In a Nutshell

In an all-too-familiar story the Blazers play lackadaisical, uninspired, brain-dead basketball and dig themselves a horrible first-half hole before coming back in the third and fourth quarters to make the game close. In this case, thanks to some of the most un-clutch shooting in the history of the universe by Dirk Nowitzki, "close" equaled an overtime, then two, before the odds finally caught up with the Blazers and they lost.

Game Flow

Here's what you need to know about the first half: the Blazers scored 32 points. Yes, in the half. Their entire offense was perimeter-oriented and slow...a bad combination. Meanwhile on defense they repeated their performance from the last couple games, defending in initial attacker just fine but completely missing any kind of rotation or help when the dribbler got past his man. It was horrible. The Mavericks had an 11 point led after one and pumped it to 18 in the second period. A little bit of scoring by Jamal Crawford and LaMarcus Aldridge plus some forced turnovers cut it back to 11 at the half, but this was bad. How bad was it? Earlier today we stopped by the liquor store in a rare trip to pick up some adult beverages for the evening. Watching the Blazers I figured, "Why not? There won't be much to write about this game anyway." So I downed a couple shots. OK, a few. OK, I put one down every time the Blazers made a stupid play. No joke. Two overtimes later I am still writing this somewhat buzzed. If you catch a typo, that's a shot for you. Catch enough of them and you'll stop noticing.

Portland dodged a bullet near the end of the second period when Khloe Kardashian's husband ran over Marcus Camby, who was set up to take the charge, and fell right on his leg. At that point I was tempted to grab the whole bottle but as it turned out after limping off the court Camby was back in the second half.

The second half featured more forced turnovers from Portland plus some filthy defense from Nicolas Batum and Gerald Wallace. Batum moved so fast blocking shots from behind that he was a blur on the screen. At least I think it was because he was moving so fast. Anyway...his defense prevented at least half a dozen easy points at the rum RIM for Dallas...points which often came because the guard defense was as poor as ever. Wallace grabbed some rebounds and hit some people, the usual. Portland's poor offensive possessions continued, however. They could only manage 23 points in the period, The good news: that was their best period of the evening by far. Plus denying Dallas with the blocks and a few steals kept the Mavericks at 18 for the quarter. Awww, heck. The Mavs' own indifference kept them at 18 as well. Portland played so poorly in that first half they convinced the opponent it was for real too. Dallas had a little bit of a ballgame on their hands headed into the fourth up 5, 61-55. Obviously that's exciting if you're a Portland fan but third parties would look at this game and say that at 61-55 after three things were getting ugly. Third parties would be right. The story wasn't so much Portland taking over as Dallas slipping back.

You know how when you were a kid your mom would tell you to go and beat up on a pillow when you got frustrated? In the fourth period LaMarcus Aldridge was frustrated and the Dallas Mavericks were the pillow. Aldridge scored 15 in the period. With a little help from Crawford he pulled the Blazers even, much to the chagrin of the Dallas crowd. Aldridge's teammates deserve some credit. First, they got him the ball. Second, their position defense was much better in the closing period than it had been earlier. Dallas' easy looks and offensive rebounds disappeared. With both teams sensing a win within grasp two battles ensued. One pitted Jason Terry versus Crawford. That was mostly a draw. Jamal's scoring kept Terry from winning the game outright for the Mavs. The second battle pitted Aldridge versus Dirk Nowitzki. Aldridge won that one hands down. He destroyed the Mavs on his offensive end (not being guarded by Nowitzki). He took up the defensive challenge against Dirk at the other end and Dirk just wilted. Not only could the guy not hit a shot (open or guarded) he was barely hitting the backboard, and sometimes not. That advantage was all Portland needed to stay close. Down 4 with a minute left the Blazers pulled even behind a Crawford drive and an amazing Aldridge turn-around. Dirk missed two shots in the interim. This game went to overtime, 81-all.

The first OT was sloppy. Portland missed a ton of shots from the perimeter. On the other end, though, they made the Mavericks work, got a block, forced a turnover, and limited them to 5 total shots in the OT. Dallas made 2 of those shots plus a couple free throws. Portland shot 3-10 in the same span. The game was still tied 87-all after one extra period.

