Mar 21, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Portland Trail Blazers power forward LaMarcus Aldridge (12) attempts to pass the ball against Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah (13) during the first half at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

So, if you’re on the #Blazer bench and you never removed your warmups in a game when your team led by 27 points, what do u think?

— Candace Buckner (@blazerbanter) March 22, 2013

The above is the kind of question you ask when Portland is up 15 on the road against the Bulls with a minute and a half to play and LaMarcus Aldridge drains a jumper that should be the final nail in the coffin. The above is also the kind of question you DON’T ask when in one minute and 29 seconds the likes of Nolan Smith, Will Barton, Luke Babbitt, Joel Freeland, and Meyers Leonard give up seven straight points and let Chicago make the final score look semi-respectable.

Thursday’s win, a blowout for much of its 48 minutes, will be on the short list for Portland’s most impressive of 2012-13. Personally, I’d rank it below both the wins at San Antonio and at home against the Heat, but still from both a timing and performance stand-point this one is up there.

However, that doesn’t change the fact that there are many important things about this team that need to be addressed. Things that, if they go unchecked in this off-season, could very likely derail the long-term march to contention that the Blazers’ front office is selling the fan base on. One of those things, maybe the most important thing, was evident in Thursday’s final minute and change: Portland literally has no depth.

The addition of Eric Maynor has been huge. Not only has he shown that he can provide offense by himself, but he’s turned the Blazers’ second unit around. Portland was four or five players deep until the trade deadline, and they’re six or seven guys deep now, all because of Eric Maynor. But seven is a rotation. Seven is not depth. For next season, and the season beyond that, Portland needs to get to 10 playable guys.

Here’s why, the Blazers right now have zero margin for error. When Portland shoots 49% from the floor and 48% from three while holding their opponent to 44% from the field and 29% from three, they’ll win. But that’s basically perfect basketball from the Blazers, it’s not something that should be expected. Portland’s been forced to play basically without making errors all season, and they’ve only got 32 wins to show for it. If that carries over to 2013-14, you can expect the Blazers’ record won’t get that much better.

Portland needs to find a center, that’s probably the number one priority for Neil Olshey, but adding some players deeper in the depth chart should also be very close to the top of the list. This isn’t just about garbage time too. This is about having guys that can be inserted into a game and have an impact. Right now, the end of Portland’s bench can’t even come into a 20-point blowout with less than a minute to play.

I know it seems harsh to dwell on the shortcomings of the Blazers’ scrubs following a convincing win against a playoff-bound opponent in the middle of a spirit crushing late-season road trip, but that’s what this part of the season is all about. Portland won’t be making the playoffs, but they’ve given themselves a leg up on the future. Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge have become one of the most potent inside/outside tandems in the league, Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum have both shown marked improvement that certainly doesn’t feel fluky, and Eric Maynor will only get better. That’s the core of a playoff team. But if Portland wants to get beyond the first round of the playoffs they’re going to need to be more than just a core.

Over the course of the next few weeks, head coach Terry Stotts is going to have to figure out what to do with his end of the bench guys. Joel Freeland and Will Barton are keepers, same with Victor Claver. Nolan Smith and Luke Babbitt aren’t. Elliot Williams is a huge question mark, but that’s not really here nor there. If Freeland and Barton are going to be contributors next season, they’re going to have to play. If that means losing games (or failing to get leads big enough that they literally can’t be blown in 90 seconds), that’s what it means.

It’s hard to say where Portland should go after Thursday’s win. When the Blazers beat the Bulls in Chicago last season, Mike and Mike basically flipped out and predicted Portland was right back in the playoff hunt. These kinds of victories bring out those kinds of attitudes.

My hope is that the Blazers celebrate this win for as long as they hung their heads after being whipped by the Bucks. This stretch run isn’t really about winning, just as this season hasn’t really been about winning. Portland has something here, LA is the reigning player of the week, Lillard is rookie of the year, Eric Maynor, Nicolas Batum, and Wesley Matthews are strong pieces to build around. We as fans can’t lose sight of the future by getting to pumped up about the present.

