Wednesday
Jan272010
State of the Blazer Union: EEK!
Andrew R Tonry | Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 11:13PM
Nicolas Batum's incredible quarter-capping dunk was almost as amazing as "boo's" that followed it. The shove by Kyle Korver was patently obvious but the whistles remained silent. The jeers at the no-call, however, blared like jet engines--as loud or louder than anything heard at the Rose Garden all season long. They continued through the entire commercial break, drowning out the Blazer legends celebrating team of the 80's on the big screen. But it could also be said that Blazers fans, who saw their team decimated by the Jazz in the 37-16 in the first, had some serious steam to blow off.
After the sorry display finally concluded, Coach McMillan took a bit longer than usual with the team behind closed doors before emerging to address the media. Surely when one's team falls behind 21-2 in the opening minutes they are in dire need of a lashing. I asked McMillan how frustrated he was after losing the Blazers second straight home game and the continued poor opening effort but he mostly dodged the question. When that happens, you can bet he's pretty upset:
And he should be. The Blazers were atrocious and the Jazz picked them apart. Wednesday's 106-95 loss was the first time Utah won at the Rose Garden in their last nine tries. Even playing well, or if Brandon Roy were available, Portland would still have a difficult time controlling this Utah team, whose disciplined offense, balanced defense, stout front line and physical inside play seem to be rounding into their best shape in years.
A few players and members of the coaching staff pointed to parallels between this game and Monday's loss to New Orleans, but those comparisons are false. Sure, the Blazers fell behind early, and yes, they never gave up. But New Orleans are a team Portland should beat—the Jazz, unfortunately, are not.
The Blazers seemed to make a game of it, whittling the lead to five with 5:28 to play, but Portland only began mounting their comeback when Carlos Boozer went out with a right calf sprain with 7:20 in the third. And though in his post-game comments Jerry Sloan refused to equate the comeback with Boozer's absence, it seemed to me more of a team-first political move than wrought honesty.
As I keep stressing, there are no more moral victories for this team. Throw any talk about heart in tonight's comeback away. This was an incredibly important game, but the Blazers came out as if it were pick up ball at the local YMCA. With a difficult back-to-back looming in Texas the Blazers are staring at what could likely become a four-game losing streak. And it doesn't get much easier from here.
Also take into account that the Blazers will have to win in Utah--a place they've always had trouble--to maintain even the hope of splitting the season series should the two teams stay close into the playoff race. That, however, is looking less and less likely. Afterwards, Deron Williams talked about finally getting a win at the Rose Garden:
Of all the night's horrid performances, none were uglier than what Portland got from their point guards. Williams and co. were able to match Andre Miller's bulk inside, and Steve Blake couldn't hit the side of a barn. Together they made just two of 17 attempts (both makes were Miller's).
Really there were just two positives at the Rose Garden Wednesday. The first was Martell Webster, who pledged to donate $1,000 for every point he scored. He shook off an early slump to finish with 14, yet said he feels as if he should be giving more. This may not be the last time Webster graciously opens his pocket book to the relief effort in Haiti. He talked about giving, and if he felt the pressure of his pledge while shooting during the game:
The second and final bit of rare good news was Nicolas Batum's stunning first half explosion. We knew he was good, but this was phenomenal. Maybe even Durant-eque. In a two-minute nine second stretch, Batum scored nine of the Blazers' first 11 points. He finished with 11 in the quarter, and 16 in the half (he would not score again). But perhaps the most memorable play was his taking a charge while running faster backwards than Wesley Matthews could forwards to get position and take the hit. It was freakish.
