Subscribe Feed (RSS)Loved the Trail Blazer defense most of the game. They did a nice job stopping what the Spurs do best, ganged up nicely on Tim Duncan (who, by the way, isn’t moving a lot like Tim Duncan used to move) and after a slow start, held their own on the boards.
Loved the big play that resulted in Martell Webster’s open three-pointer that (should have) sealed the game. Andre Miller got great penetration, found Nic Batum in the corner, who didn’t hesitate in getting the ball to Webster, who had plenty of time to get his feet under him and settle into his three-pointer.
It was a smart play by smart players.
I didn’t like the misses at the foul line late. I expected more from Miller and LaMarcus Aldridge than that.
All in all, though, big game for the team to win against a Western Conference rival. A couple of other thoughts:
– The Spurs look so old and broken down. Their stars have so many miles on them.
– I think Batum is much more effective playing with Miller. His game is moving without the ball and Miller looks for him. I think, too, he’d fit better in a motion offense, rather than the standing-around stuff the Blazers do while watching pick-and-roll isolations.
– Huge game from Juwan Howard that was mostly overlooked by the media. He hasn’t made shots like that in a while.
– Brandon Roy needs to get back soon. I’m not sure how much longer the team is going to be able to hang on without him. Points are getting hard to come by.
– That may have been the Spurs’ A game last night. Not sure they have a whole lot left. They defend well at times, really well. But they can’t seem to do it consistently for the entire game. The energy just may not be there any more. Those guys have a lot of mileage on them from all those deep playoff runs.
Tags: Andre Miller, Dwight Jaynes, LaMarcus Aldridge, Martell Webster, Nic Batum, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs, Tim Duncan
Great comeback by the Blazers last night, kind of felt like a playoff game in the 4th quarter at the RG last night.. And how great it would be to get the Spurs in the playoffs as the Blazers seem to have their number?
Much respect to the Spurs as they’re a class act and give hope to small markets like Portland, but Dwights right- their ship has sailed, I can’t see their current squad even getting out of the first round.
Tony Parker in a Blazer uniform next year would look pretty good.
…sitting injured on the bench watching Andre Miller light it up?
I said next year. Not sitting injured next to Brandon, Greg, Joel, Travis, Jerryd, Nate etc
Great job by LaMarcus last night. He seemed to fight for post position well and had a good balance of post moves & sweet jumpshots. He’s been taking some abuse in the media and by fans. I thought it was one of his best games in a while, not just because of the numbers, but the attitude he got them with.
We do need Brandon back for the sake of offensive punch, but my gut tells me that since we got the Spurs game, maybe we let him sit out the Laker game and get the extra rest.
LA hit that clutch shot in the 4th that got us finally ahead and for good. He is learning how valuable he can be for us
My only addition is that the Spurs took it to the Blazers whenever Bayless was on the floor. The first few minutes of the game looked like it was going to be a Spurs blowout. And then again at the beginning of the third quarter, but not as bad as in the opening minutes of the 4th quarter. I guess Bayless’ injury was worse than thought.
How much fun is Juwan having, I rarely see him on the floor without a smile.
What I really liked was the the defensive play of LaMarcus Aldridge. Sure he had a good offensive game, but his defense in this game was so much better than the Utah game. In fact it was nonexistent in the Utah game. I wonder why he can’t bring that every game?
was there a buzzer beater at the end?
I couldn’t watch the 4th quarter.\
go to nba.com and watch the highlights
Dwight, your opinions are pretty much the opposite of the talking heads on TNT last night. A lot of relief for the Spurs for their tired legs due to the back-to-back, and how the Blazers were lucky that Manu missed that shot. Is anyone else tired of hearing the national media talk up the Spurs this year while ignoring the major fact that they are very close to the steep side of the downhill slope? And they are way past the top of the hill which they passed about 3 years ago.
The most insightful comments from TNT came from Kenny Smith about the last minutes of the 4th qtr. Blazers had nothing going on and got really crappy looks. The Spurs got good looks but didn’t have the legs to make the shots.
