FINAL: Portland Trail Blazers 112, Charlotte Bobcats 68 [Updated-- 12:25 a.m.]
In probably one of the most relaxed, fun games you'll ever see, the Portland Trail Blazers ran roughshod over the poor Charlotte Bobcats, ending in a 44 point win. The Blazers opened it up early with bountiful steals, and sealed the win by halftime. If you ever wanted to participate in a Gameday Thread, tonight would have been perfect.
The Blazers were led by... well, everyone. But Jamal Crawford (24 points in 21 minutes), Gerald Wallace (23 points, 3 steals) and LaMarcus Aldridge (22 points and plenty of grins) led the team in scoring.
The Blazers started out the game as you'd expect, sprinting to a 14-2 run and an 11 point lead by the middle of the first quarter. Charlotte quickly looked outmatched, as turnovers helped them fall behind by 16 shortly after. The Blazers eventually shot 61% (on easy shots) to score 35 points, their season high for the first quarter. Meanwhile, the Bobcats looked up at a 17 point deficit as the buzzer sounded. LaMarcus Aldridge feasted on the Charlotte front line, getting DeSagana Diop in early foul trouble, and scoring 14 points.
A Wallace three pushes the lead to twenty as the raucous crowd screamed in delight. Jamal Crawford soon hit a three. Then another. THEN ANOTHER. And just like that, it's a 28 point lead for Portland! In a very funny moment, the teams swap turnovers twice before Charlotte gets a layup swatted into the third row by Marcus. Ok, it was a "you had to be there" level of funny. Crawford tore up the Charlotte defense for 15 points, leading to a 26 point lead.
The third quarter was.... boring. Seriously. It was a contest between a team that knew it was superior, and a team who clearly wished the game was over. Portland's lead soon stretched 29. At one point, I actively rooted for Camby to take an open three. Gerald Wallace completed a three-point play, leading to a 36 point lead and a "Gerald Wallace!" chant from the grateful Rose Garden crowd. A Crawford three and layup made the lead 44 at the end of the third.
The bench (plus Felton and Jamal) arrived to man the court as the fourth quarter started. Nonetheless, the lead was soon 98-50, as the rowdy crowd enjoyed some bench action. The Blazers, however, sat at 98 points to the extreme dissatisfaction of the crowd, ready to riot at any time. Despite Luke Babbitt's valiant attempt, the veteran Crawford finally took care of business. Unfortunately for Charlotte, there were still 6 minutes left, as the fans enjoyed a Babbitt three, Elliot Williams layup, and a Chris Johnson attempted three-point play. The game ended with Charlotte proud to announce they tied the Blazers in scoring for one quarter.
My favorite Gameday Thread comment of the night: HoodieNation describing the night's events while riffing on an old Rasheed comment, "One team played hard".
Enjoy the box score, then stay tuned for some probably-relaxed analysis from Dave and Ben shortly. The next game is tomorrow night in Sacramento, which will be noticeably tougher than tonight. -- Tim
----------------------------------------------------------
Update from Dave:
My apologies for the lack of a proper recap to this game. I got called away to emergency duty just as it started. I just finished watching as of 12:05 a.m. Pacific...too later for a recap really. My overwhelming impression: this is what the Blazers look like when they play against a practice team. And it looked good. This is the ideal for this team: passing, scoring, rebounding, defense. You saw the whole enchilada, the true potential, tonight. You also just got an object lesson in what NBA defenses can do to you. We've not seen the Blazers play even close to this level for a sustained period, not even for an entire game. That's not because they're incapable, it's because they're defended. But at least for one night you got to see the dream as it was written on the dry erase board of the Blazer Brain Trust this off-season. Enjoy!
Your Jersey Contest Scoreboard and the form for tomorrow's game.
--Dave
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I recorded the 4th quarter
May be the last time i see some of those guys in a Blazer uni
Please.
The worst team in the NBA and our bench tied in a quarter. I wonder what Jordan would ask for White ?
EW is Bayless with a wing span.
just win baby !
and a jump. Does EW ALWAYS go one way to the basket?
don’t remember which side it was but Bayless ALWAYS went to one of them..
williams does only go one way to the basket...
up
Jeff Pendergraph:
FGM - 3
FGA - 111
Min - 30
Reb - 10
by Tofu Anonymous on Feb 1, 2012 9:37 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
He went right a couple times
And he’s left handed, so that’s good. But he also passed up at least one obvious lane to the right, that I saw. He shoulda driven around his defender, but passed out instead.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Thats AJ only goes left.