For some ungodly reason the Blazers took until the 1:45 mark of the second overtime to get LaMarcus Aldridge, their savior, a shot. Crawford and Raymond Felton did the honors...if honors is the right word. What they did is shoot 1-4 between them, that "1" being a circus-shot 180-degree back-to-the-basket layup by Felton who was fouled along with the miracle make but missed the free throw. Crawford also drew 2 foul shots, making them both. That was Portland's scoring. Meanwhile Delonte West made 3 shots in 4 possessions against Wesley Matthews and crew. (This stretch was a failure for Portland's guards all the way around.) The Mavs led 93-91 with the ball and 2:00 left when Jason Terry threw a pass into the stands and Portland finally decided their main man should get a shot. Aldridge hit another patented 12-footer and the game was tied again. Everybody was thinking triple-overtime but a couple of unfortunate events conspired against it. The Blazers forced a Shawn Marion miss on a layup but only Gerald Wallace went for the rebound against two Mavericks. Aldridge drifted through the area while Crawford just stood and watched. Wallace had been a blue-collar hero all night but he couldn't keep Brendan Haywood from tipping in and giving the Mavs a lead. After Crawford (!) missed another shot Nowitzki took the ball against Aldridge at the top of the key and proved the old adage from White Men Can't Jump, the sun shines even on a dog's hindquarters. He put in an old-school leaning back on one foot Nowitzki special, making him approximately 1-6 on critical shots in the game but providing enough margin for the Mavericks to win. Dallas survives a Wesley Matthews 1-2 trip to the foul line to cut the lead to 3, an amazing forced jump ball on the rebound by Wallace which gave Portland possession off the tip, and a desperation no-chance heave from Crawford at the buzzer to tie. The Mavericks win, 97-94 in double overtime.

Take-Away Points

One of the words used copiously after the Oklahoma City Thunder robbing/loss was "narrative"...not just the facts of events but their meaning and significance. Here's the narrative of this game: the Blazers lost. That's it. Yes, people are going to go, "World Champions" and "road game" and "double overtime" and "Aldridge shining" and construct positive stories from this. Heck, if this were the first time this had happened all season I'd be doing that too. But how many times have the Blazers played flat for large stretches of games and then tried to come back at the end, only to fall short? If in the first two quarters of this game Portland had played with half the energy and focus they showed on defense at the end of the fourth and those two overtimes then they would have won this game. They did not. They lost. They lost in the same way they've lost a half dozen times before on the road. Neither double overtime nor the quality of opponent (which frankly wasn't that high tonight no matter what the name on the uniform) turns that "L" into a "W". Portland knows this. They know how and why this happens. They're either unable to compensate, unable to find the drive and energy, or unwilling to put enough into the game to do so. No matter how you slice it, that's going to lose you games.

A narrow loss to the Mavericks tonight is no more encouraging than a narrow win against the pathetic New Orleans Hornets last night in a game that followed the same general pattern. Quality of opponent doesn't factor in with the Blazers as much as the quality of their own play. If they don't look themselves in the mirror soon and come up with some answers they have no hope of anything more than a golf clap as they exit this season, victims of a team that's no more talented but plays smarter, more consistent, and more motivated basketball.

Individual Notes

The Blazers forwards were generally superb tonight, especially after the team got rolling. Aldridge led the pack with 33 points on 14-26 shooting with 12 rebounds. The only critiques are repeated ones. First, why not wring somebody's neck when they're hoisting shots early in the shot clock in critical situations and not letting you touch the ball? Once, OK. But the Big Dog has got to demand the ball when the game is on the line and he's on a roll. Otherwise he's just one of the pack. Second, if you're really going to take this team on your back and drive them to victory you have to do whatever it takes. Aldridge was probably 99% good tonight, or at least when it mattered. He hit shots. He played good defense. But that 1% may have been that fatal Haywood tip-in rebound. You can't just watch Wallace try to battle for it. If you come flailing in too late to get the rebound, fine. But at least come flailing in. At least make a dive for it. Superstars aren't the guys who make the play every time. Superstars are the guys with enough courage and drive to go after every play and thus, by percentage, make a lot of them you wouldn't expect. But you can't win if you don't play, so to speak. It feels bad knocking LMA for that kind of thing on a great night but this seems like one of the few remaining steps between him and true, franchise-changing greatness. He hasn't made it yet and it's a big one.

Don't let Gerald Wallace's 3-4 shots in 50 minutes fool you. He played 50 minutes because he was once again one of the only guys going after this game consistently. He had 10 rebounds, his 8 defensive boards leading the team by far. He shouldered that responsibility when Camby went down. He also had 4 steals to go along with his 10 points...points scored at the rim and foul line on a night when perimeter play was Portland's M.O.

Nicolas Batum had 7 rebounds and shot 5-11 for 12 points. He also had 3 mighty blocks, saving the game for Portland before anybody knew the game could be saved. He did well. The quibble for him came with 40 seconds left in the first overtime and the game tied. He got the ball in the corner with time running down and faked a streaking defender beautifully with a pump. Seeing his man fly by overhead he put the ball on the floor and drove to the basket. He had acres of open space to pull up or could have driven hard for the foul. It was going to be a game-defining moment. But instead he heaved the ball all the way across the court to Raymond Felton (of all people) who was out beyond the three-point arc (of all places) with the clock now running down. You can guess what happened. A potentially beautiful opportunity off of a broken defense turned into a horrific one at the most critical of times. I say this not to knock Nic for a single mistake, but to point out that there's more to go in his development. Coach McMillan seemed to agree, as he was pulled immediately after.