I would agree- we could have easily lost that one but for some really tough shots from LA and a smart drive by Miller.
I am not so sure about that…Webster got some wide open looks and converted them…The spurs had looks and missed them
I don’t mind if they want to talk up the Spurs, but not if it means stomping on the accomplishments of other teams.
The Spurs have been an elite team in recent history, we haven’t. No problem with giving the Spurs their chops, we still have to earn it.
Agree that Portland still has to earn it but I think the mirage that the Spurs are still an elite team are exagerated. Just like people earlier in the season thinking this team was still a title contender. Maybe if the season was only 10 games long and Duncan could have a week between games to rest his knees.
I guess I should take everything from the so-called NBA “experts” with a grain of salt. Chuck Barkley at the begining of the season said the Rockets were the worst team in the NBA. Sounds more like a blogger than someone co-hosting a show called “Inside the NBA.”
The game opened with Doug Collins, a breathing basketball encyclopedia, praising the job that Nate has done. Then he goes on to talk about how his dicussion with Greg Popovich was centered around how great a job Greg thinks Nate has done. Odd how I keep hearing great things about Nate from basketball players, coaches and those who actually know.
How often does national media get local things right in general, not just sports? Not too well if you watch the news. Doug(I have diarrhea of the mouth) Colins blows into town twice a year, reads a couple things and then starts talking. As for Pop-do you think a coach is going to ditch another coach? It would be bad politics. (By the way Doug Collins was a coach also and would like to be again.) Plus Pop is not like Phil Jackson. Pop is usually humble and would rather deflect away from himself. Plus if you say how good the other team is it takes the pressure off your own team. Come on MrHarris!
Now – I will give Nate some credit when it is due. I do not like his schemes/styleof play/rotations, etc. but I will give him credit for getting his players to try hard. That is not always an easy thing to do. Other positives: LAM – for at least one game heading in the right direction. I do like the ball movement of Nicolas and Miller – they are smart players!
Listen to any game, you never hear any negative comments. It’s all just smoke in the ass sound bites. The only negative/honest comments you will hear usually come from Kenny and Charles at the end of the game.
BBIQ- I have to disagree on your comments about Doug Collins. I think he’s a very good analyst. Many do not like how Chris Collinsworth or Tim McCarver play out their TV role, but the bottom line is they know the respective games inside out. More often than not, they will tell the audience what’s going to happen a minute or two before it does happen; always the sign of real insight and knowledge about the game and its individual players. Hubie Brown can be tough to listen to, but I always learn something about the game when he’s on the broadcast team, just like Doug Collins.
Hang on I agree Doug talks a lot but he was/is a good basketball coach. Furthermore, he’s been offered two jobs the past two seasons and turned them down so I watch what you say. He doesn’t want to be a coach right now. Check your facts. I think you’re right and that he doesn’t always know what he is talking about but he is correct, Nate’s done a good job, that doesn’t mean the team is going to continue to do so.
LOL @ ItsMrHarris2u
National media is usually far off. You trust Doug Collins? Why isn’t he coaching again?
Oh and you totally hear coaches talking smack about other coaches all the time right? They raved about Avery Johnson too. (Although I think he is a great coach) … but what happened to him?
Nobody is going to say, we talked to Pop and he was amazed at the Blazers wins considering the injury, but thought we could be better if Nate didn’t have such basic and stagnant offensive and defensive schemes.
Comon… I swear, you are Nate’s son or David Lucas…
The good old boy network. It would be hilarious if someone said something like “he played a great game tonight. I’m sure the woman that he meets tonight in the club after the game that he will be cheating on his wife with will tell him the same thing”.
“Why isn’t he [Doug Collins] coaching again?”
If I recall correctly, Doug Collins was recently offered to once again be the Chicago Bulls head coach. Collins, however, declined the offer, which it subsequently went to Vinny Del Negro.
Del Negro, who’s one of the most ill-prepared coaches in the NBA today, will likely be canned sooner rather than later. Right now, though, I feel extremely bad for diehard Bulls fans. That team has all the talent in the world, but is stuck in neutral with an inept fool at the helm.
