though we surely also like his occasional flashes of brilliance.)

Secondly, our Blazers need only 6 more wins to reach the break even point. A good first half, followed by sloppy play for the rest of the season resulted in only a 41-41 record last year. We have nowhere to go but up, assuming that we win 7 games.

Thirdly, after this hard road trip, we have only easy coasting to look forwad too, that is, until our home game against the Lakers.

These three reasons, amongst others, are the reasons why it's still a great day to be a Blazer, no matter whether we won or lost today.