Game 5 Media Row Report
by Ben Golliver on Apr 29, 2009 12:54 AM PDT
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PrintIf you've seen Goodfellas you've seen this scene. The tracking shot where Henry Hill and his date skip a long club line and enter through the kitchen. Henry, ever cool, lays a few hundred dollars in tips on some employees and -- boom -- after about 90 seconds, he's seated front and center ready to enjoy the evening.
It's a famous enough scene that it's been mentioned in roughly 34 Bill Simmons columns. If there's one thing I hate doing in life, it's ripping off a running Simmons reference
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[Obligatory: Trade Greg Oden? Yep, these are my readers.]
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But in this case I feel I have no choice but to call up that scene because I found myself following a postgame moving entourage led by Brandon Roy. It made its way from the Blazers locker room, through the long, narrow, densely populated back hallway, round a bend that opens to the fan VIP section and finally into the main media room, which has been transformed into the postgame press conference stage.
And damned if B Roy doesn't have a lot of Henry Hill swag. He knows he's the king of the place. He knows you know he's the king of the place. And he's fully content to not dwell on that (dwelling would make him less cool) and just keep it moving. He's on another level right now.
All of this despite the fact that Roy was hours removed from receiving a pregame IV to help battle a nasty flu and a half hour removed from gutting out nearly 40 minutes against Ron Artest and Shane Battier.
Our tracking shot starts with handshakes from his teammates and the team doctors, morphs into hugs from wives, girlfriends and mothers, blossoms into sophisticated, pre-rehearsed hand slap sequences with various crew members that recalled pre-teen female jump rope routines, gives way to head nods and questions from Kevin Pritchard and Mike Born, and evaporates into a sea of waves to fans as the crowd lightens and his pace increases.
When Brandon finally sat down at the long press conference table, he looked tired. He looked a little pale. And he looked proud.
Whether he remembers it clearly through the influenza fog or whether the game film will be needed to jog his memory, Brandon led his team to their best defensive effort of the season, bar none. With the exception of a red-hot Luis Scola, the Blazers' defensive energy and, I hate to use Nate's favorite word, scrappiness contained every Rocket, nudging up the degree of difficulty on shot after shot and virtually eliminating offensive rebounds or second chance points for the Rockets. Despite finishing with a double-double, Yao Ming was a non-factor for much of the game and Aaron Brooks, much to Steve Blake's delight, decided to come back to Earth, struggling through a 6 for 20. Game 4 Hero Shane Battier had the same number of field goals as Brian Cook; Ron Artest was just plain ill-advised.
I guess if the tracking shot were to continue following Brandon after he left the press conference, it would eventually find him preparing to enter Blazer One, bound again for Houston where life for Brandon and his teammates has been anything but charming.
For tonight, let's just yell "cut" and end the scene with the Rose Garden scoreboard reading Blazers 88 Rockets 77.
Great movie. Two thumbs up.
Random Games Notes
- Before the game, I'm sitting courtside with Michael Tillery of the Portland Observer and (as always) Bayless is playing one on one with Bill Bayno. It's the final possession and Bayless steps back and drains a 3 then holds his follow-through as he turns and walks in our direction. He asks, "Can you tell this guy to play some defense?" and then continues walking towards the locker room, without pausing. Bayless. Too much. I don't get a vote but if I had one I would vote for Bayless to go to Summer League again this year and have an independent film crew follow his exploits. I could see him averaging 52 + points, 9 hours of workouts and 2 hours of driving around the strip singing rap lyrics by himself in his Range Rover. I'll even volunteer to be a cameraman for this thing. It needs to happen. Bayless-Rise. Up-Bayless. Whatever you want to call it, just make it happen.
- Immediately after the game I saw Director of Player Programs Chris Bowles, who smiles, nods and says matter-of-factly, "And you know this.... BALLLIN." This man needs a blog or at the very least a twitter acount. How could you possibly summarize tonight's mood in five words better than that?
