Because Friday night’s Trail Blazer game was monumentally over-hyped, now we have to sit through all the hand-wringing and attempts at explanations. Folks, because Portland lost I’m going to say the same thing I would have said if it had won: it doesn’t mean squat.

Yes, the Blazers got hammered. Embarrassed. But the important thing now is that because of the overemphasis, it doesn’t have a carryover affect on the season. Perspective is your best friend. This game has very little to do with the outcome of the season, other than what you can learn from it. Portland didn’t lose because it’s mentally weak or because it is poorly coached. I’m not even sure it lost because the Celtics have better players.

It lost because Boston is a much better team. Much better. And the good thing about playing better teams is that it teaches you where you need to improve. Let me suggest a few things:

• Portland got exploited in its transition defense through much of the game. Plainly, the Blazers didn’t get back. Boston got way too many leak-out, fast-break points. It seemed really bad when the Blazers tried to play without a point guard. When Rudy and Roy were on the floor together, nobody was getting back. And when the point guard penetrated, nobody rotated back. This was sending Jeff Van Gundy, the ESPN commentator, into fits of wide-eyed disbelief and really, it’s understandable. This is one thing that’s pretty easily remedied.
• Portland’s usual offense of pick-and-rolls all over the floor, leading to one-on-one opportunities, was rendered totally ineffective. You can’t expect – even if you’re the best player in the league — to have the chance of playing one-on-one against Boston. Kobe Bryant got killed trying to do it last year in the Finals. The Celtics just won’t let it happen. You play one-on-five. Clearouts for Brandon Roy? Forget about it. Not going to work. Against Boston, like all good defensive teams, you have to move the ball and MOVE BODIES. It’s the only way.
• Along with that, Van Gundy made another point that had merit: the Portland “bigs” have to run the floor. Once he made the point of saying something about being sick of seeing them trotting back down on defense instead of running. Greg Oden still hasn’t found that high gear after his injury and just doesn’t seem to push himself in going end-to-end. But LaMarcus Aldridge is guilty of the same thing. They do have to pick it up at times in getting back and defending the basket.
• I think there are so few really good defensive teams in the league the last few years that it’s very difficult to score when you run up against one of them. It takes time to adjust. And by then, you’re down by 20. Portland must learn to accelerate its own defense to meet this challenge. In the halfcourt, it wasn’t too bad Friday . . . but the transition defense, yikes!
• When Brandon Roy can’t get to the hoop the Blazers don’t have much of an inside game. They’re going to have to get Aldridge and Oden going on a regular basis at the post in the long run. On the nights when the long ball isn’t going in, you’ve got to have that post game. This is really not an insurmountable problem, either. The talent is there.

I would again plead for people to not worry much about the outcome of the game. This team learned some lessons the hard way and that’s the best way to learn them, in many cases. Just one more time I will remind you, it was just one game.

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A very nice event, by the way. It allows a lot of people who otherwise couldn’t afford to see this team in the flesh watch it go through a scrimmage. And do it while sitting in seats they probably would never otherwise afford (I know I couldn’t).

A few reactions to players off just this one night:

LeMarcus Aldridge: The player seemingly most ready for the season to start. More confident and comfortable than last year. On his way to fulfilling his great potential. His shot looks better than ever.

Brandon Roy: So good he can just sit back and survey the game, then fill in wherever needed. The ultimate handyman. His shot isn’t there yet and he’s probably not quite physically ready. But what a player.

Greg Oden: On this night, honestly — he looked a lot like Clifford Ray. He’s just not ready yet. He’s walking on eggshells — tentative in just about everything he does. Not explosive, either. It’s going to take time for him to find himself and to get comfortable with everything. It’s going to happen for him, but everyone is going to have to be patient. He’s not in top shape yet and needs to play enough to forget his injury and just let it all hang out.

Rudy Fernandez: Good grief, he was really something. I knew he could shoot but he’s also creative and sees the floor like a seasoned point guard. He’s going to be an outstanding player.

This is going to be a good team. At the very least.

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