That's right Blazer Nation! Tomorrow is the official season opener game against the Houston Rockets! It's sure to to be an exciting one considering it was the Rockets who kicked us out of the playoffs last season. I'm sure the team and fans are dying for the chance to get some sweet revenge tomorrow.
Unfortunately the excitement comes along with some unfortunate news today. Nicolas Batum, number 88 on the team, is going to be out for about 3-6 months due to a right shoulder injury. Batum will be having surgery on a torn labrum which has been giving him problems for awhile but those problems intensified when Nic ran into Greg Oden during a practice. Martell Webster is going to fill in for Nic in the starting line-up. Webster talked about having to fill in for Batum, saying, "It's always tough when one of your guys is hurt." But when asked if he can live up to the challenge and be the defensive player his team needs Martell said, "Oh yeah, I can." Also, Rudy Fernandez who hasn't played since October 14th, returned to practice on Sunday and is projected to play in tomorrow's game.
For those of you who can get your hands on a copy of today's Oregonian, do so. There's a really great article about Greg Oden's new-found role on the team. McMillan talks about how he is teaching Oden to be a 'Monster in the Paint.' Greg Oden, talking about his legiance to his role on the team, says "Those guys always had faith in me, even last year when my game wasn't what I wanted it to be. But they always gave me the ball and said, 'Greg, go to work.' " I really loved that quote, it gave us a real insight to the support that the Blazers give each other through tough times and good times. I couldn't be anymore excited to see G.O. getting work done tomorrow night!
Also, there is an AMAZING article by Jason Quick up on
The Blazers Beat called "
Brandon Roy: The Portland Trail Blazers' undisputed leader." It's a great insight to team dynamics and Roy's role as leader. It was a great read and really inspirational and got me that much more excited for tomorrow's game!
LASTLY :) I will be at tomorrow's game, (Yay for overpriced nosebleed seats!) so be sure to follow me on Twitter for LIVE updates and pictures from the game, obviously the LIVE pics will be horrible but I'll be bringing my camera so no worries ;-)
(Batum Picture from sportsillustrated.cnn.com and thanks to Jenn for the photoshop job! And Zut means Blast or darn it in French...)
(Roy Picture from Bruce Ely/The Oregonian)
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