- To answer that question, perhaps you're Rudy in the locker room postgame and you use just two words: "We believe."
- Congratulations. You just witnessed the most dominant 2 point 4 rebound performance in NBA history. Greg didn't impress himself but I'm sure Wafer is having some uncomfortable private thoughts on the plane back to Houston after getting capped Kennedy style at the rim. Possession after possession after possession Greg changed the game in the second half. Oden diehards deserve a long moment to savor his performance tonight.
- I have heard nothing but arguments for starting Rudy in Game 6. So I would like to hear the couterargument from you: why should Nicolas Batum keep his spot?
- If Luis Scola had exactly the same game but was named Lou Scott and sported a buzz cut he would get 300% more All Star consideration. Maybe? It's late. I might be delusional. It sounded good when I first thought of it.
- LMA is starting to provide a lot of answers to the questions. I think regardless of what happens the rest of the way, we've seen enough to call his first postseason a success.
Nate's Postgame Comments
Did your lobbying affect the calls tonight? "No. I said this before the game, I'ma hold true to this. My mother told me when she was living, years ago when I was a player and I was negotiating a contract and talking to shut my mouth and do my job. And that's where I'm at. That's behind us. I should have taken that advice and just kept my mouth closed and went on about business. It's behind us. I thought tonight our guys came out and played their hearts out. I never questioned this team's heart. Being in a situation like this, with your back against the wall, against a very good team in Houston, they've played well, these guys wanted to go back. They didn't want the season to end. And they played their behinds off."
Brandon was sick: "Well you just never know. I've been involved in some games where I didn't feel well and I played well. I said that before the game. Some nights when guys come in and they are under the weather or not feeling well, they have some of their best games. Brandon had one of those tonight. He came out, took an IV before the game and came out and just played. He played like a champion. LaMarcus who had an injury came out and played. It wasn't two guys, it was a team effort again tonight."
On Increasing Rudy's minutes and starting him in the second half: "Well, I just felt like we needed to get some more movement. Artest and Battier were switching off on Brandon. And we needed to get movement, to get scoring in the offense. I went to that rotation early in the first and I liked it and I just wanted to try to keep the pressure on their defense. Make them have to guard five guys out on the floor."
On whether the increased time for Rudy will continue in Game 6: "We'll talk about it. Rudy wore himself out running and trying to defend. We'll talk about that tomorrow. We can certainly go that way."
On the defensive effort: "Yeah, early Scola was knocking down shots, he was hot. You want the team to take perimeter shots. But we needed to get a little closer to him. Our close outs were slow. We started to get more aggressive and make our reads. It's a good team. They take advantage of the defense. If you are collapsed on Yao, they move the ball, they do a great job of moving the ball, I thought tonight we were more aggressive recovering to the perimeter and controlling the ball, especially the second half. In the first half, Brooks and Von and those guys got to the basket but the second half we made some adjustments and did a better job of keeping them out of the paint."
Who is the pressure on? "Well you know they still need one game to close the series. They are going back home for Thursday's game. For us, it's still a one game season. We want to try to get back to Portland. We haven't won in Houston so it's still a huge challenge for us and for them. They need one more and we need to win to stay alive."
Does your approach change? "Really, it's the same for us. We still have to win to play another game. They have to win one more. It's just different buildings. They've been able to win here in this series and we haven't won there. The pressure is on us to go out and win that game on Thursday."
Postgame Audio Files
Shift-click to stream. Right click + save link as to download the mp3.
- Nate McMillan Postgame
- Rick Adelman Postgame
- Luis Scola Postgame
- Brandon Roy Postgame
- LaMarcus Aldridge Postgame
-- Ben (benjamin.golliver@gmail.com)
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Thanks, Ben .. one of your best.
“If Luis Scola had exactly the same game but was named Lou Scott and sported a buzz cut he would get 300% more All Star consideration. Maybe? It’s late. I might be delusional. It sounded good when I first thought of it. "
Lol! Too many memorable lines.
frankly, Batum shouldn't start
he would be much more effective coming off the bench to defend Wafer.