After Batum's poor performance in the playoffs last year, disappearing almost totally against the Rockets, it seemed that the tangible effect of his return from injury would be visited mostly on defense. He was the stopper Portland missed. But good God, something's happened between then, his time with the French national team and now. Batum is suddenly a silky, yet devastatingly sharp threat offense. It's stunning. His post-game comments:
Notes:
After the sorry display finally concluded, Coach McMillan took a bit longer than usual with the team behind closed doors before emerging to address the media. Surely when one's team falls behind 21-2 in the opening minutes they are in dire need of a lashing. I asked McMillan how frustrated he was after losing the Blazers second straight home game and the continued poor opening effort but he mostly dodged the question. When that happens, you can bet he's pretty upset:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy
And he should be. The Blazers were atrocious and the Jazz picked them apart. Wednesday's 106-95 loss was the first time Utah won at the Rose Garden in their last nine tries. Even playing well, or if Brandon Roy were available, Portland would still have a difficult time controlling this Utah team, whose disciplined offense, balanced defense, stout front line and physical inside play seem to be rounding into their best shape in years.
A few players and members of the coaching staff pointed to parallels between this game and Monday's loss to New Orleans, but those comparisons are false. Sure, the Blazers fell behind early, and yes, they never gave up. But New Orleans are a team Portland should beat—the Jazz, unfortunately, are not.
The Blazers seemed to make a game of it, whittling the lead to five with 5:28 to play, but Portland only began mounting their comeback when Carlos Boozer went out with a right calf sprain with 7:20 in the third. And though in his post-game comments Jerry Sloan refused to equate the comeback with Boozer's absence, it seemed to me more of a team-first political move than wrought honesty.
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy
As I keep stressing, there are no more moral victories for this team. Throw any talk about heart in tonight's comeback away. This was an incredibly important game, but the Blazers came out as if it were pick up ball at the local YMCA. With a difficult back-to-back looming in Texas the Blazers are staring at what could likely become a four-game losing streak. And it doesn't get much easier from here.
Also take into account that the Blazers will have to win in Utah--a place they've always had trouble--to maintain even the hope of splitting the season series should the two teams stay close into the playoff race. That, however, is looking less and less likely. Afterwards, Deron Williams talked about finally getting a win at the Rose Garden:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy
Of all the night's horrid performances, none were uglier than what Portland got from their point guards. Williams and co. were able to match Andre Miller's bulk inside, and Steve Blake couldn't hit the side of a barn. Together they made just two of 17 attempts (both makes were Miller's).
Really there were just two positives at the Rose Garden Wednesday. The first was Martell Webster, who pledged to donate $1,000 for every point he scored. He shook off an early slump to finish with 14, yet said he feels as if he should be giving more. This may not be the last time Webster graciously opens his pocket book to the relief effort in Haiti. He talked about giving, and if he felt the pressure of his pledge while shooting during the game:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy
The second and final bit of rare good news was Nicolas Batum's stunning first half explosion. We knew he was good, but this was phenomenal. Maybe even Durant-eque. In a two-minute nine second stretch, Batum scored nine of the Blazers' first 11 points. He finished with 11 in the quarter, and 16 in the half (he would not score again). But perhaps the most memorable play was his taking a charge while running faster backwards than Wesley Matthews could forwards to get position and take the hit. It was freakish.
After Batum's poor performance in the playoffs last year, disappearing almost totally against the Rockets, it seemed that the tangible effect of his return from injury would be visited mostly on defense. He was the stopper Portland missed. But good God, something's happened between then, his time with the French national team and now. Batum is suddenly a silky, yet devastatingly sharp threat offense. It's stunning. His post-game comments:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy
Notes:
- Jerryd Bayless twisted his ankle during fourth quarter junk time. On the big screen, at one point, he appeared to be in tears. Afterwards he said it was “fine,” and that with ice, he should be able to practice tomorrow.
- Halfway through the second quarter the Jazz had 32 points in the paint and the Blazers had 29 total points.
- Final field goal percentages: Utah %60.3, Portland 35.9%
- Although their home countries share a border, Rudy Fernandez and Nic Batum speak English to one another. Rudy says he doesn't speak French, while Nic says he knows only a tiny bit of Spanish.
Reader Comments (3)
Is that charge Batum took on Youtube? I would love to see it.
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