Portland's guards didn't fare so well. Each had something decent about their game but each ended up flawed. Felton contributed 9 points and but 2 assists on 4-17 shooting. I guess you could say he was aggressive. The second overtime might not have been the best time to show it. But he did keep the Blazers' heads in the game and turnovers low, though committing an obvious one himself late. Jamal Crawford also was "aggressive" shooting 6-23 for 19 points. The Blazers needed those points though. He didn't really do much else but he was handy to have around when Aldridge needed someone to distract the defense. Wesley Matthews shot 3-10 for 9 points but he did have 6 rebounds. His defense...I just don't know any more. The safe thing to say is I like his ability more than his results at this point. Combined these three guards went 3-15 from the three-point arc, making Aldridge's scoring clip even more impressive.

Marcus Camby had 6 rebounds in 16 minutes. Let's hope there are no ill effects from the fall. Kurt Thomas struggled tonight. Neither big man was a big factor.

Fun With Numbers

• Blazers shoot 37% from the floor, 15% from the arc. (3-20...ouch!) It's a miracle they were that close. Don't fool yourself. It was only Portland's grit for about 10 minutes total in regulation. The Mavericks took this game for granted and played sloppy. Though at least they could shoot. (46% from the field)
• Portland forces 23 turnovers from the Mavs with a big assist from the Mavs.
• Blazers get 11 assists all night. With 2 overtimes. Think maybe the guards had something else on their minds?

Final Thoughts

I want to say the Mavericks are a shadow of the team they were in last year's playoff matchup with Portland. The problem is, I fear the Blazers might be too.

Hear the Dallas story at Mavs Moneyball

Trail Blazers vs Mavericks boxscore

Your Jersey Contest scoreboard and form for the Wizards game.

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)

What started as an awful game turned into a barn-burner. Trailing from the opening tip, the Blazers spent the evening in comeback mode, eventually coming up short against the Dallas Mavericks in double overtime.

The Blazers were led by LaMarcus Aldridge's 33 points and 12 rebounds, with support from Gerald Wallace (10 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals) and Nicolas Batum (12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks). Jamal Crawford scored 19, but missed a few big shots down the stretch.

Let's keep this first half recap short. The Blazers stunk. At one point in the second quarter, the score was 34-16. The Blazers were allowing open dunks and threes, while missing jumpers. Finally, Dallas went cold from the outside and the Blazers made a small run. They only scored 32 points in the half, but were lucky to be down 11.

In a big moment, Lamar Odom landed on Marcus Camby's foot, leaving him in pain [details here]. He came back to the game later nonetheless.

Dallas opened the second half with a 3-pointer. It looked bad, but the Blazers kept pushing, as a four-point possession cut the lead to 6 in the middle of the third. However, it was short-lived as 8 Dallas points in 40 seconds bumped the lead back to 14. From there, the two teams fought in and out of single digits. With some help from a Delonte West flagrant foul, the Blazers closed to within 6 after three.

An Aldridge jumper cut the lead to 4 to start the fourth quarter. Thanks to some early Blazer fouls, Dallas pushed the lead back to 8, but could not pull away, as the Blazers pulled to within 2 with under 6 minutes left. Then, after struggling all night, Raymond Felton nails a three pointer to tie the game with 5 minutes left. However, the Mavs scored the next 4 points to regain the lead. Jamal missed a layup with just over two minutes left that would have tied the game, then LaMarcus missed a jumper to do the same. Portland eventually had the ball with 30 seconds left, down by just 2 points. Marion guards Aldridge strong, as Aldridge double-clutches, throws the ball toward the hoop... and it dances around the rim and falls in to tie the game. Dallas has the last possession to win. Dirk takes a fadeaway, and clanks it, sending the game into extra minutes.

Batum hit a jumper to give the Blazers their first lead of the whole night as overtime began. And before you could blink, Crawford added a layup for a 4 point lead! Dallas stayed close, but struggled to tie the game thanks to strong defense and rebounding from Crash. However, the Blazers failed to score on three straight possessions, and Dallas tied the game on a Marion layup with 1 minute left. When the Blazers couldn't score, Marion is fouled on the rebound and hits two free throws to regain the lead. But with 24 seconds left, LaMarcus hits a sky hook to tie it back up. Dirk missed a jumper with two seconds left, giving the Blazers a chance to win. However, Crawford clanked a three, and we're headed to another overtime.

