Blazers Start Season 3-0 With Big Win Against Denver

The Denver Nuggets rolled into town last night to match up against the Blazers and with both teams having started their seasons 2-0 it was someone's time to put a 1 in that loss column.

Starting Fives:

     Portland                                         Denver
Raymond Felton                         D. Gallinari
Wesley Matthews                       Nene

Marcus Camby                           T. Mozgov
Gerald Wallace                          A. Afflalo
LaMarcus Aldridge                   T. Lawson 

Can we start off by completely applauding the hot starts the Blazers have been getting off to? In each game so far the Blazers have been RED hot on both ends of the court. First they completely abuse teams on defense and then use speed and precision to outplay and outsmart their opponents on the offensive end. Tonight we saw electric play from everyone but most notably my pick for player of the game: Wesley Matthews. 

O-LEY! Don't get me wrong, Raymond Felton was also outstanding but I have to pick Wesley because of his clutch play late in the game. Matthews put up 4 of his 5 three pointers in the 3rd quarter (he went 5/8 from beyond the arc) and hustled on both ends of the court. We saw him lose the ball on a messy turnover only to hustle back on defense and steal the ball back. After a somewhat slow start to the game, Wesley was a big part of bringing the Blazers to a win after the team faded in the second half. 

Box Score Look Back:

The Blazers had three players score 20+ points with our player of the game, Mr. Matthews as the high scorer with 25 points, shooting 9/15 from the field with 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Raymond Felton put up 23 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists with Jamal Crawford following closely with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. LaMarcus Aldridge and Gerald Wallace fought fatigue late in the game and ended with 13 points a piece but don't count either out as each posted 5 and 6 rebounds respectively. LaMarcus fought the difficult post play by dishing out 6 assists tonight as well. Also of note: Marcus Camby's defense. He may have only scored 2 points but he recorded 12 rebounds and 3 MONSTER blocks that came at crucial points in the game. Speaking of blocks: apparently Nicolas Batum had the goal of denying Andre Miller a shot tonight because 3 of his 4 blocks were on Dre. 

This new Blazers team is so exciting to watch. We're finally running the floor and playing with intensity on both ends of the court! The Blazers (despite having a scary 25 turn overs compared to Denver's 7) were able to come away with a win 111-102 holding Denver to 23 points in the 4th quarter. It was an exciting game with a great finish as Portland remains undefeated at the Rose Garden. However, I will not completely applaud the Blazers as there are clearly some areas that need to be improved upon. 25 turn overs? Not acceptable guys. We got so lucky tonight that we were able to scrap our way to a win despite that ridiculous number. Also, we definitely need to continue working on closing out games! The guys still are working on getting their game legs, which is understandable but we can't keep letting teams  back in the game during the second half. It makes for exciting but really terrifying games. All in all though, we've seen some amazing game play from this team so far and I for one am really excited to see where we go!

Photo of the Night:

I'm sorry......but it's just perfect. Ex-Blazers Andre Miller and Rudy Fernandez who were looking to get a big win on the road against their former team......were simply CRASHed into a loss so to speak.....Eh? Get it? Crash! Cause...Gerald Wallace.....yeah. 

Looking Ahead:

The Blazers next go on the road for a two game road trip starting in the city of Angels to face the Clippers who are currently 1-1 on the season.

• Portland has won nine of the past 10 games and 12 of the last 14 against the L.A. Clippers. 
• The Trail Blazers have defeated the Clippers in five straight Rose Garden meetings and in six of the past seven contests at STAPLES Center.
• The Clippers have managed to score 100-plus points just once in the last 10 meetings, with Portland hitting triple figures six times in that span.
• Portland swept last season’s series, 3-0, giving the Trail Blazers their fourth consecutive series win over the Clippers and 21st series victory since the Clippers moved to Los Angeles in 1984-85. 
• The Trail Blazers outshot the Clippers from the field (45.5%-41.6%), the 3-point line (44.9%-30.4%) and the charity stripe (79.5%-62.8%) in three games last season.
• In three series games last season, Portland outscored Los Angeles, 102.0-90.7.
• Despite outrebounding the Clippers in last season’s three-game series, 135-123, including a 46-42 edge on the offensive end, Los Angeles outscored the Trail Blazers in second-chance points, 53-40.