The Blazers continue their road run in Atlanta on Friday.

Box Score

Standings

@mikeacker | @ripcityproject | mike.acker1@gmail.com

Mar 21, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls shooting guard Marco Belinelli (8) shoots the ball against Portland Trail Blazers small forward Nicolas Batum (88) during the second half at the United Center. Portland defeats Chicago 99-89. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Nov.. 18, 2011; Portland, OR, USA; Chicago Bulls power forward Taj Gibson (22) defends Portland Trail Blazers power forward LaMarcus Aldridge (12) during the fourth quarter of the game at the Rose Garden. The Blazers won the game 102-94. Mandatory Credit: Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports

So, how are your brackets looking? Mine’s a bit of a wreck. That’s what you get when you pick Bucknell and New Mexico State to make it to the Sweet Sixteen.

There’s NBA basketball happening tonight, of course, and those Blazer fans who tune in to watch Portland  go toe-to-toe with the Chicago Bulls, forgoing the evening session of NCAA games, can be commended on their unwavering fandom. Portland played very poorly in their last outing on this five-game road swing. They have two more games after tonight, both against playoff bound teams. You can be forgiven for checking out of Thursday’s game, Chicago plays a slowed down style of play that has been killing the Blazers as of late, and if Portland is gunning for one big win on this slog, my guess is their shooting to finish strong against the Thunder in Oklahoma City on Sunday.

Because Thursday is the first night of the NCAA Tournament proper, and because this game is fated to be a slog that probably won’t be very fun to watch, I’m going to keep this preview very short.

Blazers Starting 5: PG Damian Lillard, SG Wesley Matthews, SF Nicolas Batum, PF LaMarcus Aldridge, C J.J. Hickson

Bulls Starting 5: PG Nate Robinson, SG Marco Belinelli, SF Loul Deng, PF Carlos Boozer, C Joakim Noah

Match-up wise, this is the kind of game that certainly favors the Blazers. Style of play-wise, Chicago certainly has the edge. Chicago plays without a traditional center and has a point guard who doesn’t really play a lot of defense. I’d take Joakim Noah over J.J. Hickson, but the combined match-up of Damian Lillard/Hickson versus Nate Robinson/Noah has to tip Portland’s way.

The forward positions are close to a push. Loul Deng is more consistent on offense than Nicolas Batum, but LaMarcus Aldridge is like Carlos Boozer if Carlos Boozer was good. LA and Boozer prefer to shoot from outside the paint, but Aldridge has better moves around the basket. Batum can take advantage of Deng if he attacks the rim, the downside of that game plan is that Nic is not at his best with the ball in his hands.

Shooting guard could be the X-factor here. Wesley Matthews has been shooting the lights out as of late. If that keeps up, and shots fall for Damian Lillard and Nicolas Batum, Portland has a significant edge. The flip-side is true too, though. If Marco Belinelli gets hot from deep, the Blazers are in trouble.

What to Watch For

• Does Portland believe they can win. Last time the Blazers played in Chicago, Nate McMillan had just been fired and a couple of rotation guys had changed teams. Portland, given no chance in that game, won. There’s no such adversity leading into this game. Things are rough right now, but not nearly as rough as last season. Nobody’s getting fired; nobody was traded. That being said, things aren’t going great right now for the Blazers. If they can harness some of that weird, backs-against-the-wall energy, they can beat the Bulls on the road. We’ll know right away if Portland believes they can win this game. If the Blazers can keep it close in the first quarter, they believe, if they’re down 10 or more inside of 12 minutes…
• Shooting. Portland competes when they knock down shots. If The Blazers can make threes and can knock down a couple mid-range looks, they’ll give themselves a chance.
• Pace. Portland needs to push the pace. Twenty-five points in the first quarter should be the Blazers’ goal.

@mikeacker | @ripcityproject | mike.acker1@gmail.com

Kaleb Canales is undefeated as Portland’s head coach, give this man a full-time job. Credit: Mike DiNovo-US PRESSWIRE

Let me apologize for a couple things before I get to this recap. First, sorry it took me so long to get to it. I’ve been busy this week, I expected Portland to not even compete with the Bulls, and to be perfectly honest I was damn near Blazered out following Thursday’s events.

