No. 10: LaMarcus Aldridge
Date: December 26th, 2011 vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Statistics: 25 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, 11-of-25 from the field
Some nine years ago, the NBA followed the similar pattern of today, opening the season on Christmas Day. And while Portland Trail Blazers’ championship hopes were much more finite after the sudden retirement of Brandon Roy, there still remained some excitement about the future held in up-and-coming big LaMarcus Aldridge.
The Blazers had put together a gritty team, anchored by Aldridge, their new cornerstone. Along with Gerald Wallace, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, Jamal Crawford, and Andre Miller, among others.
Aldridge worked his usual, underrated array — pick-and-pop midrange shots, post hooks, and wink-wink chemistry with teammates on those back shoulder-spin alley-oops, en route to a 25-point outing to open the year.
Aldridge passes the “degree of difficulty test” with this game, having led Portland to a win over a 76ers team that was one game away from the Eastern Conference Finals in the prior year.
He set the tone with 18 first-half points, and though he struggled down the stretch, the attention he commanded allowed Jamal Crawford and the rest of the team to succeed and put the game away.
The Trail Blazers rode that wave to an impressive 7-2 start. Though the wheels would eventually fall off, the 2011-12 Blazers provided some positivity for a short period of time.