“Well, we got the win,” coach McMillan said after Tuesday’s pedestrian victory over Sacramento at the Rose Garden. But he was honest. “Of course, we know we can play better. And we’re going to have to play better than we did down the stretch to win our remaining games.”

And what else can you say? It was Tuesday, it was Sacramento, and it wasn’t especially convincing. The Kings, currently a 21-42 team, shouldn’t be able to clamp down on the Blazers, or rattle off 10-nothing runs—but they did.

Portland entered the second half with a ten point lead before the Kings went on at 14-6 run that brought them within a pair. After building back up another double-digit advantage to begin the fourth, the Blazers again were unable to put Sacramento away. The Kings scored the next 10 straight points. It took until the 8:37 mark for the Blazers got any fourth quarter points, and until 6:23 until they scored from the field. Coach McMillan pointed to “missed shots” rather than problems with execution or Sacramento’s defense.

The dry spells were nothing Portland couldn’t handle. A few crucial stands led by Marcus Camby blocks straightened up the Blazers defensively and they pulled away with time to spare. But it was a far cry from the “we’ve found our rhythm,” bring-on-the-playoffs swagger they had just a few short days ago. A overwhelming loss Sunday in Denver crushed all that, and unfortunately, a gimme against the Kings wasn’t enough to get it back.

That sentiment that the Blazers must improve before the playoffs was shared throughout the locker room. Brandon Roy, who led all scorers with 19 points echoed McMillan’s thoughts afterward.

Nicolas Batum was wickedly efficient, making six of his seven shots to finish with 14 points. On the other hand, the icy streak that LaMarcus Aldridge’s discovered in Denver continued. He hit just six of 15 shots against a porous Kings front line while grabbing seven rebounds.

Playing in his eighth game as a Blazer, Marcus Camby showed some of what he can do on the defensive end. But for his five blocks, Camby gave up as many turnovers (box scores say four, but there was one play where he lost the ball along the baseline that was not attributed). Three of the veteran center’s give-always happened in the first quarter, two on very routine outlet passes (another sailed over a teammates’ head but they were just able to keep it in play). It wasn’t as if they passes sniffed out by clever defenders—they simply missed their mark. I remember Camby blowing a few outlet passes in his Blazers debut, and wrote it off as unfamiliarity with his teammates. Now it’s starting to look like carelessness—the turnovers helped Sacramento back in after the Blazers got out to a 10-2 early lead.

On a positive note, after weeks of futility and near anonymity, Martell Webster began to shake off what has haunted him. For the first time since February 16, Webster scored in double figures (11). He was also commended on his defense of Kings star Tyreke Evans.

In jack-knifing through the lane Evans showed flashes of why many believe he’ll win Rookie of the Year. But in playing 43 minutes, there were stretches of time one could forget he was on the court. Evans finished with a team-high 17 points for the Kings.

And so there you have it—pretty much a ho-hum game. And with a trip to Golden State and another visit with Sacramento, this week is full of them. Assuming the Blazers are able to put together a new little winning streak, it’ll be important to note the manner in which they win. Can they do it going away? Can they start slamming the door on these inferior, lottery-bound losers?

It’s important they do, because the Blazers need their swag back. Don’t let these losers in the John Wall sweepstakes linger. Like Jay-Z says, “you gotta get that dirt off your shoulders.”

NOTES
- For the first time in eight games the Blazers failed to hit the century mark.
- LaMarcus Aldridge picked up rebound 2,000 as a Blazer.