If I were to make an argument for him starting, I would say something to the effect of:
Starting Rudy or Outlaw would throw them off because going from the bench to starting is a big adjustment.
While I agree that Batum shouldn't start...
I can see some good arguments for him starting.
It’s hard playing from behind, and while they’ve done it well, you just really don’t want to continually do that. Getting off to a good start makes a huge difference, and Nic helps lock the other team down, not that the Rockets are a potent high scoring offense, but a solid defensive effort makes them able to weather shooting slumps better.
It also makes the other team adjust mid-game from a good defender and moderate offensive threat to a huge offensive threat, and a moderate defender.
Personally, I want to see Rudy in the game a lot, he’s got that crafty veteran je no sais quoi to him.
by pcrackenhead on Apr 29, 2009 9:56 AM PDT up reply actions
I love Batum but I agree
Guarding Battier consists of camping out on the three-point line, which could be done by anybody. You make a good point about putting Batum on Wafer.
(P.S. I’m not a fan of the world in which Von Wafer and Ike Diogu leave the Blazers and suddenly become basketball geniuses. Unfair!)
Sticking up for Travis Outlaw since 2008.
Welcome
to the Houston Astros situation for the last 20 years.
by Artest4Prez on Apr 29, 2009 11:41 AM PDT up reply actions
Ike Diogu had one good game and Von Wafer is still atrocious on defense.
Look, Digou and Wafer are totally worthless in the long-term scheme of things.
For example, Travis Outlaw might one day leave the Portland Trail Blazers and put up empty numbers like Al Harrington has throughout his career. Yet, even if that’s the case, it won’t change the massive amounts of deficiencies in Outlaw’s game — which can’t be argued by even most ardent supporters of his — and the fact that he’s an all-around poor player.
Why Rudy shouldn't start
My concern is with the Artest-Roy matchup if Rudy starts. Fortunately, Adelman didn’t exploit this matchup in game 5, but we saw Ron-Ron back Brandon down and score the “and 1” in game 4. You don’t want your best player getting abused and into early foul trouble, if at all possible
Go ahead and start Rudy, but if the Rockets repeatedly clear a side for Artest and he starts pounding Roy down low in game 6, be ready to insert Outlaw before it gets ugly
Hopefully Brandon Roy doesn't have swine flu
We're just kids trying to make it in this game
Trying hard to knock on that door called fame
WORD UP.STAY.FRESCO
hopefully image hosting services learn to respect your g
by Ben Golliver on Apr 29, 2009 1:14 AM PDT up reply actions
HAHA
Sophia told me that Photobucket emailed/twittered her about it, apparently they apologized and said it was a mistake and that they are putting it back up. Someone probably reported it.
We're just kids trying to make it in this game
Trying hard to knock on that door called fame
WORD UP.STAY.FRESCO
My thoughts on Nic...
Nic is an amazing defender. His value peaks when he starts the game with so much energy on the other teams best player. He’s great at making the other guy work hard for everything from the get-go.
However, he’s is useful when the star of the other team is a 1,2, or 3. But, when Yao is the opposition’s go-to guy. Nic can’t guard him so his value IN THIS SERIES goes way down. I think we make too much of starting line-ups. He’s integral to the success of this ball club, just not to this series.
It’s no wonder the Rockets have had our number this year. The neutralize Nic’s value on this club. Nic is sort of handcuffed because at this point in his career, his defense is far more valuable than his offense. So if he’s not scoring against a team like the Rockets, he shouldn’t be out there much unless someone get’s a hot hand.
In my opinion, This whole series has been a struggle to get as much offense on to the floor. Our defense has been good enough to win every game but game 1.
nic could be...
coming off the bench as a targeted sub to shut down von wafer. I wouldn’t change anything at this point in the series though.