Hell, if someone with experience like the aforementioned Collins — or even Dick Motta disciple and long-time Jerry Sloan assistant, Phil D. Johnson, who deserves another shot as a head coach — then the Bulls would currently be in much better shape than it is with Del Negro.
Nice Dick Motta reference. I loved his motion offense. Coaches should bust out some of his old games and learn a thing or two.
Yeah, Dick Motta was a one-of-a-kind coach. Despite being small in stature, Motta made a big impact.
Currently, though, Jerry Sloan is the lone head coach in the NBA who’s from the Motta coaching tree. That’s unfortunate, too.
(Rick Adelman, who did play under Motta during the mid-’70s for the Chicago Bulls, is really more a part of the Dr. Jack Ramsay coaching tree.)
Anyway, further regarding the Motta coaching tree, Bernie Bickerstaff — who was once an assistant under Motta with the old Washington Bullets — is currently Vinny Del Negro’s lead assistant with the Chicago Bulls.
So, if the Bulls brass — which consists mainly of Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, VP of Basketball Operations John Paxson, and GM Gar Forman — decide to fire Del Negro mid-season, then Bickerstaff should be given reigns.
yes it is odd. Nate is respected by players, coaches, and basketball ambassadors league-wide.
But I trust the bloggers in the know, who spend countless hours breaking down Nate’s offensive schemes and who have intimate knowledge of the team. If they tell me Nate is a terrible coach, I believe them
ItsHarris2U and DOOFTRON… Yes yes yes, we KNOW ALREADY you love Nate as a coach and sing his praises!! It is clear to everyone..so let it rest…your not convincing any critics here to feel or see any different..so whats your point??!!
Basketball Ambassadors??!! Your theirs right? Phfft!
My point is that Bloggers clearly know more about what makes a good coach.
I dont care what anybody in the NBA says, Nate is a horrible coach. Any win that this team gets is cleary evidence of them playing through horrible coaching.
John Canzano or Dwight should be the new coach, I love their ideas and fresh approach to coaching.
Dooftron..YOUR the one along with Harris bringing up the so called Nate Haters. Actually there ARE bloggers out there with bbiq that see problems and issues and weaknesses of the coach! Imagine that! I don’t hate Nate,(he does get his players to play hard, and a very nice guy) but recognize his limitations at this point..along with MANY MANY MANY fans. We do/will not turn a blind eye and accept wins as total testament to coaching, when its more due to player talent and continuing experience in the NBA. Wait till the rest of the injured are back..Nates “game” and rotations will create alot of unhappy players, rotations, and lack of minutes for growth. It is the belief of many that he will NEVER take us to the next level with his current “game” style and inflexability. At this point, “pressure” from fans and above are the only thing that may change Nate’s game……
Exactly! Thats what I’m trying to say! nate has no idea what he is doing, and the fresh ideas from bloggers and sportswriters is clearly the way to go. So what if their opinion on who should start and how we should play changes every week, consistancy is overrated anyways.
And I too am tired of Nate getting wins when it is clearly ALL talent. Even though half the league has as much talent as us right now and may have losing records does not prove anything. nate stinks
Sigh…not horrible.. (always YOUR word and generalization to ANY criticism) LIMITED, and rigid in his abilities AT THIS POINT! Get it? Now, TRY and focus on something else than TRYING to convince and comment on ANYTHING that may not SHINE a spotlight on your love for Nate and your Basketball Ambassador role for him. Particularly on this site that you are SOOO critical of….but….thats why your here isn’t it??!!
Im making up the “nate haters” ?? Have you read the comments on here from yourself and others? Nothing but complaints and people wishing for him to fail.
Why dont you just root for another team? Try the Jazz. They never win titles, but you can slobber all over Jerry Sloan and his fantastic coaching.
