Tonight at 7:30 p.m. PST, the Portland Trail Blazers welcome the Miami Heat to the Moda Center. The Trail Blazers squeaked by the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday and need to put together a complete game from start to finish. The Heat will try to win back-to-back games for the first time since late November. The game can be seen nationally on TNT and heard locally on Rip City Radio 620 AM.
A narrow defeat of the Lakers, without Kobe Bryant, is not exactly what we expected to see from the Trail Blazers on Monday. They could have lost the game if it hadn’t been for Lillard. He almost single-handedly outscored the Lakers in the final five minutes (16 for Lillard, 11 for the Lakers). Lillard will have another chance for a big game tonight when he is matched up with Chalmers.
Another Trail Blazer had a more surprising impact on Monday’s game. Meyers Leonard recorded his first double-double of the season, posting 12 points and 12 rebounds. He saw 19 minutes of action and was the only active big man available to back up Kaman, who made his first start of the season. Head Coach Terry Stotts has had to be creative in his lineups due to multiple injuries and so far, the results have been positive.
The Heat have struggled to string together wins. They had an 88-84 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday which snapped a four game losing streak. Bosh had 26 points on 10-16 shooting to post his best performance since missing eight games with a calf injury. With LeBron James taking his talents back home this offseason, Bosh needed to be the player to step up and take the reigns. He has answered the call in the first half of the season by increasing his scoring, rebounding, and assists from last season.
One positive note for the struggling Heat is that they are finally getting healthy. We mentioned the return of Bosh but they have also seen Chris Andersen and Danny Granger return to the court. The Trail Blazers know how hard it is to overcome injuries but thankfully they have talented reserves who are ready to step in and contribute. The Heat don’t have that luxury, especially when players like Andersen or Granger are unavailable.
All eyes will be on the Trail Blazers as they play on national television. They have an opportunity (a rare one at that) to show they belong at the top. Many experts aren’t fully sold on the Trail Blazers’ ability to sustain their play and become legitimate contenders. Matthews’ status for the game is questionable after he hyperextended his knee on Monday. Short one starter already, the Trail Blazers can show their improved depth and ‘Next Man Up’ philosophy.
With the Heat on the card tonight, the main event will be Aldridge vs. Bosh. Aldridge has been very productive since missing three games with an upper-respiratory illness. In the last three games, he has averaged 24.7 points and 11.0 rebounds. He has definitely been getting his shots as he averaged 21.3 field goal attempts over those games. His job tonight will be to try to cool down Bosh, who had a great game on Sunday. In the two games Miami played against Portland last year, Bosh averaged 30.5 points on 76.5 percent shooting. Yes, you did read that right, 76.5 percent! If Bosh gets hot, the Trail Blazers will once again have to grind out a win. Queue Lillard Time!