Game 53 Preview: L*kers vs. Blazers [Updated]
by Dave on Feb 5, 2010 11:38 PM PST
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PrintGame Time: 7:00 p.m. TV: KGW
The L*kers come into this game with a 38-13 record, best in the West. They've lost two of their last three, however, falling to Memphis on the road and Denver at home. The big news surrounding them is that just when they got everybody else healthy--finally playing with Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Ron Artest, and Lamar Odom all at the same time--Kobe Bryant is struggling on a sprained left ankle. That didn't stop him from dropping 27 on the Nuggets in their last game but if he's hobbled the L*kers lose half of their heart and a whole bunch of their scoring punch. Those other four players are all good and at one point or another three of the four have been great in this league. But Gasol and Bynum combined are averaging 32 points this year. Artest and Odom combine for 21. Kobe averages 28 all by himself. Not relying on him would be a big change for that offense.
Even without Bryant at full strength the L*kers will be a handful for the Blazers. Bynum and Artest are big guys. Aldridge seems to get up to play against Gasol but Pau can be a powerful scorer and LaMarcus isn't always the best defender. That frontcourt will be imposing. Every once in a while Odom gets a burr under his saddle and makes life miserable for Portland too. When he gets rolling the Blazers have trouble stopping him. The L*kers are good shooters, decent three-point shooters, and excellent free-throw shooters. They share the ball but they can also score one-on-one with a mismatch advantage. There aren't too many holes in the offense. They're good rebounders and very good defenders as well.
Nevertheless L.A. hasn't won in Portland since the Herbert Hoover administration, largely because the Blazers have done a great job of rebounding and running the ball back fast enough that the bigger, slower defenders can't get set. The Blazers get possessed by a special energy playing at home against this team. They'll need it tonight, as there aren't many logical reasons to favor Portland in any head-to-head matchup against this team.
The other thing Portland will need is Brandon Roy. Even at 90% he would make a huge difference, stretching out the L*kers' defense instead of letting them key on a couple of scorers. Without him I fear that they'll pinch LaMarcus every time he touches the ball and assign a man to keep Andre Miller from penetrating. If they can accomplish those two things everybody else on the Blazers' roster combined would have a hard time denting their offensive advantage. The only exception to this would be if Kobe is out and Jerryd Bayless available and healthy. Short of that, a Roy-less effort may not cut it tonight.
If L.A. does lose they'll have another year to think about it. I'm not sure it bothers them in the big picture, as people with rings are beneath noticing this stuff. But the losing streak in Portland is an annoying fly at their otherwise pristine banquet. They're going to want to smash it. It would make all of us feel good if the fly escaped again to buzz around their collective heads for another season.
There's not much more to say than that. These games pretty much introduce themselves. No matter what the time, era, or status of the teams beating the L*kers is fun. Someday soon maybe it won't mean so much as there will be more important things to worry about. But I have a hunch that even then it'll make us feel a little better inside. Energy, hustle, and a devil-may-care attitude. For now those are the passports to victory. Go get 'em, tigers.
Check out the L.A.P.O.V. at SilverScreenandRoll.
Enter tonight's Jersey Contest form here. Don't forget this is a special form wherein you can bet up to 40 points on the single question of the Blazers winning or losing. If you want a guaranteed 20, just enter two "Yes" and two "No" answers. You'll be right on two of them. But if you feel daring enter four "Yes" or four "No" and let the points ride. Good luck!
--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)
[Update:] Jason Quick has Brandon Roy still out for this game. Jerryd Bayless will start.
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BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!! BEAT LA!!!!!
Blazer's Edge Ambassador to The Dream Shake Blog
I <3 LMA!!!! 27 Points and 12 Rebs!!!! Now that is more like it!!!!
41:11 Mins 12-22 FGs 4-7 FTs +12 4 Off 13 Rebs 3 Ast 1 Stl 28 Points - LMA vs Spurs 2-4-10 - LMA RULEZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The PENDERBEAST is on the Prowl Looking for an Opposing 4 or 5 to DEVOUR!!!!!!!!!!
by LaMarvelous on Feb 5, 2010 11:47 PM PST reply actions 2 recs
BEAT LA! BEAT LA!
If you ever hear of someone punching out a girl scout and stealing her Samoas, it was me
- Mortimer
by Clevelander among roses on Feb 6, 2010 10:35 AM PST up reply actions
Ugh
The asterisk in Lakers still drives me up the wall. At least show them the respect of saying their actual name.
+1
Free AK1984.
"The two women were of a certain age and were clearly drunk... The only thing that I can get out of this is Why, since all these things happen to me, they couldn’t be two young girls and pretty? :-)" - Rudy Fernandez
by blazeraddict on Feb 6, 2010 10:33 AM PST up reply actions
I have a 1/4 season package and it is no stretch to say
That this is BY FAR the game I have been looking forward to the most.