Ben is ballin
NEED MORE MEDIA ROW REPORTS WIN GAME 6 PLEASE
"The brownies,'' Fernandez said after the game. "The brownies are good for me to make three-points.''
Batum or Rudy as starter?
If the Blazers don’t get the ball to Rudy to shoot, why start him if Nic does play better defense? Seems like the Blazers attempt to “establish” Aldridge and/or Roy in the early going so they can ignore trying to set up Nic.
I think in this series we need more scoring and more motion, so I’d opt to start Rudy, but I’d also get him the ball by involving everyone in more of a motion offense.
Should we play the Lakers, we might want to start Batum again for his defense, but it doesn’t seem warranted against Houston.
lol no
right now the Rockets can focus on LMA and Roy because Nic isn’t a big offensive threat. Having Rudy out there lessens the focus on Roy and LMA
There is more to the game than "shooting" and "on the ball defense"
Rudy scored 0 points in the second half I believe, but when he is on the floor, the other teams ALWAYS have to pay attention to him. They cheat off of Batum, especially in this series, because he has not been an offensive threat.
Also, Batum playing defense on Artest/Shane is fairly irrelevant. Battier won’t score unless he gets open on a double and we WANT Artest to think that he can score.
we WANT Artest to think that he can score
Not if he’s less than 5 feet from the basket
In games 3,4 Ron backed Batum and scored easily at the beginning of the games. So, nate countered with Outlaw and the Rockets stopped looking for Artest in the post. In game 4, Roy was guarding Artest and had to foul Ron to prevent another lay-in (which resulted in the “and 1” and Ron-Ron posing for the baseline fans?)
Fortunately, Adelman didn’t exploit the Artest-Roy matchup in game 5 by clearing a side and dumping the ball into Ron against Brandon. But that doesn’t mean this size mismatch won’t be “revisited” in game 6
Yes we want Artest taking ill-advised shots from the perimeter. What we DON’T want to see if Ron-Ron gangstering smaller Blazer defenders around the basket, like he used to do when he played in Sac-town
Not giving up anything, just don't be surprised
if one of the “adjustments” that Houston makes heading into game 6 is for Artest to take whoever’s guarding him down low, and force Nate to bring Outlaw back in
At least, that’s what I would do to break up a 3 guard lineup
It'd be nice if the San Antonio Spurs could lend the Portland Trail Blazers Ime Udoka, for he's ...
a much stronger on-ball defender than Nicolas Batum — which is his one weakness defenseively — as well as a bigger threat to hit that corner three-point shot. Sadly, though, that isn’t an option.
"I'm sure Wafer is having some uncomfortable private thoughts on the plane back to Houston after getting capped Kennedy style at the rim."
I laughed very hard at this, partially because it’s so wildly inappropriate and tasteless :D
Don’t know if it was intentional but it was also very amusing that in lampshading the Goodfellas Simmons similarity you went to another BS tendency: exaggerating numbers. Or maybe he actually has mentioned the scene in 34 separate columns…I guess I wouldn’t be that surprised. He’s entered the Tyson zone when it comes to pop culture references. Ok, this needs to stop.
Let's not forget that Rudy's playing some wily D right now
He may not be a stopper, but the steals, the blocks, the pestering and veteran shenanigans are valuable for our young team, most of which seems a little star-struck on the big stage from time to time.
Rudy isn’t a traditional good defender, but he’s a gamer.
Agreed
Rudy’s playing like a big-game veteran—which, of course, he is.
"We don't back down to nobody." --Joel Przybilla
he plays in general a very good "floor-game"
which includes all kinds different helpful effort and skill
ignacio
If he can continue to hold his own on the defensive end
then it’s a no brainer – put him in the game and ride him all the way back to the barn.
