Chris Paul wide open at the end of a game for the eventual game-winner? The ball in Jerryd Bayless’s hands in the waning seconds for a jump shot? That’s what we saw last night. And in the end, the Trail Blazers gave back one of those hard-fought road wins they got last week.

Ugh.

Paul got open in a bit of a freaky play, falling down — and apparently out of sight — before getting up and finding himself open for what amounted to a free throw to win the game. It was like one of those football plays where the tight end goes to the ground as if to block and then gets up and into a pass pattern.

Then the Trail Blazers inbound to Bayless — way out almost near the halfcourt line. Now Brandon Roy might be able to get you a makeable shot in that situation — since just about any shot is makeable for Roy — but Bayless? Well, if he isn’t going to attempt to get the ball to the basket, I’m not sure I like his chances with a jump shot.

But that game was lost in the minutes before those last two possessions. The Trail Blazers, no doubt fatigued from their trip, didn’t seem to have enough energy to finish. Andre Miller, especially, seemed to have nothing left in the tank.

Next time around, I’d love to see Martell Webster or Rudy Fernandez get that final shot, by the way. It was another excruciating loss, quite obviously. And with the upcoming schedule, there may be more to come.

The All-Star break can’t get here soon enough for this team. It needs a few days off.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Dwight Jaynes, Jerryd Bayless, Martell Webster, New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Rudy Fernandez

It’s Insider Only content but the link is here. Yes, Oden is No. 20 — in the entire league. Among all players. PER is an efficiency rating system that’s accepted by many as the best way to rate players’ all-around contribution to their teams. No. 1 is Chris Paul, by the way.

Next highest Trail Blazer in the rankings is Brandon Roy at No. 44. The only true center ahead of Oden is Dwight Howard at No. 14. Oden’s usage rate (the number of possessions he uses per 40 minutes) is appreciably lower than anyone higher than him on the list.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Dwight Jaynes, Greg Oden, John Hollinger

Over and over I keep hearing that from my friends around the league. Portland, they say, is trying to get up among the top five or six picks. The Blazers are chasing somebody at the top of the draft.

I keep thinking it’s Stephen Curry. I’ve said that before. He makes sense for them — a star-quality shooter to play alongside Brandon Roy. But a thought occured to me last night:

What if they’re going after Curry — or Rubio or someone else — for another team? What if they’ve got New Orleans convinced that if it can replace Chris Paul’s massive salary with a rookie salary that Curry or Rubio would serve the team just as well in the long run and help the team stay in business through tough economic times? Or what if Phoenix is wanting a big name to soften the blow to its fans for shipping Steve Nash to Portland?

Some NBA teams are going through some difficult financial times and Portland is in a position to take on salary. Could drafting one of these players lead to a lopsided deal in Portland’s favor?

I don’t know. It’s just one more thing to think about as we get inside a week before the draft. The Blazers are creative and gutsy — and I just don’t think they are going to get through this draft without a big move.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Dwight Jaynes, NBA Draft, Portland Trail Blazers, Ricky Rubio, Stephen Curry, Steve Nash

Coming from 20 points behind to beat New Orleans on the road. Wow. Chris Paul getting hurt had nothing to do with it. At all. I’m sure. Positive.

It could be one of those seasons, folks. If I were Dirk Novitsky, I’d be real careful Wednesday.

UPDATE: Did the Blazers win that game or did the Hornets lose it? Here’s the headline on the front page of espn.com:

 Paul hurt as Hornets let Blazers rally for win

Ouch.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Dirk Novitsky, Dwight Jaynes, New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers

The Trail Blazers finally see their schedule turn more difficult tonight with a game at New Orleans. But it’s not as tough as usual, with the Hornets reporting Tyson Chandler and Mo Peterson probably out of the lineup. That helps.

The Hornets will be coming into the game carrying a two-game losing streak, after losses to Golden State and San Antonio. I’m never sure if that’s a good or bad thing. The automatic reaction is, “well, a team that good isn’t going to lose three straight.” But sometimes, the real thought should be, “they aren’t playing well right now and it’s a great time to catch them.”

Chris Paul has been putting up some big scoring numbers, which is what superstars do when other starters are out of action. They try to shoulder more of the load. However, the Hornets still have some very good scorers available and Paul needs to make sure he continues to find them shots.

New Orleans is about a year ahead of Portland on the growth chart, it seems to me. Tonight would be an opportunity for the Trail Blazers to prove they’re catching up. With Chandler out of the lineup, Portland should have a much easier path to the basket.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Dwight Jaynes, New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers

I guess 52 points aren’t enough. A string of 30-point games won’t do it, either. Chris Paul won it in the West, and his team went 3-0 — so I guess that must be it.

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Tags: Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, NBA Player of the Week

Last off-season, I couldn’t get many people to agree with me that Sergio Rodriguez was going to be a good point guard in the NBA. He was pretty much buried in Portland and needed the good training camp he had to ensure he’d be the back-up point guard to Steve Blake.

But I was checking the stats this morning and looked him up in the category of assists-per-48-minutes. Among players who have played in eight or more games, here’s the way it stacks up:

1. Chris Paul, NOH 14.9

2. Sergio Rodriguez, Por 13.4

Now, be mindful that Deron Williams is at 15.9 in seven games, a rookie named Kyle Weaver at Oklahoma City has 15.6 in seven games and Chucky Atkins, in five games at Denver, has 15.0. But seriously, how much more can you ask from your backup point guard than for him to that highly ranked in the league in assists per 48 minutes?

He gets people the ball in the spots where they can score. Consistently.

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Tags: Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Dwight Jaynes, NBA, Portland Trail Blazers, Sergio Rodriguez

Just a few thoughts after Portland throws another impressive home win on the pile:

• Nic Batum is good. Have I said that before? Martell Webster better be ready if he wants to reclaim that job. Batum has set the bar high.
• Why do NBA teams double-team Greg Oden? Maybe some day. Maybe some games. But he didn’t score in the first half last night but created a ton of opportunities for teammates because of all the double-teams. Oden was patient and impressive with his passing.
• Brandon Roy is good. Have I said that before? Real good.
• Joel Przybilla is the best backup center in the league. By far, I’d say.
• Chris Paul does have a bit of an attitude, doesn’t he? Not sure if he’s totally in tune with what Byron Scott wants to do. He travels quite a bit with that little skip in the lane, too. Also carries the ball a lot – but so does Roy.
• Nice to see LaMarcus Aldridge come to the party.

The Blazers are turning into a VERY fun team to watch.

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Tags: Brandon Roy, Byron Scott, Chris Paul, Dwight Jaynes, Greg Oden, Joel Przybilla, LaMarcus Aldridge, New Orleans Hornets, Nic Batum, Portland Trail Blazers