• Points in the paint - With the addition of Chris Paul and the continuing improvements from Blake Griffon we will need to keep tight defensively when it comes to letting the Clippers set up post plays. On the other end however it would be so lovely to see LaMarcus Aldridge ABUSE Griffon in the post and get some nice hook shots in the paint.
• Resist the Third Quarter Burn Out! - So far we have had serious lulls in intensity right before the half and mort importantly later in the third. We take these huge, beautiful leads early in the first half only to get sloppy and allow the opponent to come back and tie. The Blazers won't have the support of a home crowd behind them to will them to a victory. The Clippers are looking at a sell-out crowd who would love nothing more than to see their Clippers get another home win. 
• Keep It (Not) Sloppy Stupid K.I.S.S! - We have to reduce the turnovers in this game. If we play anything like we did last night with 25 TOs it will simply lead to a Griffon dunk show. We need to take care of the ball on offense and go for the steals and get some runs going from the defensive end. 

The Blazers will take on the Clippers January 1, 2012 at 6:30 PM. You can catch the game on Comcast Sportsnet in the Portland metro area or you can catch the live stream on TrailBlazers.com! Starting January 1, the Trail Blazers will be streaming games for free on their website so you can catch the action regardless of where you live! 

Here's to 4 - 0!

Sources: Photo 1 , Photo 2 , Series Notes

Pre-Season BEGINS! (And so does Blazer Nation Blog 2.0!)

Pre-Season has begun! This past Monday the Blazers faced the Los Angeles Clippers in their first game of the pre-season. It was a highly anticipated game for both sides considering it was Clippers' Blake Griffin's official NBA debut and after all the buzz that has been circulating around Wesley Matthews Jr (and a certain Spanish player, for different reasons of course) it was the fans' first opportunity to see what Junior had to offer in an official game setting.


Box Score Courtesy of TrailBlazers.com:

Both teams started at a similar pace, tied 12-12 with about 5 minutes left in the first but the Blazers proceeded to run and never let go. LaMarcus got the party started with a nasty one handed put back dunk. He ended the game with 17 points, 2 assists and 7 rebounds. Can we just take a moment to praise the L Train? My main man was not only knocking down his signature fade away shots but getting into the paint and to the hoop. Aldridge shot 5-6 from the line and 6-12 from the field. I really enjoyed what I saw from him on Monday and only hope it keeps gettin' better.


Now, let's talk Wes Matthews! In his Blazer debut, Matthews shot 3-8 from beyond the arch and 4-9 from the field leading the Blazers in scoring with 20 points. Upon his entrance into the game, Wes was received with a standing ovation and a roar of cheers from the crowd and it only got louder when he exited. His performance at fan fest made me excited but after  his performance against the Clippers I just can not wait to see him in the regular season. His defense and perimeter offense were extremely impressive. It'll be exciting to watch his stats throughout the season.


Lastly, we will discuss a certain Spaniard. No matter what opinion you have had or still have on Rudy, you must agree that his play was extremely impressive. He looked like the Rudy of the old Spanish Armada days cutting to the basket, looking for the assist and knocking down the threes. Rudy shot 5-6 from beyond the arch scoring 15 points for the game. He entered the game to an assortment of boos, Ruuuuuuuudys and cheers but upon his exit all that could be heard where cheers. If Rudy can keep playing at this level I think the doubters will become fewer and fewer. 


The Blazers cruised to a 115 - 86 win over the Clippers. Overall it was a great opener to the pre-season. We got to see a little something from all of our rookies, Elliot Williams was the only Blazer to not score. We saw a more intense and focused defense. The Blazers forced the Clippers to a shot clock violation on more than one possession and were deflecting passes and fighting for the ball. It was a great game to see.

Photo of the Game:

In short, it really hits the nail on the head....or ball on the head I suppose. This photo came after Nico's MONSTROUS dunk.

The Blazers next fly to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Jazz on Thursday. The game can be heard on 95.5 the game if you  are in the Portland area or you can chat along side Blazer fans on TrailBlazers.com. Now, the notes!

•  Utah owns a 12-6 edge over Portland in preseason meetings. The Trail Blazers have not won in three preseason games in Salt Lake City, all since 2006. 