If the Rockets figure out a way to isolate, say, Artest against him, we’ll need to go back to Plan E (or was it F?). – Elgin
Tonight felt like the day you open the mail and receive an acceptance letter to your dream school: the University of Playoffs. - Ben Golliver, Apr 15 2009
If the Rockets figure out a way to isolate, say, Artest against him
There’s the rub. It’s an “adjustment” that Adelman may choose to make, putting Artest down in the post against Roy or Rudy. Frankly, I was surprised he didn’t go “there” in the second half (but it looked like they were trying to get the ball to Yao, as much as possible. Can’t fault Rick for that)
That's when Nate puts Aldridge at the 3
along with Oden and Przybilla sandwiching Yao. That would be big fun wouldn’t it? – Elgin
Brandon Roy: strengths-remarkably efficient player who appears to effortlessly score and facilitate weakness-he’s just a figment of your imagination. - Canis Hoopus
Rudy Fernandez is solid at clogging the passing lanes and providing help, but his on-ball defense is ...
putrid beyone belief. It’s not a matter of effort like it is with Brandon Roy, either, for Fernandez just doesn’t have the strength to handle stronger guys (e.g., Ron Artest) nor the lateral quickness to handle speedier guys (e.g., Von Wafer).
Thank you
"The brownies,'' Fernandez said after the game. "The brownies are good for me to make three-points.''
by Sabonis4Ever on Apr 29, 2009 5:20 PM PDT up reply actions
Great comparison to the camera tracking scene
We need such a scene filmed with steadicam for the Bayless movie. Yet this one would look not cool, but like the panicked flights through the corridors in Alien III. That increases the budget, but would be well worth it.
Preliminary movie title suggestion: “JBay: What happens in Vegas…”. I pledge at least for a Twitter/Blogging coverage. #Strip-ped B-Rex.
That is an awesome scene from a great movie
I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together.
Aw damn I just voted Blazers in 7 in the ESPN poll, look at me all believin'
That was a really good fourth quarter last night. Props all around.
Blazer Fan
So did Portland fly to Houston last night or are they travelling today?
I’m not sure why, but I actually care about this question =)
I think he's got Déjà vu on his mind.
When you get bounced out of the first round 6 years straight, the doubt now starts creeping. After we win game six, it will keep him up at night.
Traaaviiiis Outlaw!=Leerooooy JENKINS of basketball.
UPRISE THIS YAO!
Proud member of Duck nation!
by skywaker9 on Apr 29, 2009 7:58 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Wow, the angle is of course difficult, but it looks like Brandon gets higher than Yao's knees, almost up to hip level
That has to be at least 35-40 inches like in his combine results.
Rudy is a much better matchup to Houston
Since our biggest edge over them is our offense, we have to exploit it by spreading the floor…
Proud member of Duck nation!
Kinda sad that Rudy isn't as big, as agile, or as good a leaper as Travis yet rebounds nearly as well
Not to mention Rudy’s a rookie and Travis is in year six. It’s baffling why Travis can’t or won’t rebound his position.
Blazer Fan
by leeroyjenkins on Apr 29, 2009 9:26 AM PDT up reply actions
Rebounding is about desire.
Travis is built better for rebounding but Rudy wants it more.
Traaaviiiis Outlaw!=Leerooooy JENKINS of basketball.
By the way...awkward!
It’s like running into someone at a costume party with the the same but better costume. You having the better costume here.
Refering to your name in my sig. lol.
Traaaviiiis Outlaw!=Leerooooy JENKINS of basketball.
Not many compare with Travis in soaring ability,
but Rudy IS a good leaper!
Brandon Roy just destroyed everything in his path. There's your rational analysis -- Dave
Also: COMCAST SUCKS!
Travis grabbed a couple of important ones last night...
As did Rudy and Blake! In this series, every rebound has been an important one!
I like the match up much better with Rudy than Batum. Spreads the floor and plays adequate defense given the matchup is always a perimeter player (Battier or Artest). I think the risk is that Rudy gambles a bit on defense. Sometimes its great (last night he had 3 steals) sometimes it hurts…
‘OK Nic, swag on out on ‘em!’
I like the matchup too.