Raymond Felton took all of the Blazers' shots for the first 2 minutes of overtime. He even made one (and missed a FT). However, of all people, Delonte West found the range to give Dallas a four point lead. Crawford's free throws cut it to two, then an Aldridge jumper tied the game with 90 seconds left. They had a chance at the lead, but Aldridge's jumper bounced out with a minute left. Dallas took advantage, tipping in a miss for a 2 point lead with 45 seconds left. After a Crawford miss, Dirk hit a jumper with 16 seconds left. The Blazers had a jump ball opportunity while down three, got possession, and Crawford took the worst three in recorded history to finish the game

Check out the box score, then stay tuned for Dave's recap a little later. The Blazers have two days off, then host the Washington Wizards on Tuesday. -- Tim

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Update: Click on the image below to survey the damage done by the Felton/Crawford/Matthews trio in going a combined 13-for-50 from the field, including 6-for-35 from outside the paint. It looks like errant machine gun fire.

-- Ben

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In preparation for tonight's game we did a little back and forth with Jonathan Tjarks of SBN's Dallas regional site. Here's the link to.his questions and our answers. The inverse here:

BE: What's up with Dirk? Did he just win a title and shift it into cruise control? What's the status there and how do Mavs fans feel about the slow start?

SBNDALLAS: The lockout affected his off-season routine, whichis a big deal for a player whose game depends so much on timing. But after a decade of pretty much being a 24/7basketball machine, it would only have been natural for Dirk to stop and smell the roses a bit.

Really the big thing has just been the sheer number of games this season. Dirk is 33 and he's played in over 1,200 playoff and regular games; this is not a guy who should be playing five nights a week. There's been a lot of nights where he's had no lift in his legs whatsoever.

The good thing is Dallas is much deeper offensively than they were last year, so they can afford for Dirk to go on cruise control. And as long as he gets enough rest by the playoffs, Dirk's going to be at the bottom of the list of concerns for Mavs fans.

BE: Can you clarify exactly how and why the Mavericks won their title? One of the things I am already sick of in this season is pundits, fans, and media folks saying, "This team could be the next Dallas Mavericks" as if the only (or most important) criterion which won them their rings was surprise. Every half-heralded team all of a sudden gets a championship mention because people weren't talking about Dallas last year before they won it. Other than flying under the radar, what contributed most to the Mavericks' success? There had to be some solid, long-term underpinnings there.

SBND: There was a lot of talk about how Dirk overcame his post-season demons last year but really he's been the same player for almost a decade. Dallas has won 50+ games for 11 straight seasons, and that's while building three different elite teams around Dirk -- the Nash/Finley/Dirk"Big Three", the Avery Johnson helmed '06 Finals team and the 2011 title squad.

The difference last year was Dirk finally had an elite defensive center in Tyson Chandler. Dirk and Chandler were a perfect combination: the most versatile offensive 7'0 in the NBA and the most versatile defensive 7'0. Chandler was absolutely incredible for Dallas last season: he could shut down guys like Griffin and Amare on the perimeter, check Bynum and Gasol on the low block and cut off LeBron and Wade's penetration at the rim.

The Mavericks won for the same reason the Celtics and the Lakers won: they dominated the paint with two 7'0 guys. The NBA has become obsessed with perimeter players in the post MJ era, but realistically, the closer you are to the basket, the easier it is to score, so the teams with tall and athletic players who can control the paint are going to have a huge advantage.

Dallas was not as talented as Miami or OKC but they had talent in more important places on the court, which is why I took a flyer on them at 16:1 last February to win it all. This year, honestly, I think the one team who can copy the Mavericks run is Portland, with Aldridge in the Dirk role and Camby in the Chandler role.

BE: The obvious: How do you feel about the chances of repeating this year? Has anything changed which makes you think the road will be harder or easier?

SBND: The second Chandler walked out the door, the Mavericks chances of repeating went down to zero. Dallas made a lot of smart moves after letting Chandler walk, and they're still going to be a real tough out in the Western Conference playoffs, but I'd consider the WCF a real accomplishment.

BE: If the team doesn't make it all the way, at what point do they tear it down? At some point the formula of Nowitzki + Ancient Guards + High Profile Free Agent Small Forward + Serviceable Center that the Mavericks seem to employ every year or two has to break down. Do you foresee a future in which they reset?

SBND: What everyone in Dallas is talking about is the summer of 2012. If you assume they amnesty Haywood, the only players under contract are Dirk, Marion, Beaubois, Brandan Wright and Dominique Jones. I'm not sure exactly about the math but that gives them enough room to offer Howard and Deron Williams near-max money. And if the Netsand the Magic hold on to them all season, I don't see another team offering a more attractive supporting cast for those guys. Williams is from Dallas, so there's that too.