Limited and Rigid? Do you expect him to just let a young inexperienced team just “go with the flow” every game? And as far as I can tell, when a guy has it going Nate usually leaves him in (Andre’s 52 for example)
Im not trying to convince anybody, just doing my part to keep the village idiots in check
Dooftron, aka Basketball Ambassador for Nate..yeah, we want him to fail and the Blazers too as you tell it…that is why we bother posting. Heck, we don’t need blogs or sportswriters or fans or critics or opinions that don’t agree with you. I bet you raged on Miller for his rant with Nate didn’t ya? Your “hate” term applies to ANYTHING not agreeable to you and your ambassador role. There IS a difference between hate and criticism which obviously escapes you. YES, limited and rigid and basic and stagnant defensive and offensive schemes. But…i am talking to a wall with you, so wait till the injured are back..it will speak for itself. Your keeping the village idiots in check? Hahahahhha, I see that is working well for you! Now, get back to your Basketball Ambassador role..QUICK!!! Hah!
> Great overall game by Aldridge, the dude can play- and man did he make some tough shots in the 4th
> As soon as Batum and Rudy get in the game, the fastbreaks begin- these guys need to get more burn
> Parker was lighting up Blake like a moth to a flame- good thing Miller and Batum had more success
> Manu almost spoiled the party, so let’s not get too carried away
> That pass by Batum out of the corner to Martel was wicked good
> Howard has been hitting huge buckets every game- but also finds time for a bonehead turnover late in the 4th every game too.
> Is Nate going to make Miller run laps today? – speaking of bonehead plays
Man’s Game last night.
I expected Portland to wilt down the stretch when it was down three possessions midway through the 4th quarter. Instead Martell, LaMarcus & Co. showed grande juevos.
Defense kept the Blazers in the playoff race. Must keep increased ball and player movement up when Roy returns. Beat LA.
Great take “Snake”- As a fan, I was so disappointed to see a decent game start to get away from us. “Same old thing” was all I was thinking. But these guys, did all the right things to comeback and then survive some shaky fouls. Kudos to LMA for the tough rebounding in traffic at the end of the game. Very, very nice to see. As you say Mr. Stabler- mucho grande juevos!
Man I’m glad they passed on Richard Jefferson. He just looks washed-up, and Pop told him so! He’s one of maybe 4 coaches in the league that has the juice to do that.
Pops would love him some Nic Batum.
we moved up in the draft to steal batum a spot ahead of the spurs.
And Batum gets his starting spot back when, exactly?
Did you only watch the second unit last night, KneeJerk?
Good thoughts Dwight.
With Miller missing a foul shot down the stretch, I just look at it as that happens to the best of players every now and then as he’s proven he can do that.
With Aldridge, it’s been a different story this season. He’s a good foul shooter, but seems to have difficulty making them in pressure situations.
Yes, Miller missed 3, but amazingly all were in-and-out. Maybe he’s more prone to that due to his flat shot.
Aldridge’s 2 misses – like his two misses against Dallas – were off to the SIDE. That suggests that pressure is a factor.
Apart from that, I was very happy to see Aldridge respond well to pressure and carry the team down the stretch. I hope it’s a growth game for him that produced something good that he’ll take with him moving forward….
Dwight,
Now that Dunleavy isn’t the coach of the Clips any longer, is it more or less likely they move Camby?? If so, for what. He is expiring, so Outlaw/Blake wouldn’t appeal, probably. Would they consider Martel (they need a 3) and Outlaw or Blake for Camby?
If not, I don’t think I’ve seen your “most likely” deadline scenario for the Blazers, what is it??
Camby could get us out the first round.
Remember when the knock on Tony Parker was that he couldn’t hit the mid-range jump shot? Good Lord, he carved up the Blazers last night with that weapon. Scary. None of the other Spurs looked particularly sharp.
Parker also really has Blake’s number. He just eats him up
Dwight, I love that you’re championing Nic Batum’s cause. I’m completely with you. He should not only start but play at least 30 a game. The team’s constantly rumored to be interested in Tayshaun Prince. We’ve got the next Prince already.
One thing is quite clear…Nic, Rudy, and Martell all benefit greatly with Miller at point. His ability to run a motion offense matches well with these players abilities to move well without the ball…
That was a gutty effort in the 4th. The Blazers could have easily quit but instead were the aggressors. It has been a hard luck season, but it is nights like these that make me so very proud of being a blazer fan
Where are all the geniuses that want to trade that athletic 23 year-old-sharp-shooter Martell Webster?