I’m just concerned he will be too tired when we need him most. I liked him in the 4th quarted last night for exactly what you said about spacing nad also his energy.
Traaaviiiis Outlaw!=Leerooooy JENKINS of basketball.
One issue Ben
Wouldn’t you rather see Bayless average the same amount of points in Summer League this year, but maybe get some assists? At least try and avoid the .6:1 turnover/assist ratio?
Then they better put some scorers on the SL team with JB this year
Last year it was Koponen, Batum, Hill and a bunch of role players. (They may have had one other SG who could score a little, but I forget his name) So, when Bayless passed to ball to his SL teammates, for the most part they weren’t very productive with it.
As much as I enjoyed watching Peterri, the Blazers would do better this summer to not draft or bring over a PG to “compete” with Bayless’ minutes. Instead, they should build a team of scorers and tell Jerryd his #1 priority is to set everybody else up
Last year they basically just told him to score, and he showed he can do that against SL competition
Even if your guys aren't good
If you draw a double and kick it out for an open 15 footer, or draw a double and find a guy for a layup, they will score.
But...they didn't
Did you watch the SL games? Bayless’ “supporting cast” was brutal. A lot of the turnovers attributed to Rex were dimes that were fumbled. And there were open shots missed and blown layups, as well
Bayless was the offense, with a little PK on the side in a few of the games. Batum looked completely lost on offense. It will be interesting to see if they send Nic back to Vegas to run with Jerryd again, this July. Maybe Freeman, too
Good stuff. It's so much more fun when we win.
"Aneurysm".
When Outlaw wins a game on a last-second shot, it’s called an "annthefaneurysm". QualityPie
It really is, isn't it?
I am not ready for the season to end, bring on game 6 so we can beat them again.
"We believe" -Rudy Fernandez
Not a good idea to start Rudy.
1. We need to establish LMA and see what they’re doing with BRoy. Blake is more than competent at spotting up when guards help, especially early on. Rudy is more trustworthy late in the game, whereas Blake is the guy who usually stops the bleeding during opponent runs.
2. Wafer can’t guard Rudy, or anyone for that matter. Keeping Battier or Artest in longer to deal with Rudy when BRoy sits wears them out.
3. Rudy gets tired. Notice that his numbers weren’t that good playing 35 minutes last night. You don’t want a big-time shooter like that worn out in the fourth from defending bigger, stronger guys all day. Also, notice that Wafer’s playing out of his mind lately? Rudy’s guarding him much of the time. Rudy is more of a team defender and isn’t as good on the ball. He needs enough energy to be active in the passing lanes and on the boards late in the game.
4. We’re not getting much from Travis as of late off the bench. Who’s gonna score when BRoy’s sitting?
5. Batum is long, can help on Yao, and defend the perimeter better than Rudy.
6. It’s not who starts, it’s who finishes.
Not to say that Rudy shouldn’t get as many minutes as he got last night.
Agreed, especially number 6.
All year Travis and Rudy have been getting more minutes anyway. I don’t think we mess with the starting unit. Just adjust minutes and when you bring guys in.
Traaaviiiis Outlaw!=Leerooooy JENKINS of basketball.
not necessarily
it’s pretty imperative that Portland gets an early lead in this series.
The team that has won the 1st Quarter has won every game this series.
right off the bat
> [Obligatory: Trade Greg Oden? Yep, these are my readers.]
Howling with laughter, – Elgin
Tonight felt like the day you open the mail and receive an acceptance letter to your dream school: the University of Playoffs. - Ben Golliver, Apr 15 2009
Jacking with the rotation this deep in a series is a bad idea. I’m fine with starting Rudy in the second half. I would be fine with starting Outlaw in the second half. I really would. I’m totally down with mixing up lineups a little to keep Houston guessing down the stretch. That’s the whole point of having a roster with so many guys who can play multiple positions. But don’t monkey with his spot in the starting rotation.