•  The Jazz swept last year’s regular season series, 4-0, marking its first win in the series with Portland since 2005-06 (also a 4-0 sweep). Utah won by an average of 11.0 points (106.3-95.3) in the four games, the widest margin against Portland of any NBA team last season. The Jazz shot 54.9% from the field (40.0% 3-PT) , the best mark of any Trail Blazers opponent in 2009-10, while limiting Portland to 39.5% shooting (27.2% 3-PT) in the 2009-10 series. 

•  Utah’s four-game winning streak against Portland is the longest current winning run against the Trail Blazers of any Western Conference opponent, and the second longest of any NBA opponent (Cleveland, six). 

•  Portland dominated the offensive glass against Utah last season, accruing a 66-35 advantage in the category in four games. 

•  The Jazz carried a 117-71 edge in assists during four series games between the teams in the 2009-10 regular season. 

•  Brandon Roy’s 21.0 points (14-28 FG) in two games vs. Utah led all Trail Blazers in scoring vs. the Jazz in 2009-10. LaMarcus Aldridge added 20.3 points and 8.8 rebounds while playing in all four contests against the Jazz last year. 

•  Wesley Matthews averaged 9.0 points (11-21 FG) and 3.5 rebounds in four games against Portland as a member of the Jazz last season. 

•  Deron Williams led all current Jazz players in the 2009-10 series with Portland by averaging 19.8 points and 11.8 assists in the four regular season meetings. 

•  As a member of the Timberwolves, Al Jefferson led Minnesota with 16.3 points and 9.3 rebounds in four games against Portland in 2009-10. 

•  LaMarcus Aldridge scored a career-high 36 points (12-17 FG) in Utah’s win over the Trail Blazers on Dec. 31, 2007, which snapped Portland’s 13-game win streak. 

•  Utah forward Demetris Nichols was originally selected by Portland with the 53rd pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, before the Trail Blazers traded his draft rights to New York. Nichols also participated on Portland’s 2010 NBA Summer League team.

Lastly, I want to apologize for the complete LACK of posts over the off season. I've been taking classes and have had very limited time to blog but I am hoping to continue blogging about all the games this season! Thanks for sticking with me Nation! Let's go Blazers!!

Photo: Yahoo Sports 

LA Clippers Preview

Tonight the Blazers are in the city of angels to take on the Los Angeles Clippers! It'll be a night of reunions as Portland will take on ex-Blazers Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw for the first time since they were traded.  Marcus Camby, center, will also be taking on his old team for the first time in a Blazers uniform.

•  Portland has won five of the past six games and eight of the last 10 against the L.A. Clippers, including three straight wins at the Rose Garden. The Trail Blazers had beaten the Clippers in Los Angeles in four consecutive meetings before the Clippers earned a 105-95 victory the last time the teams met in Los Angeles on Jan. 4.

•  The Trail Blazers lead this season’s series, 2-1, with the home team winning each game. Both teams have shot better than 50.0% from the floor (Portland, 50.2%; L.A. Clippers, 51.6%). Martell Webster leads all players in the series with 22.7 points in three contests, including a career-high tying 28 points (9-13 FG, 7-11 3-PT) Feb. 16 in Portland.
•  In the first three games of the series, Portland has accumulated a 28-18 advantage in steals, turning the ball over 38 times while forcing 52 Clippers turnovers.
•  The Trail Blazers bested the Clippers, 3-1, in the 2008-09 series, Portland’s second straight series win over the Clippers and 18th since they moved to Los Angeles in 1984-85.
•  In four contests last season, the Trail Blazers outscored the Clippers, 107.0-91.8, and shot 48.7% from the floor while holding Los Angeles to 41.8% shooting.
•  The Trail Blazers acquired Marcus Camby from the L.A. Clippers in exchange for Steve Blake, Travis Outlaw and cash considerations on Feb. 16. Camby averaged 8.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.00 blocks against Portland in two meetings before the trade. In 269 games as a Trail Blazer, Blake averaged 8.9 points and 4.7 assists, while Outlaw posted averages of 9.6 points and 3.4 rebounds in 377 games with Portland.
•  Andre Miller played with the L.A. Clippers in 2002-03, averaging 13.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.24 steals in 80 contests.
•  Clippers forward/center Brian Skinner played 27 games for Portland in 2005-06, averaging 3.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 19.1 minutes.