BEAT LA indeed.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
I just noticed that
the link to the SilverScreenandRoll link doesn’t actually go anywhere….
Someone might want to fix that link.
Other than that, good preview! I always look forward to the L*kers coming to town, purely to keep the winning streak alive!
Beat la!
As much as I want Roy to play, I almost
want him to rest and see how we fare against
the fakers w/out him.
by Rockys' on Feb 6, 2010 12:55 AM PST via mobile reply actions
I'd rather have Roy sit out both
unless he is 100%. As much as we care about this game, it’s still just one game and I don’t want to risk further injury to Roy.
In a perfect world we beat la and Roy gets to rest his hammy during the all star break. (he stil gets recognition though)
by Rockys' on Feb 6, 2010 2:45 AM PST via mobile reply actions
rest the roy
Rest the roy
On game day, I leave the turkey alone because it is some chemicals in that thing. Nate Mcmillian 11/26/09
by slim503 on Feb 6, 2010 4:59 AM PST via mobile reply actions
Roy at 90%?
It may take that to beat the Lakers, but I’d much rather see Roy rest through ASB (and beyond, if necessary) in order to have him at full-strength through the end of the season.
Just to clarify...
I meant to say that I’d like to see him rest through the Lakers’ game, as well as everything else till after ASB.
Trade Roy
In this game for healthy Roy in portlands first round beat down of la
by doomsdaymachine on Feb 6, 2010 7:21 AM PST via mobile reply actions
" At least show them the respect of saying their actual name."
That’s the point, the asterisk is a sign of disrespect. If you feel the L*kers should be respected, then I encourage you to explain why you feel they should.
It's a sign that we don't like them. We respect them... don't like them.
Are you disrespecting my right to express my L*ker hate in any way I choose to? Have a little fun with a rivalry.
its not a rivalry though
if we use the asterisk than they have the right to call us the jailblazers, flailblazers or w.e
Odenized
But flail works too as long as Jerryd and Rudy are around.
Kidding – sort of.
by ShannyMcShanShan on Feb 6, 2010 11:57 AM PST up reply actions
A good practical view
(as always from Dave)
As much as I dislike Bryant,(as a person) he comes to play every day (even when injured). The guy just plays and doesn’t bogey any excuses. Some could call this foolish arrogance, and I might tend to agree…….But because he can walk the walk, he becomes the ultimate teammate by default.
As far as Roy is concerned, he should probably sit. The approach they are taking with him dictates that.
The following is not “in the know stuff,” it is just some thoughts from personal experience
I have to wonder if they have mis-diagnosed the extent of Roy’s injury.(could it be a level 2 hamstring pull or even a more severe tear?) Thus, a longer rehabilitation time frame ?
But then again I wonder also about the treatment or therapy he may be getting. I say this because hamstring injuries can linger or reoccur frequently, if not completely healed or scar tissue forms. No qualification here except I went through 2 hamstring injuries and therapy when I played sports. I went through “water therapy” the second time and never had the issue again.(but I still maintained hamstring exercise as part of my routine diet)
Since I don’t follow the team much outside of game time, does anyone in here know what kind of therapy he is taking? just curious
PS …the consensis among sports doctors, is that full recovery from hamstring injuries is the norm. I have no doubt that Roy will recover from this and my “second guessing” in this comment is just me thinking out loud.
I think its mainly that they're being hyper-conservative about #7
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
Maybe write an email to dwight.jaynes@gmail.com about this. He answers emails and may be
able to find out what kind of therapy Roy is undergoing.
No #7
The Trail Blazers have announced that guard Brandon Roy will not play tonight against the Lakers at the Rose Garden because of a strained right hamstring.
It will be the 10th consecutive game Roy has missed and the 12th in 13 games because of the injury. The Blazers are 5-6 in those games.
More to come after shootaround opens …
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
No excuses tonight, in spite of missing Roy
Denver beat LA in LA without Melo. Portland has to match that at home without Roy.
by blacknoiseNW on Feb 6, 2010 10:59 AM PST up reply actions
We can do it
Just execute the same gameplan we did against SA. Namely don’t give them the chance to get set up on D.
And put Batum on Kobe.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
Batum will help
but we will likely see Fernandez start on Kobe (if Bayless doesn’t start…)
by blacknoiseNW on Feb 6, 2010 11:02 AM PST up reply actions
And who knows how good Kobe is
He had a very good first last night but faded badly.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
Bayless is starting. Batum on Kobe. Webster on Artess...if Webster is in the mood
to not be lackadasical.
He wasn't the first time
WE CAN DO THIS!