Rex was an agressive one, attacked from wherever he got the ball. He wasnt as obviously one hand dominant as AJ is. Rex was a scorer, no pg instincts. Just didnt have the length, and didnt fit in with chemistry. I’m defensive minded equally on all pgs.
just win baby !
Some coach is gonna make a really fine 3rd guard outta Bayless.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Looking like it's Dwayne Casey
Bayless is the third guard there behind Calderon and DeRozan and is thriving.
| 23.1 | .647 | .605 | 15.6 | 28.3 | 21.9 | 6.7 | 0.9 | 7.7 | 17.8 | 20.7 | 118 | 100 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.2 | .214 |
One of the big knocks on him was that he always goes left
Bayless usually went right but was quick enough to do it. Not sure Elliot is as quick as Jay Bay so will be interesting to see how he adapts his game on the drive. His explosiveness once he gets to the rim is very useful in any case.
| 23.1 | .647 | .605 | 15.6 | 28.3 | 21.9 | 6.7 | 0.9 | 7.7 | 17.8 | 20.7 | 118 | 100 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.2 | .214 |
Huh?
E Will is left handed and goes left, Bayless is right handed and goes right.
| 23.1 | .647 | .605 | 15.6 | 28.3 | 21.9 | 6.7 | 0.9 | 7.7 | 17.8 | 20.7 | 118 | 100 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.2 | .214 |
E Will definitely went right once or twice
In fact, he was sorta going right when he rim-checked himself. Looks promising.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Yeah
He went right a couple of times and passed and on the missed dunk he went right and spun back left. If he can get to the rim I think the chances of him making good on his talent and athleticism skyrocket.
| 23.1 | .647 | .605 | 15.6 | 28.3 | 21.9 | 6.7 | 0.9 | 7.7 | 17.8 | 20.7 | 118 | 100 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 2.2 | .214 |
with a small sample size
his jumpshot looks a lot more natural. He’s also not a PG. Hard to say with EW, yet
scrappy
by Honka Playboy on Feb 1, 2012 9:40 PM PST up reply actions
If his 3 starts to fall, I'd say he's more like an aggressive Rudy than Bayless
It’s funny how BEdgers tend to compare any aggressive scoring guard to Bayless.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
He's too old
Let’s keep the Unintended Consequences.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
great name for a punk band
These are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. -Groucho Marx
Wheels and Tone were chatting up Nash tonight,
how he helps other players, what he could do with more talent…
I was starting to wonder if they knew something.
Cool if we get him, if we don’t overpay.
culturally, he's kind of made to order for the city
can’t see how he gets by in Zona
scrappy
by Honka Playboy on Feb 1, 2012 9:30 PM PST up reply actions
In Steve Nash's purposely intensely deep voice from the Vitamin Water Commercials
Classy,
"We gotta get this $#!^ together guys!" - Phil
I was going for well dressed hipster.
but quite a few Portlandians could pass for vamps ha.
"We gotta get this $#!^ together guys!" - Phil
the Vitamin Water commercials with Nash are genius
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 9:46 PM PST up reply actions
The Most Ridiculous Man in the World commercial was hilarious!
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Yes
Yes it was
"I don't always drink water, but when I do I drink vitamin water....triple X."
He can speak 22 languages; at the first grade level.
by The Most Ridiculous Man in the World on Feb 1, 2012 10:41 PM PST up reply actions
It really deserves a link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Emz—1Jz3k
Its so good…
"We gotta get this $#!^ together guys!" - Phil
by 420Phenom on Feb 1, 2012 9:48 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
it's all about Step 4
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 10:19 PM PST up reply actions
that 4th quarter was fun
may have been some of the worst basketball in portland this year, but we got to see the other guys. lots of fun
Does anyone have a video
Of the Felton to Wallace alley oop dunk that got called off?
If that is not on Youtube within the hour,
I’ll rage. Then cry. Then a little of both.
tbd
Being a Blazer fan is not exactly healthy.
by dpnim on Feb 1, 2012 9:28 PM PST up reply actions 3 recs
No.
Smart a$$.
"Coach said to always be careful around Greg, because Greg costs a lot and even the slightest amount of basketball can damage him." -- The Onion
I didn't click it
But I bet I know what it is, hehehehehe
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
fittin title on that video
what (exactly) was felton thinkin…
kObe iS thE aNtiChRiSt
by Brendan Holladay on Feb 2, 2012 6:53 AM PST up reply actions
Nope they just take Roman baths and are fed grapes by naked Blazer dancers
!!!o o!!!