It's a lot of ifs obviously, and I would have rather had kept Chandler and just pursued Williams in 2012, but it's definitely something to keep an eye on.

BE: What's the biggest barometer of the Mavericks' success so far this season? How do we know if they're having a good game (outside of the scoreboard, of course)?

SBND: Dallas needs either West or Beaubois to give them dribble penetration and create open shots, otherwise the offense is way too stagnant.

Defensively, Haywood is pretty much done, so they need either Mahinmi or Brandan Wright to give them minutes at the 5 position.

Wright, in particular, has really come on in the last few weeks. He was a McDonald's All-American and a lottery pick out of UNC for a reason: he's 6'10 with a 7'3 wingspan,really athletic and coordinated. That's enough to merit a spot in most teams rotations.

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Thanks to our friends at the Dallas regional affiliate for taking us deeper inside the Mavericks and this matchup!

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)

You may recall a few weeks ago we ran a blurb for XFINITY's Social Media Contest, wherein they're choosing somebody to work for them on the social media end of things. Here's the follow-up where you get the chance to vote on a winner if you're so inclined.

Have you ever watched one of those TV shows where from thousands of hopefuls, one star is born? Well, here's your chance to play "starmaker" and help pick the new voice of sports in social media!

XFINITY is looking for the next renowned sports social media star through its Ultimate Sports Social Media Job contest. The winning candidate will serve as the new voice of XFINITY in the sports social media space and go behind-the-scenes at some of the biggest sporting events in 2012, sharing exclusive insights and updates with fans.

From February 9-19, you can review qualified entry videos and vote for the contestant you'd like to see advance to the finals of the XFINITY Ultimate Sports Social Media Job contest. The five entrants with the most votes will advance to the final round of the contest where they will cover one of five premier sporting events the weekend of March 8-11. Fans can head today to Facebook.com/XFINITY and click on the Ultimate Sports Social Media Job contest tab to vote for your favorite personality (once per day)!

Will you choose the brainiac with the encyclopedia of stats, the former jock who knows the game inside out, or the corporate type who gets the marketing side of the business? You decide. Vote today at Facebook.com/XFINITY!

Enjoy reading and voting if you wish. Thanks to XFINITY for the opportunity.

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)

Game Time: 5:30 p.m. TV: CSNNW

The Portland Trail Blazers face the World Champions tonight. Given the course of Portland's season you'd expect that to be a tall order. It probably still is, but the Mavericks aren't in any better position than the Blazers right now. Their home record is an anemic 9-5. Their overall record puts them on a par with Portland.

The unimpressive (given the standards) start has been directly attributable to a couple of factors. Superstar Dirk Nowitzki has so far treated the season more like a victory lap than a quest to repeat. His production has dropped precipitously...per minute, per game, it's been bad in every category. His scoring has dropped from 23 per game to below 18. His shooting percentage has plunged from 52% to 46%. His three-point percentage was 39% last year. It's 21% this year. You read that right. Dallas fans used to chant "MVP" every time he took the floor. Now they're chanting new initials. The first two are "WT..." You can fill in the last. On the upside he's had three straight impressive games, so maybe he's back in gear. If not the Mavericks aren't going anywhere no matter what the rest of the roster reads.

Tyson Chandler, the backstop of Dallas' defense, is now in New York. Brendan Haywood rebounds better and has a more varied offensive attack but he's not the defender or intimidating force Chandler was. Ian Mahinmi is hit and miss at center. They're OK at center but not anywhere near as potent as they were with Chandler.

Dallas' smaller players fare better. Jason Terry and Shawn Marion are reliable enough at shooting guard and small forward, though Marion is missing the incredible touch from the field he showed last season. Both can connect on threes to spread the floor, as can Vince Carter and Delonte West. They're certainly not challenged for alternate scorers. Though none of these players retain the vigor or production of their youth it's pretty certain at least a couple of them will be in tune on any given night.

The Mavs had reasonable hopes for Lamar Odom, considering he was 6th Man of the Year last season with the Lakers. This year he's apparently going for 10th Man of the Year, shooting a wretched 35% from the field (almost 20% lower than last year's average), grabbing fewer rebounds...heck, the best way to explain it is his PER going from 19.4 to 9.8. That's like failing art class: theoretically possible but pretty hard to do.

Also somewhat disappoint has been young guard Rodrigue Beaubois, With each of his three years his minutes have increased while his production decreased. Defense has been his only area of improvement after his promising rookie season. He's neither consistent nor productive enough to trust, especially with veterans ahead of him at his position. No doubt the Mavericks still have hopes for him but either the mix or the player is wrong.

