Archive for April, 2011

It’s getting kind of late, I’m tired, and quite frankly, I’m over writing about the Mavericks. Because of all those things, I’m going to keep this one kind of short. Thursday night, as I made my way over to the Rose Garden for what would be the final time of 2010-11, I prepared myself for the likelihood that this may be Portland’s last game of the season. I’ve been a Blazer fan for as long as I can remember, and part of being a Blazer fan is dealing with postseason disappointment. Even those great teams in the 90s, and those [...]

I’m not going to blame this loss on the officiating, but I’d really like to. Makes sense, though, that when one team shoots 35 free throws, and the other team shoots 19 free throws, and that when the team with a +12 free throw differential wins by 11, there’s a significant possibility that the uneven whistles may have played some role, however insignificant, in the game’s final outcome. Having said that, though, someone was sage enough to point out on Twitter during what my be Portland’s final road game of the season that referees don’t miss open jumpers. For that [...]

With five minutes and twenty-four seconds remaining in the second to last quarter of Saturday’s game, Dirk Nowitzki missed a 10-foot jumper, and Portland, as they had been all afternoon, was slow to find the ball. Shawn Marion snagged it, found Dirk, who had drifted back to behind the three-point line, and the big German drilled a three. It was the story of the game. The Blazers had played good defense for most of a possession, only to not claim the rebound on the missed shot, and have that unclaimed rebound turn into a big Maverick bucket. Dirk’s three put [...]

Thursday night was one part homecoming, one part retribution and re-birth, and one part welcoming party. It was loud in the Rose Garden, as it should be. Shots that were missing in Dallas were falling, as they should be. Bounces and whistles were going in Portland’s favor, hard to say about that one. And ultimately what matters, after all the drama and ups and downs of the last 48 hours ended with game three’s final horn, is that the Blazers got on the board. The question is, of course, is it going to be enough? The series is now 2-1, [...]

Just to get right to it: let’s not make Brandon Roy into Allen Iverson. Please. Obviously, he shouldn’t have said what he said about his playing time. It wasn’t in anyone’s best interests for these comments to be out there in the open giving the John Canzanos of the world fodder. It’s a distraction the Blazers don’t need, particularly since they currently trail the Dallas Mavericks 2-0 in their Western Conference quarterfinal series. I’m not defending Roy’s comments. It was wrong of him to call out Nate McMillan about his minutes, and it certainly gave the impression that he was [...]

I gotta say that losing game Two definitely hurts. It puts a serious crimp in the possibility that Portland will take this series, and it’s starting to make all those members of the media, me included, that picked Dallas to lose look a little silly. I will say this though, I really and truly believe that this series isn’t over yet. Dallas has held home. That’s all. Portland has a crazy home court advantage, and has shown that they can hang with this team when everybody in the building is screaming their heads off for their opponents. If the Blazers [...]

I’ll say what every Blazer fan is thinking, then I’m going to move on and actually try to talk about this game: Portland was robbed. And not just regular robbed, they were grand theft, smash and grab, hit and run, robbed. Dallas shot 29 free throws Saturday night. The Blazers shot 13. You know who else shot 13 free throws? Dirk Nowitzki. I’m not going to harp on this too much, the officiating is part of the game, and just like the team its fans are going to have to find a way to get over this game, but there [...]

Saturday’s the day. The Trail Blazers will be taking on the Dallas Mavericks for what will be the beginning of the team’s third straight appearance in the Playoffs. So, because it’s officially Playoff time, and because everybody else is doing it, I thought I would contribute a brief Playoff preview. I’ll leave the statistical breakdowns to those writers that are better equipped; this preview will be dedicated more to how I feel about the upcoming opening round series. I’ll start it like this. The first year I lived in Portland, the Blazers lost in the first round of the Playoffs [...]

Sean said it best in his concise preview of the Blazers’ final game of the regular season. I hope everybody that could watched the Lakers and the Kings in potentially the final game ever in Sacramento. As of this writing, the Lakers are wrapping up an overtime victory that included a 20-point collapse and some clutch shooting from Kobe Bryant. A Laker win means the Blazers will start the post season in Dallas against the Mavericks. It’s the match-up Portland wants, for better or for worse, and if I were going to be placing a bet on the series, which [...]

Watch Kings-Lakers instead.