OMG I just jizzed in my France
OMGrandpa
by sug on Feb 1, 2012 9:25 PM PST up reply actions
I wanna be a scrub too!
These are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. -Groucho Marx
Geez! What do the starters get?
I don't give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way.
Mark Twain
Read more: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/mark_twain_4.html#ixzz1IE4sPu16
by Tyler Durrden on Feb 1, 2012 9:27 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
Yeah, he's a baller.
He just needs to make better reads.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
well, he can jump, which is important
he looked out of control most of the time. No chance to get in any flow, of course
scrappy
by Honka Playboy on Feb 1, 2012 9:27 PM PST up reply actions
I wouldn't say out of control most of the time
Certainly some of the time….
Law of Logical Argument
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
by blacknoiseNW on Feb 1, 2012 10:13 PM PST up reply actions
Man that was so wild when ...
It was like, oh man, is Babbit going to do it? Is he going bring nasty meat to the good Portlanders of the Rose Garden. Whew, that was intense.
by Jumbaco! on Feb 1, 2012 9:24 PM PST reply actions 2 recs
Whoever is in charge in Charlotte
Clearly knows nothing about the game of basketball
I don't give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way.
Mark Twain
Read more: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/mark_twain_4.html#ixzz1IE4sPu16
by Tyler Durrden on Feb 1, 2012 9:26 PM PST via mobile reply actions
he certainly didn't go to Duke
These are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. -Groucho Marx
Honestly, both teams played hard.
It’s just Charlotte is that epically bad.
Doesn’t change the fact that Portland is still an above average, yet fatally flawed team.
"I Am Mine"
I couldn't have made it through the evening without a reminder of that.
by Timmay! on Feb 1, 2012 9:27 PM PST up reply actions 7 recs
this strangely reminds me of Tucker and Dale vs Evil.
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 10:23 PM PST up reply actions
Get outta here, the real fans are gloating
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Yeah, I've been grumpy, too
I’ve been in bed since Sunday, and I think I have bronchitis, so I’ve got that “pissed off at the world” thing, which combines poorly with my forced optimism.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Intrigued.
"There is nothing shrewd about running a red light and later finding out it kept you from being hit by an asteroid." - philofthenorth
by KeepItCopacetic on Feb 1, 2012 10:55 PM PST up reply actions
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 9:41 PM PST up reply actions
You're so right
we were way off track
scrappy
by Honka Playboy on Feb 1, 2012 9:28 PM PST up reply actions
How pathetic
that shadenfreude is all you’ve got.
The same can be said about a lot of other teams, too.
Portland isn’t even the best fatally flawed team in the league. That’d be Philadelphia, which has one of my favorite players (i.e., Iggy) and one of my favorite coaches (i.e., Doug Collins) leading it.
"I Am Mine"
Then why don't you go join Liberty Ballers and talk to them about how they're fatally flawed?
I know geographically speaking Portland is the closest thing you have a team, but you have never embraced the Blazers as your team anyway… So… What’s keeping you here?
(I’m not actually asking you to leave, I enjoy your analysis and opinions even if I disagree with many of them)
The smarter you are, the more likely you are to be tripping balls at any given moment.
/keep Batum/ /trade for Bogut/
You hit the nail on the head: Geography.
Portland is part of the Pacific Northwest, so I feel a greater connection to it than I would Dallas or San Antonio. So, in spite of me liking the makeup of the Mavericks and Spurs teams more, I feel a kinship to the Trail Blazers based on location. I also even have some family members who live in Portland, so that adds to it.
"I Am Mine"
Back to the fatally flawed teams point, I have Portland in 4th place on that list.
Among the above .500 teams, Philadelphia, Denver, and Indiana come before Portland. It’s sorta close, though. Behind Portland, I’ve got fatally flawed teams such as Atlanta, Utah, Houston, and Memphis.
There are even non-fatally flawed teams I have below Portland, including Boston and both of the L.A. teams. Orlando, too.
"I Am Mine"
By non-fatally flawed, it's conceivable that a team like Boston could make a run to the ...
NBA Finals as an 8th seed. The chances of that are exceptionally slim, but not none. That’s why I don’t consider them to be fatally flawed.
"I Am Mine"
there is not a team in the NBA right now that I don't think is fatally flawed
i’m not sure how you don’t think Boston doesn’t have a fatal flaw of being ancient and injury prone, or Orlando that has no one creating anything from the wings. Lakers have to rely on Kobe way to heavily and have no depth, old too
by Peteyhasnohead on Feb 2, 2012 12:01 AM PST up reply actions
That's a fatal flaw, yes.