There should be no question that Batum is the wild card in that starting lineup. We’ve seen it all season. One game quiet, 3 points 1 rebound. The next game he drops a trey, keys a fast break with a steal, gets a block from behind, you know the deal. Just because he hasn’t been that catalyst yet doesn’t mean he couldn’t do it in Game 6. A case could be made that Batum’s somewhat average play in the opening minutes has been a big part of why the Rockets have generally started so strong in these games. So do you yank Batum and replace him with precious offense from your second unit? Or do you remain confident in your rookie that’s exceeded so many expectations all season?
If anything, I wish Nate would look at getting Batum more minutes in the second and fourth quarter, minutes with that second unit. I agree with the comments above that he might look good against Wafer and maybe even Lowry in some situations. I’d be in favor of a Roy – Rudy – Batum lineup that puts Roy at the point on offense but puts him on Artest on defense, switching Batum over to handle defense at the point.
The biggest issue for me, though, is that moving Rudy into the starting lineup saps offense from the bench, puts even more minutes on him which risks tiring him in the second half, and sends the wrong message to a guy who could be a real key in a second-round matchup with the Lakers.
"I take the little gummy bear Flintstones vitamins…I try not to eat the lady. I try not to eat the man. Just give me the car. I try to find the car. Yea, worst case scenario, I eat the lady." - Ron Artest, 2009
Doesn't sap offense at all
The idea is to rotate guys evenly.
Start Blake, Roy, Rudy, LMA, Billa.
6 minutes in, Outlaw comes in for Rudy
10 minutes in, Rudy comes in for Roy and Oden for Billa
12 minutes in, Sergio comes in for Blake
14 minutes in Roy come in for LMA
16 minutes in, Batum comes in for Rudy (guard Wafer), Blake comes back in for Sergio
18 minutes in, LMA comes in for Outlaw
20 minutes in, Rudy, Outlaw, Billa come in for Blake, Batum and Oden (Rudy/Roy/Outlaw/LMA/Billa to end the half)
Your worst offensive unit here is probably Blake, Roy, Batum, Outlaw, Oden, which still gives you Roy/Outlaw for main threats and Oden/Blake as well. It also allows Batum to take on Wafer, a guy he would probably dominate. Obviously Billa/Oden are interchangable depending on fouls
Oden/Billa- 48 minutes
Roy- 40 minutes
LMA- 40 minutes
Rudy- 32 minutes
Blake 32 minutes (You could give Blake some of Sergio’s 4Q minutes if you want.)
Outlaw 32 minues
Batum 8 minutes
Sergio 8 minutes (See Blake)
If you want you could go with Batum for 10-12 and Outlaw for 28-30, but the idea stays the same. You don’t sacrafice offense on the 2nd unit by starting an offensive player.
1. You always have Roy/LMA in the game
2. You have Oden instead of Billa down low
3. Batum might have a shot at scoring against Wafer
Hey Ben
nice shot out to the Oden die-hards. His defense on Yao this series has been superb in games 3 and 5 especially. I can’t wait to see more of this and him adding stats in as well.
In case anyone cares Simmons took playoff coverage time to rip on Oden. Did Oden burn down his house or something?
"Death is not final," Gita says. "If any man thinks that he slays, and if another thinks that he is slain, neither knows the truth. The Eternal in man cannot kill: the Eternal in man cannot die. The soul in man is neither born nor does it die. Weapons cannot cut it; fire cannot burn it; water cannot drown it.
The Bhagavad Gita
Capped 'Kennedy' Style..
How long have you been sitting on that one? I’m 100% you were tapping away at the keyboard and just couldnt resist sneaking that in there.. Did you get to the ‘y’ and do the should i? shouldnt i’? routine.. delete, undelete.. then cranked back the last swig of your Dr. Pibb and kept driving down the road?
by osu_fugitive on Apr 29, 2009 5:13 PM PDT up reply actions
I can see that.
The end of an all nighter. Giggling at his own cleverness, then what the heck…. send.
Bedge or go home.
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