Brandan Wright has had a few good games and provides counterpoint to the disappointment of Odom and Beaubois. Portland will need to watch his energy.

And that's been typical of Dallas' start. The names are right. Talent, if a little aged, is plentiful. But confusion at the top of the rotation and rot at the bottom are exposing, rather than covering up for, the weaknesses of the guys in the middle.

Unsurprisingly last year's highly-efficient offense has become middle-of-the-road this season. The Mavericks aren't scoring in the paint and are only average on the break. Lack of any dependable attack in the middle, either in the post or off the dribble, has left them relying on the jumper. That's OK when the ball moves and the right people receive it but too often they're stuck shooting deep bail-out shots. Despite the four good three-point shooters mentioned above the Mavericks are only 21st in the league in three-point percentage and they take a bunch of them. They're only fair drawing foul shots. They don't rebound on the offensive end. They're just not getting enough easy buckets, enough extra points, enough extra chances to generate a dominant offense.

On defense the Dallas philosophy is simple: they want you away from the rim. They'll let you shoot all the threes you want. They'll let you pull up too. You can get past their exterior defenders for a step or two but they'll collapse on you before you hit the paint. They want a shot over their heads and a rebound in their hands. They get steals, a few blocks, and they also commit fouls in the process. It's basic old-man, conserving energy, play the percentages defense. It's not a bad scheme though. They're the 7th most efficient defense in the league...far better than their offensive standing.

Like Portland, Dallas is playing their second game of a back-to-back with travel. Like Dallas, Portland has chronic weaknesses and always battles the temptation to succumb to stagnation. Either team has the talent to play great. Neither team does on a consistent basis. This game may come down to energy, one team exploiting and tiring out the other. Whichever team comes out with fire, vicious rebounding, an effective driving attack, and the capacity to hit a few jumpers will have an enormous advantage. Your guess is as good as mine which that will be. Likely Dallas, I suppose, but it doesn't have to be that way if the Blazers are willing to play.

MavsMoneyball will have your Dallas look.

You can find the Jersey Contest form for this game here.

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)

In a Nutshell

On a night when the New Orleans Hornets wear uniforms as ugly as your great-grandmother's drapes the Blazers oblige them by playing ugly for most of the game before turning on the hustle to edge ahead and take the game. New Orleans has chances but blows them like a 4-23 does.

Game Flow

I'm going to spare you the blow-by-blow in this one in case you have anything on your stomach. Suffice it to say that whatever the Blazers were playing out there tonight, it wasn't basketball. Consider that they shot 52% for the game and they never really experienced horrible droughts. In fact their outside shooters were better than we've seen in a long time. How do you trail one of the worst teams in the league while shooting that well? You don't rebound. You turn over the ball. You lose track of people on defense. The Blazers did all three and more for the better part of three quarters. They'd get three people back in transition when five were needed. They'd cut off the strong side drive with extra men but never rotate on the weak side, leaving Hornets open after a simple pass. They did everything but go inside on offense, getting few easies and drawing no fouls. It was the kind of game that made you want to yell at your TV all night.

Portland rode hot shooting by Jamal Crawford and Raymond Felton plus some great energy from Gerald Wallace to stay in striking distance of the Hornets. Trailing by 9 midway through the third period they turned it on late, courtesy of Crawford's hot hand and Wallace's hustle, exiting that quarter with a 70-67 lead. Then when the Hornets tried to come back Portland suddenly began doing all the things they sloughed off on earlier: rebounding, trapping and forcing turnovers instead of committing them, getting tough on the interior on defense, bothering to pass around the Hornets on offense instead of dishing once and shooting contested. Even so they couldn't get farther than a half-dozen ahead and New Orleans didn't give up, being that close to a rare win. When Al-Farouq Aminu hit an improbable three with 48 seconds remaining the Hornets were within 2. Unfortunately for them they seemed to intentionally foul on the ensuing possession. This is the second time we've seen that strategy under a minute but with another possession left on the clock this season. Maybe somebody who's a coach or expert statistician will explain why you don't just defend and get the ball back for the tie or win. It seems silly to grant near-automatic points when you've rallied to get that close. But the Hornets did, the Blazers hit their free throws, dodged a wide-open Marco Belinelli three, and iced the game from the foul line. Portland emerges victorious, 94-86.

Take-Away Points

Portland's bigs looked S-L-O-W out there tonight. Also one wonders how LaMarcus Aldridge gets only 12 shots in a game that's going this poorly. Yes, the Hornets were swarming him but no worse than every other team the Blazers face. When the team needs him he has to get in position, fight like heck, and then demand the ball. Had Portland's guards not been connecting from the perimeter in near-unprecedented fashion this would have been a loss and the team's best player pretty much would have watched it happen. Maybe the team is still covering for illnesses or something. If not, it's up to Aldridge and his teammates to make him the superstar the Blazers need every night.