However, they’re not fatally flawed due to the greatness of Chris Paul being able to compensate for piss-poor coaching.
"I Am Mine"
By fatally flawed, I mean no chance of winning as currently constructed.
There’s a difference between a fatal flaw and being fatally flawed. Every team has got a fatal flaw — including Miami in the 4th quarter — but they’re not fatally flawed.
"I Am Mine"
We had a winning margin of PHILLY? That's a huge margin!
by Timmay! on Feb 1, 2012 9:29 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Dave and Ben TAKE THE NIGHT OFF!
Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.

!!!o o!!!
OMG I just jizzed in my France
OMGrandpa
by sug on Feb 1, 2012 9:30 PM PST reply actions 4 recs
Check out hard swallow over his shoulder, gross
!!!o o!!!
OMG I just jizzed in my France
OMGrandpa
by sug on Feb 1, 2012 9:31 PM PST up reply actions 6 recs
It'll be interesting to see what direction they go in the 2012 NBA Draft.
Let me be on record that I think Andre Drummond’s upside is worth the risk over Anthony Davis.
"I Am Mine"
our winning margins:
home: 44, 38, 13, 12, 7, 8, 20, 11, 9, 22, 2 —> avg: 18.6
overall: 15.85.
when we win, we win big.
PHILLY!
check that
the 7pt win was @ NO.
home margin of victory: 17.9
overall margin of victory: 15.9
PHILLY!
I told my wife we should win by 40 tonight.
Mission accomplished!
Loud pipes save lives!
Bad knees break hearts!
Time for an exorcism.
She always does a good job!
That has nothing to do with basketball though. No basket involved.
Loud pipes save lives!
Bad knees break hearts!
Time for an exorcism.
Ray Felton was a +41 tonight
not bad.
Babbitt was a -4
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 9:43 PM PST reply actions
though Luke did have 6 rebounds and a blocked shot (!)
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 9:43 PM PST up reply actions
the 18 steals and 11 blocked shots weren't bad either.
man, I’m sorry I missed the game.
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 1, 2012 9:45 PM PST up reply actions
Anyone know:
How many draft picks Charlotte has stockpiled for this year’s draft?
"Coach said to always be careful around Greg, because Greg costs a lot and even the slightest amount of basketball can damage him." -- The Onion
Lol
It’s a good thing they’re so bad, otherwise they’d owe one
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Yeah, they're lucky it's protected until 2016.
As it is, a lot is riding on how they do in the 2012 and 2013 drafts.
"I Am Mine"
Yep.
They need Drummond. Then trade Gerald Henderson while he has some upside left and pick up someone like Mike Moser with the pick we owe them.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
But the pick we owe them isn't for this year, so all they'll have is theirs near or at the top.
Anyway, I think they should go with Andre Drummond. Anthony Davis would be a better fit on a team that already has a few building blocks, with Sacramento coming to mind. A Cousins and Davis frontline would be devastating.
"I Am Mine"
To add to that, the Bobcats are so terrible they need to tank this year and next year.
Draft Andre Drummond in 2012 and Shabazz Muhammad in 2013 should be their goal.
"I Am Mine"
Shabazz and Walker onthe same team?
I think Walker will have to really turn into a point guard by then.
Being a Blazer fan is not exactly healthy.
Derp...yup, I even checked the picks-owed on RealGM earlier.
Davis would look pretty good in Washington or Detroit as well. McGee isn’t developing as well as I hoped he would though, nor is Wall. Sucks that they’re probably just all athleticism, no skill. But Knight, Monroe, and Davis would be a beastly combo down the road.
Not gonna lie, I haven’t started looking at next years draft. I know Shabazz Muhammad has an awesome name, but that’s it. Rivers, McAdoo, LeBryan Nash, and Beal need to wait till next year to come out. Nash might benefit from a full 4 years of the more patriarchal college coaching.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
Nash is not ready. Austin Rivers is solid but a short SG.
McAdoo could probably wait another year or so. Bradley Beal I haven’t seen enough from.
Being a Blazer fan is not exactly healthy.
Yeah, Detroit would be another great landing spot for Anthony Davis. Good call.
With Shabazz Muhammad, he seems to be the only surefire prospect of the 2013 class. Yet, as you said, some guys who can come out this year will elect to stay in school and push back their draft class. James McAdoo is an example, but I argue Austin Rivers could come out. Between Rivers and Brad Beal, I’d go with Rivers.