The Clippers have lost 5 straight and 15 of their last 17 games. Whereas the Blazers are coming in fresh off a win in Sacramento on Saturday. Keeping momentum will be the kicker of this game. The Blazers tend to play down/up to the level of whoever their playing and if they give the Clippers any shred of hope tonight they can kiss a W goodbye. Since the trade deadline the Clippers have had some big wins and with Kaman, Gordon and Blakey holding them down they are definitely capable of coming out strong. I think with the looming threat of playoff positioning in mind though, B Roy won't let Portland come out with anything less than a win.

It'll be interesting to see how things play out with Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw though, (I have heard from a reputable source that Outlaw might now be playing tonight, which is fine with me. It'll hurt to see him suit up against us) seeing as to how close they were with all members of this team (sans Marcus Camby and Travis Diener of course).  Hopefully we come and strong and have a big win tonight!

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I know it's been awhile, and instead of clogging up the page with a bunch of re-caps I'll just recommend that you check out the sites linked in the sidebar for some excellent analysis and post/pre game articles!

Blazers Clip Past the Los Angeles Clippers

Last night, the Blazers met with the Clippers at the Rose Garden after a nice long rest during All-Star weekend. This game came directly after Blazers general manager, Kevin Pritchard, made a deal with LAC to trade Travis Outlaw, Steve Blake & money considerations for Marcus Camby (see last post). With the 2009-2010 season dwindling down, the Blazers were looking to come off AS Weekend strong with a nice win propelling them into a rough hunt for the playoffs.

Starting Cinco:

LaMarcus Aldridge
Martell Webster
Andre Miller
Juwan Howard
Brandon Roy

You're eyes do no deceive you, Brandon Roy is finally "back." I say that cautiously though since BRoy didn't finish out the game, he had to come out after only 15 minutes of play and then stay out because his hammy fired up. He finished with only 4 points. The high scorer of the night for Portland was none other than Marty Marty DOWNTOWN Party who tied his career high of 28 points and also tallied 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. Martell Webster threw the Marty Party at the RG last night and made big shots down the stretch for the Blazers to help keep an edge over the Clippers. LaMarcus Aldridge took a close silver spot with 22 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assits, 3 steals and 1 block.

Here's a look at the rest of the box score:

The Blazers played a great game overall shooting 49.3% from the field, a big 55.6% from 3-pt range and 78.1% from the line. With only 9 turnovers and 25 assists the Blazers went to work on the Clippers and never let up. Portland went on to win the game 109 - 87.

Photo Of the Night:

You can just hear Roy screaming: "UGH my leg is falling off!!" Get well soon BRoy, we need you 100%

Portland next faces the Boston Celtics on Friday. (This game will also be Marcus Camby's debut as a Blazer)

•  The Trail Blazers scored five straight points to force overtime, but Ray Allen’s three-
pointer with 41 seconds to play in the extra period proved to be the game winner in Boston’s 98-95 victory on Feb. 10 in the first game of the 2009-10 series. Andre Miller led all players with 28 points to go with eight rebounds and eight assists.
•  Portland and Boston split last season’s series for the first time since 2004-05, with
each team winning on its home floor.
•  The Trail Blazers snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Celtics with a 91-86 win
on Dec. 30, 2008. In the absence of an injured Brandon Roy, Rudy Fernandez made his first career start, scoring eight points.
•  Portland’s 78 points (to Boston’s 93) on Dec. 5, 2008, are the fewest scored by either
team in series history. The Trail Blazers averaged 84.5 points in two games last season, the fewest against any NBA opponent.
•  The Trail Blazers held the Celtics to 43.6% shooting (22.2% 3-PT) last season but posted only a 44.0% shooting mark (30.8% 3-PT) of their own in two games.
•  Portland recorded 10 blocks to Boston’s two rejections in two meetings last season.
•  The Trail Blazers tallied only 25 assists on 62 field goals in two games vs. Boston in 2008-09. The Celtics had 35 assists on 61 baskets.
•  Portland’s .406 (39-57) all-time winning percentage against Boston is its lowest mark among all current NBA opponents. The Celtics are the NBA’s only active team with a winning record in Portland (25-23).
•  On Draft Day 2006, Portland dealt Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and a 2008 second round pick to Boston in exchange for Raef LaFrentz, Dan Dickau and the draft rights to Randy Foye. Foye’s rights were then traded to Minnesota for the draft rights to Brandon Roy.
•  Nate McMillan coached Boston guard Ray Allen from 2003-05 in Seattle.
•  The Celtics’ Rasheed Wallace ranks No. 8 in points, No. 6 in rebounds, No. 7 in 3-pointers made, No. 3 in blocks and No. 5 in minutes played among Portland’s all-time leaders.
•  Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge was a member of the Portland Trail Blazers for two seasons, averaging 10.4 points in 161 games from 1990-92.