Individual Notes

It's not like LaMarcus wasn't connecting when he had the ball. He shot 7-12 for 14 points. He had 7 rebounds...not great against range-challenged opponents. He was around the key tonight but boards were going elsewhere. He had 4 assists. He should have had 8 more shots.

Gerald Wallace once again looked like the only Blazer who gave a darn on defense for much of the game. He was trying to pump up his teammates but they were wet blankets tonight. He hit 6-9 attempts, scoring well at the rim, and had 7 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Marcus Camby had 7 rebounds in 20 minutes. It's hard to blame him for Portland's rebounding woes with that kind of rate. At the same time, he was one of the guys moving like molasses.

Raymond Felton shot wonderfully from the perimeter, at least compared to his norm. He went 6-10 tonight for 18 points and even squared up on the jumper a few times. It's marvelous what a few fundamentals can do. He had 6 assists. Unfortunately he also had 5 turnovers.

Jamal Crawford played the hero off the bench tonight, shooting 10-16, 9-10 from the foul line, for 31 sorely-needed points. Let's put that in perspective. The Blazers only scored 94 in the game. He accounted for 1/3 of Portland's production. It's not like he got lucky with triples either, going only 2-7 from distance. He worked for those points, breaking down the defense and either pulling up or dishing. He also had 8 assists. He looked like he was moving at the speed of light compared to most of his teammates in the halfcourt. He was also the only player who looked like he had a clue, even if that clue was often leading him towards his own shot.

You know how the Eskimos supposedly have 20 different words for snow? The Blazers need 20 different words for how badly Wesley Matthews is playing right now. Other than a couple steals, just don't ask.

Nicolas Batum, on the other hand, found a way to impact the game on a night when he had only 6 shots, connecting on but 2, going 1-4 on his newly-beloved distance shot. He had 5 rebounds, which the Blazers needed, 5 steals, and 2 blocks. Well done.

Kurt Thomas played 14 OK minutes.

Elliot Williams missed 3 shots from the field and 2 from the foul line in 5 minutes, committing 2 fouls and getting 1 assist on a baseline wrap-around pass to Gerald Wallace in the process. That assist didn't outweigh the rest. He didn't see the game again.

Fun With Numbers

• Hornets 14 offensive rebounds and they win the rebounding battle overall on a night when they missed far more shots than did the Blazers. Who was working harder?
• New Orleans 54 points in the paint to Portland's 30. Who was working harder?
• Everything else but the shooting percentage (Portland 51.5%, New Orleans 44%) was pretty close.

Final Thoughts

A road win is a treasure but epic fail for only playing 8 guys (E-Will's 5 minutes doesn't really count) on the first of a road back-to-back when the opponent has a 15% winning percentage and tomorrow's opponent is Dallas. Don't blame Coach McMillan. The starters could have gotten rest by giving more effort early and finishing this instead of playing just good enough not to lose for 44 of 48 minutes.

You can read about New Orleans' hope and/or lack of patience with results like this at At The Hive.

Boxscore

Your Jersey Contest scoreboard and the form for tomorrow's game.

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)

In a game that went disappointingly down to the wire, the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the New Orleans Hornets by 8. If you DVR'd this game, just skip to the final two minutes, and save yourself some pain. Oh, my head.

The Blazers were led by Jamal Crawford's 31 points and 8 assists, supported by Raymond Felton (18 points, 6 assists), LaMarcus Aldridge (14 points, 7 rebounds), Gerald Wallace (14 points, 6 rebounds) and Nicolas Batum (9 points, 5 rebounds, a few big plays). Marcus Camby again played short minutes while recovering from bronchitis. Consequently, the Blazers struggled to pull down rebounds throughout, which was the impetus for a very long game.

The first half of this game was unmemorable. I won't bother doing a giant recap because a.) you don't really want to read it, trust me, and b.) I skipped right by most of the second quarter to catch up on the DVR. Basically, assume the Blazers didn't show up, and the Hornets played hard at both ends. But since they're still New Orleans, it meant the Hornets only led by 4 at halftime. The rebounding was a killer: New Orleans missed 22 shots. Of the available rebounds, the Blazers grabbed 9, and New Orleans grabbed 11. Ouch.

The second half continued the trend. Poor Blazer play, poor rebounding, Hornets take advantage. With six minutes left, the Hornets pushed the lead to 9, and the Blazers only had 48 points. The lead would build no further. The Blazers ramped up the D, and finally started hitting a few shots, as Crawford and Felton controlled the offense and pushed the Blazers to a 3 point lead after the third. Celebration ensued in the Gameday Thread.