"I Am Mine"
Unfortunately for Charlotte, it might be stuck in the wrong time frame for a rebuild.
Kind of like when the Milwaukee Bucks won a draft lottery in the year when Andrew Bogut went 1st.
Picking #1 sometimes gets Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, while other times picking #1 gets Bogut.
In fact, that was the one argument in your guys’ favor y’all didn’t bring up in the earlier debate. Tanking in and of itself is a fine practice, but it might be ill-advised these next two years due to the lack of a transcendent player at the top of the draft. Basically, this isn’t 2003 with LeBron James as the prize.
"I Am Mine"
I wouldn't pick on Bogut, who is actually a good player
I’d pick on Kwame, Olowokandi, or Joe Smith first. Joe Smith is a perfect “awww man, we got the number one pick this year?” example, even though in retrospect there were much better options.
True, although I'm amazed Kwame went over Chandler after all the hype ...
Tyson received in high school. I was a bit younger for the Michael Olowokandi and Joe Smith years, but I remember that neither guy was hyped as much as Iverson in ‘96 or Tim Duncan in ’97. Heck, if I recall, Duncan could’ve been the first pick in ‘96 or ’95 if he’d’ve left school a year or two early.
"I Am Mine"
this might not be a good draft to get a Superstar
but it would be a good draft to build a core with multiple picks
by Peteyhasnohead on Feb 1, 2012 11:51 PM PST up reply actions
I tried to raise that issue as a general problem (not specific to these next two years) in asserting that you don't know you're going to land any stars,
in asserting that you don’t know you’re going to land the needed players, mentioning long rebuilds like Milwaukee and Boston, and Portland’s own botched rebuild with Roy and Oden. But I never did get it across with any clarity, and especially did not think to look to actual upcoming draft prospects. Good point.
Phase 1: Collect underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!
I think a lot has to do with timing.
Sure, some years are more of a crapshoot than others — such as 2004 with Dwight Howard being a gamble — but others are surefire hits like 2003 with LeBron James. In other cases, some years are guaranteed duds — such as 2006 with Andrea Bargnani — but others look great and don’t turn out so hot like 2007 with Greg Oden.
"I Am Mine"
VDN put his best rebounders in for Utah FT's at the end of the game...
Where securing the rebound was critical…
Law of Logical Argument
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
Ray
has a +41 differential. I know that stat doesn’t mean anything but It’s fun to see how high it can get.
Johnson, Johnson, Smith, Smith, Thomas, Williams, and Babbitt: the Blazer's law firm.
but there are from 2 years ago!
http://espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=290427003
"I don't always drink water, but when I do I drink vitamin water....triple X."
He can speak 22 languages; at the first grade level.
by The Most Ridiculous Man in the World on Feb 1, 2012 10:51 PM PST up reply actions
And at home no less.
I can’t remember offhand a more humiliating basketball game. But since we’re talking about +/-, when there’s only 2 players on an entire roster with a +/- ‘better’ than -20 ….yeah.
"I don't always drink water, but when I do I drink vitamin water....triple X."
He can speak 22 languages; at the first grade level.
by The Most Ridiculous Man in the World on Feb 1, 2012 11:04 PM PST up reply actions
Ahh Terrelle Brandon
how I wish he was a Trail Blazer, still today :(
"We gotta get this $#!^ together guys!" - Phil
I sort of feel for the Bobcats.
They’re getting hammered by injuries, and I guess their best player went down in this game.
RIP CITY - We're back!
A few notes from ESPN's stats department...
The Trail Blazers defeat the Bobcats by 44 points, its their largest margin of victory since November 17, 1997, when they defeated the Mavericks by 45 points. The 44-point win by the Trail Blazers is the largest margin of victory by a team this season. The previous high was a 40-point win by the Grizzlies over the Bulls on January 1st.
The 44-point loss by the Bobcats is the worst in their franchise history. Their previous worst was a 120-80 loss at the Nuggets back on March 2, 2011.
From the ESPN recap (Bottom corner)
...and YahooSports
Wallace, who is still bitter about the trade, didn’t feel sorry for the Bobcats.
"Personally, I wanted to keep going. I didn’t even want to come out of the game," he said. "It’s one of those things where, like I said last year around this time, I didn’t feel like I was traded, I felt like I was stabbed in the back."
"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind."
by thankyouforblaze on Feb 2, 2012 12:02 AM PST reply actions

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