(Pictures: ESPN Sports)

Portland Blazes The Suns In Phoenix

Last night the Blazers traveled to the valley of the sun to meet with the Suns in Phoenix. This game was the second of a back to back coming after two devastating losses at home to LA on Saturday and OKC Tuesday night. A win was much needed to go into the All-Star break in a positive light.

Comenzar Cinco:

LaMarcus Aldridge
Juwan Howard
Andre Miller
Martell Webster
Steve Blake

Another line-up switch last night, Nicolas Batum was taken out and Steve Blake was put in. I was a little nervous of this line-up but it seemed to do good things. LaMarcus Aldridge, who was named to the USA national team prior to the game, was the high scorer of the night! Apparently, that announcement did good things and pumped LMA up because he came away with 22 points on 11 - 17 from the field, 6 rebounds, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots. The difference in LaMarcus' game last night compared to the OKC game was drastic. Aldridge seemed much more confident in his shots and was eager to get the ball down low and take on former teammate Channing Frye. The man had 16 points at the half, I'm just sayin. Our guards were huge for us last night as both Andre Miller and Steve Blake had big games with 20 points. I think Blake's contribution was a bigger deal though because we haven't seen a game like this from Steve in a while. Blake shot 7 - 12 from the field and 2 - 5 from behind the arch tallying 2 rebounds and a big 12 assists. My boy, DANTE INFERNO CUNNINGHAM had another HUGE night with 13 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. DC has been playing great these past couple games, he is really playing for a starting position and doing it with stride. He just keeps getting better and we have to mention his FACE MELTING super dunk on Amar'e Stoudemire coming after Amar'e had a nasty dunk on DC. Unfortunately, Amar'e's dunk was featured on SportsCenter and such and Dante's dunk but forgotten, such is the way of life.

This game was an excellent rebound game after Tuesday's heart breaker. The Blazers came out with a sense of urgency and energy right from the beginning and never allowed Phoenix to lead throughout the entire game. An excellent and surprising game through and through.

The Blazers went on to win the game 108 - 101.

Photo of the Night:

This dunk will forever be engraved in my mind and every time I see a picture or watch a replay I will hear Wheels screaming: "OOOOOH THAT WAS NASTY" because it was. It was.

The Blazers get a nice little break this weekend as All-Star weekend starts up in Dallas but will next play the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday.

•  Portland has won four of the past five games and seven of the last nine against the 

L.A. Clippers, including two straight wins at the Rose Garden. 

•  This season series between the teams is tied, 1-1, with each team winning on their home 

floor. Both teams have shot better than 50.0% from the floor (Portland, 50.6%; L.A. Clip- 

pers, 53.4%). Martell Webster leads Portland with 20.0 points in two series contests. 

•  The Trail Blazers bested the Clippers, 3-1, in the 2008-09 series, Portland’s second 

straight series win over the Clippers and 18th since the Clippers moved to Los Angeles 

in 1984-85. 

•  In four contests last season, the Trail Blazers outscored the Clippers, 107.0-91.8, and 

shot 48.7% from the floor while holding Los Angeles to 41.8% shooting in four games. 

•  The Trail Blazers dished 100 assists and turned the ball over 50 times, good for a 2.00 

assist-to-turnover ratio in four series games in 2008-09. The Clippers’ ratio was 1.32. 

•  Portland outscored Los Angeles in the paint in each of the four meetings last season, 

compiling a 202-152 edge overall. 

•  Portland earned a 186-160 (54-42 off.) rebounding advantage in four games in the 

series last year. 

Hopefully the Blazers get a nice, well deserved rest this weekend and come back strong on Tuesday for a good game against LAC. 

(Photos: Yahoo! Sports)