Second. I apologize for not writing my trade deadline/Nate firing reaction yet, especially now since an improbably and highly motivating win over the best team in the NBA has apparently erased a month of lackluster, uninspiring play. Don’t worry. I’ll get to it still. There are a lot of things I have to say about Nate McMillan (Marcus Camby, Gerald Wallace, and Greg Oden too), and once this NCAA Tournament thing goes on hiatus for a week I’ll have plenty of time to put it all together in my head and get it out there.

But until then, on to one of the best Blazer related experiences I’ve had in quite some time. And I only caught the very last little bit of it. Because of that, I can’t really comment on the individual play or breakdowns or anything like that. What I can comment on is the overall importance of a win like Friday’s.

Post game a nearly ecstatic Mike Rice couldn’t help blathering on and on about the Playoffs. I appreciate the sentiment. Nobody in the organization wants the Blazers to turn into a lottery doormat (don’t worry it won’t happen), so it makes sense that following an enormous win the thoughts would turn automatically to the idea that this team is somehow still a contender. I get it that Portland’s not mathematically eliminated just yet, and although making a late post season run is that antithesis to tanking, it won’t really hurt the Blazer’s rebuilding next season if they somehow miss the lottery, but that’s not why I don’t really want to hear about the Playoffs right now.

Let’s stop talking about the Playoffs for awhile so we can actually talk about what beating the Bulls in Chicago at this point in the season, at this point in the development of this franchise, means in and of itself. It means that this group of Blazers, the one’s who are left, are tired of being embarrassed. They’re tired of getting annihilated on the basketball court. And they’re tired of hearing about how they don’t care anymore. They do care. They cared enough to beat the best team in the league.  And even if this kind of fluky thing happens basically like clockwork in the NBA, it’s still worth noting and celebrating.

The Blazers could have gotten walloped by the Bulls and nobody would have batted an eyelash. They could have held their ground and lost in the fourth and we all would have celebrated. By winning, they just might have given this season a bit of new life. And they’ve definitely showed that the rebuilding process might be quick and basically more or less painless. Maybe, just maybe those salary dump trades did more than just free up space and bring in some high level draft picks. Maybe they unburdened this team just enough to get them back to playing free, open, and winning basketball.

Sunday will be another big test. It’s likely that the Oklahoma City game will be what the Chicago game wasn’t, a now less-talented Portland team getting schooled up and down by much much better club, but there’s a chance that the Blazers might have given themselves the confidence and motivation to disprove the popular notion that along with shipping McMillan and saying goodbye to Camby and Wallace, they’ve cut bait on this season.

After Sunday, Portland has a total of eight road games and 12 home games. Right now, they’re three games out of the eighth and final Western Conference Playoff spot. There is plenty of time left to make up those three games, but right now the Blazers have to take it one game at a time. If they can get another improbable win on Sunday, then maybe we can start talking about a potential Playoff run.

Either way. It’s nice to get to talk about a win. And it’s nice to see that there’s life in this team after all.

Here’s the one thing I’ll say about the actual game:

• In the few minutes that I actually watched, I could tell that Portland was playing a little more open on offense. I think part of that might have to do with the subtraction of Gerald Wallace from the offense. I really love Crash’s game, but his offense with the Blazers, especially recently, hasn’t been super effective. Removing him from the equation eliminates one of Portland’s most consistent ball-stoppers. Without him, the ball moved around the perimeter more, and importantly ended up in the willing and able hands of Nicolas Batum in places where he could shoot or drive. The continued development of Nicolas will make or break Portland’s rebuild effort. Letting him know early on in this process that he’s as important offensively as LaMarcus Aldridge should ensure that he’s a make, not a break.

Box Score

Standings

Pippen Ain’t Easy

Email me: mike.acker1@gmail.com

Twitter: @mikeacker | @ripcityproject