Jamal Crawford continued to heat up in the fourth, with the Blazers quickly jumping to a 6 point lead. However, an offensive foul forced him out of the game, only for Raymond Felton to stay hot. But the Hornets stayed close, thanks to the rebounding advantage. With 7 minutes left, the Blazer lead was back to 1. The teams fought to a standstill, with the Blazers leading by 2 with two minutes left. With 90 seconds left, Batum stole the ball from the Hornets and was fouled on the break, leading to a 4 point lead. The lead reaches 5 when Al-Farouq Aminu (shooting 12% from three!) hits a three-pointer to cut the lead to two. But two FT's later, Vasquez misses a layup for NO, and finally the Raymond Felton's free throws put away a game that was much closer than necessary.

Review the very uninteresting box score, then stay tuned for Dave's recap later. The Blazers are back on the court tomorrow night in Dallas. That should be interesting. -- Tim

Game Time: 5:00 Pacific TV: CSNNW

Update: The New Orleans Hornets sent a release on Friday saying that guard Jarrett Jack with not play in Friday night's game due to a re-aggravation of a bruised left knee. He is expected out "at least a week." -- Ben

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The New Orleans Hornets are bad. They're really bad. Have you ever walked in your house after being outside in the fresh air and gotten a whiff of some sickly-sweet smell wafting from the kitchen? Have you ever checked the garbage, the cupboards, the back of the fridge without being able to identify the source? Have you ever dug persistently, certain something was off, until finally in the back of the fruit and veggie drawer you found some unidentifiable bag of green, gooey, stuff from which this foul smell was emanating? Have you ever then opened that bag and chugged its contents? Then you, my friend, have no idea how bad the New Orleans Hornets are. They are the forgotten baggie of formerly-organic produce raising a stench from the bottom of the NBA's fruit drawer. And you get to eat them tonight.

Do you think I'm exaggerating? These guys are on a losing streak that's lasted the whole season. And it's not getting better. They have won 4 times in 26 games. Two of those wins came in their first two outings. That means they're 2-22 since. The Orlando Magic and Denver Nuggets did the honors, Orlando by scoring 67 points (still trying to figure out how they did that on a night when Dwight Howard scored 28) and the Nuggets by scoring 81. In fact the Hornets have not beaten a team that has scored more than 84 points on them. It's Lawler's Law modified: First to 85 wins. Unless it's the Hornets. Then the other team wins anyway.

To be fair the Hornets have been without scoring guard Eric Gordon for much of the season, but come on...is this guy Kobe? Is he LeBron? That's what you'd need to turn this team around. They score like a sports blogger at a Victoria's Secret show. For most teams 87 points is a disastrous night. That's their average. The only guys averaging good percentages from the field are the guys who don't shoot much. They don't have a single reliable three-point shooter among them. Even distance-wizard Marco Belinelli has lost his touch. They're horrible on the break. It's inside scoring or nothing for them. Pack the paint , secure the rebound, and profit. There's no "?????" line needed. It's just that easy.

On defense the story is slightly better. They can guard the paint. They allow a low three-point percentage. They rebound well defensively. Their big issues are getting back on defense and not helping out. They have ability defensively but lack confidence and cohesion. If you just go one-on-one against them all night they'll look good. Pass the ball a couple times and watch what happens. Plus remember that the bar is 85-88 points instead of the 100 you'd feel comfortable with against most defenses. No matter how well you defend in this league you're going to have a hard time holding opponents that low.

With Gordon out Jarrett Jack remains the leading scorer for the Hornets at 15 per game. Carl Landry and Trevor Ariza hover around 11 per. Everybody else--Emeka Okafor, Kaman, Belinelli, and a bunch of people you ain't never heard of--scores in single digits. You're not watching this game to see if your team wins. You're watching this game searching for spare parts to plug into the Trade Machine. At this point the Hornets are a league-owned salvage yard. Grab a distributor cap and a back-up center. Don't be stupid enough to get bit by the dog while browsing.

No matter who is sick, no matter how bummed people are about the last two games, no matter what coaching schemes are employed or how minutes are distributed, even if it is on the road, the Blazers should win this game. The goal in this situation is to play with enough energy early on that you can rest your starters in anticipation of the Dallas game tomorrow.

Inevitably in the comment section someone will mention that this type of game is a trap. If it is, go ahead! Spring it! What are you going to do, give the Blazers a mildly nasty rug burn? Put a slight noogie indentation in the old hairdo? Maybe it's true that any team can win on a given night, but this ought to be a night where the win isn't given. And being given it is the only way the Hornets are going to walk out of that arena with a "W".

At The Hive will no doubt compare the team to a slightly less moldy variety of vegetable.

Your Jersey Contest form for the evening.

--Dave (blazersub@gmail.com)