That’s what I thought. Those were daggers.
I say trade him now while his stock is up! Batum is going to be the starter at one point this season, and I just think that, not starting would crush Webster.
Let’s see what his follow up game against the Lakers will be. Here’s hoping for him to be a factor and not pull one of his disappearing acts.
If he could go against a tired, lazy, and inefficient Richard Jefferson every game then yes, he looks really good.
Still too limited for my taste. A starting small forward has to be able to take his man off the dribble and score.
hmm, I must have watched some other game last night. I will grant you I was mostly doing other things and just sorta had the game on. I thought it was pretty much the same old defense we’ve been seeing of late. Parker, Manu, pretty much who ever, when ever, they wanted could attack the rim and get pretty much a lay up. It is always good to get a win against the Spurs. I thought they were pretty fortunate to get the win. They are a jump shooting team. No inside presence. When the shots are falling they always have a chance. Any team that wants to beat them just needs to be aggressive and relentless in attacking the lane and they will have a good shot to beat them. No inside presence. But yea, Duncan is not the same player he was a couple odd yrs back. So it is much easier to defens him now.
I cant believe we won! With Nate being our coach and all, I thought we would lose by 30. Its just amazing that we keep winning games despite having such a terrible coach.
We shouldnt run pick and roll either, it clearly doesnt work in the NBA. Motion offense with back-cuts is the only way to go.
And what do Doug Collins ( a coach and player of 30+ years) and Poppovich (best coach in NBA the last decade) know about Nate. When it comes to opinions on our players and coaches, nobody knows more than washed up journalists and bloggers.
Hopefully we fire Nate and replace him with Del Harris. That guy has great offensive schemes, and we all know thats what coaching in the NBA is ALL ABOUT
I agree. I can’t believe they ever win a game with Nate as coach either
Dwight, if McMillan gave Batum more time with Miller, that combo might turn out to be really good. If that were the case, McMillan would have to factor it into the offense. It might veer away from the Roy-centric game plan. Roy seems to be the solution to all McMillan’s problems. Miller has demonstrated he can run the show effectively. Maybe it’s a threat to the status quo. Is McMillan worried that Batum would start playing too well to take out? Is Blake so bad that Batum helps cover for him while Roy isn’t there. Not starting Batum is ridiculous. Does is matter to the shoulder when it’s playing? Maybe I shouldn’t be so critical after a win. Maybe I’m one of those malcontents you keep mentioning on Talkin’ Ball.
who is Brandon Roy again?…..can’t quite recall him….I like team ball and his absence has really gotten the Blazers into team mode for survival….I do miss Oden a lot and am looking forward to his return…they will not be calling Nate a genius when he has a full roster to deal with….its beyond him to manage that and will expose him pretty quickly as the one dimensional coach that he is…..watching Oden or Batum or Aldridge standing open ready for a feed pass but instead having waiting for Blake and Roy do their two man game is going to wear thin very fast….can’t wait!!!!….if that happens our now well experienced 2nd unit will beat the pants off the starters in practice and on the game floor….guys this is all going to get very interesting
agreed!
You know it!
I cant wait to see Nate fail. Especially the Roy and Blake 2 man game that we see every game (?)
Once we are all healthy, we will really lose and never improve. Such a one dimensional coach (what dimension is that?). Im suprised Nate hasnt gotten Oden at least 25-30 touches a game. Since he has played 70 games total, he certainly deserves the ball more than Roy the selfish Ball Hog. I like team ball with Batum and Rudy, not stupid Roy-ball with Macmillan in control. That type of ball sucks
Roy will return and we can get back to munching Doritos while he tries to dribble his way through triple-teams as the 24-second clock winds down: tick, tick, tick, tick, tick……
What a treat!
Dear Nate,
You may want to show this to the team:
http://www.blazersedge.com/2010/2/3/1291623/team-defense-jack-ramsay-and-the