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
that offensive strat worked exceptionally well for Denver in the second half
ran it down LA’s throat
by blacknoiseNW on Feb 6, 2010 11:05 AM PST up reply actions
They are not great at getting back on D
Its what we did very well against them the first time too.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
Denver also was hitting a LOT of 3s
But I agree, no excuses, extend the streak.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
I've been banned too
I made fun of Kobe during the playoffs last year.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
See I just made fun of him laying an egg against the Rockets in last year's playoffs
I didn’t mention a certain incident in Colorado.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
You can talk trash in jest
But mention of rape allegations, or indiscriminate trolling, will get you banned quickly. And, don’t act like we banned you without justification, if anyone responded excessively we’d ban them, too.
"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.
by Saurav A. Das on Feb 7, 2010 3:57 AM PST up reply actions
Does anyone else think the injury to Roy is taking a lot longer to heal then the org said?
Whats the deal? Is it worse then they first told us? It’s been what, two weeks now without Roy, with a potential of 4 if he doesn’t play in the All Star game. Something doesn’t add up.
I wish him the best of luck, hope to see him in a Blazer uniform soon….We need all the help we can get.
I'm sure the team is just being cautious. They want Roy to be completely healed before he returns.
Do not think there is some kind of hidden injury.
When they did the plasma injection thing
Or whatever its called, they said 2 weeks, which would have made this game the first possible return date.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
Why is there such a rivalry against LA when Utah and Denver are such a bunch of thugs?
Ariza is gone. So seems like the rest of the team aren’t brutes. The team that beat the Blazers in the finals is not in LA anymore right? I dislike Utah and Denver way more than I dislike the Lakers. I don’t like the Lakers either but they aren’t thugs like Utah and Denver. Also that guy on the NO team…the one who hit both Batum and Rudy…thug.
It is great to win against the Lakers but not at the risk of Roy messing up his hamstring.
I am just curious why the big rivalry between LA and the Blazers? Seems like it would be more between us and Utah or Denver…I can’t stand either of those teams.
Have only lived in PDX 4 yrs so am really curious about the hate LA thing.
I am from Chicago and it seems like there would be plenty of hate the Bulls also…didn’t the Bulls win against Portland with unfair foul calls? I loved the Bulls when Jordan was playing but it did look like there unfair calls…
A few reasons
1. There is a general LA/Oregon rivalry. Oregonians really really hate being compared to LA and a quick way to kill a political idea is to say it “make us just like LA”.
2. They are the big dogs and usually have been. Its like when anyone plays the Yankees in baseball.
3. 2000 and 1977, that WCF that we lost and the won we won against LA our only tittle year.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
history
the F@kers and Trailblazers have a competitive history that transcends all other teams. Utah and Denver have never been king of the hill, and Portland had an entitlement to the crown taken by LA. LA will be the rival so long as Portland has an opportunity to take crown back from them.
It wouldn’t matter nearly so much for Portland to beat anyone else…..
To those like me going tonight
We need to be loud, really really really really really loud, for the entire game. Let the crowd lift our boys and crush them.
"Good evening Blazer fans, wherever you may be!"-Bill Schonely
They should try and forget about the drilling they took last night as quickly as possible...
Chauncey B-B-B-Billups was as hot from 3 as I’ve ever seen someone during that 3rd quarter. Then Smith joined in during the 4th….LOVED IT!
I hope the Blazers can do what Denver did. Is Phil Jackson making the trip? I wouldn’t want it to rain on him or anything…
ummmm
yes they do:
http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2010/2/5/1296546/ah-the-good-old-northwest
"Just by the aura of D.J. Mbenga being there, the shot missed."
We do previews of back-to-backs together.
I did the preview for the games, they’re here: http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2010/2/5/1296546/ah-the-good-old-northwest
Recap’s up on the home page, too, courtesy of C.A.
"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.
by Saurav A. Das on Feb 7, 2010 3:51 AM PST up reply actions
I apologise in advance for the use of the work 'Lakers' in the article
Even though it is, you know, their name.
"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.
by Saurav A. Das on Feb 7, 2010 3:54 AM PST up reply actions
I like your writing
Your objective view stands out. (A nice avenue to take when bias or hype can easily take over) Also difficult in this world, dominant with high egos’ and “grandstanding.” I tend to stereotype people from California for some reason.( I think it’s the “glitter” association) ….Guess I’m too defensive of the state of Oregon. (I’m a rural person that doesn’t live in Portland, and I just don’t trust city folk much)
I would welcome comments from you (in here) if you have the time and so desire. Your preview of the game between the Lakers and Blazers was to the point , showed no bias, and closer to the truth than most local comments I read.
good luck with your writing future
Thanks :)
Eh, I might comment around here, but I’d generally only be around here if we L.A. are playing Portland. If we meet in the Playoffs, expect to see me around a lot.
"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.
by Saurav A. Das on Feb 7, 2010 11:03 PM PST up reply actions
Oh, c'mon
When linking to SS&R, you couldn’t link to my preview directly? :(
"That's a giant sig " - Ben R.
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