‘Twas (almost) a fortnight before the end of the season… 
Talk of playoff seedings was in the air, so I sprang over to ESPN to see what was the matter,

And what to my wondering eyes should appear, but 4 neatly packaged gifts for any scoreboard watcher” 

(Ok, I realize I took some horrible liberties in botching The Night Before Christmas, but in a stunningly chic move to save myself from looking ridiculous, I will call it a “postmodern” re-writing—thus freeing myself from criticism, because nobody really knows what “postmodern” means... The word itself has become, ironically, a floating signifier. But I digress.) 

Now, let me digress again (this is known as “double digressing,” though, it is nothing at all like putting your whole mouth into the dip.) I believe the Blazers should simply be focused on “taking care of business.” I am excited to see where they end up simply playing their best, and would rather focus on the great things going on with our team than get caught up in dreadful scoreboard watching…. 

But… I am hooked. And tonight was one of the most glorious nights in recent memory. The aforementioned 4 gifts are as follows. 

First and foremost, the Spurs lost to the Nets. After simply refusing to lose the past few games, they managed to drop one in the most unexpected way. I almost didn’t even look at the score—but, I did, and lo and behold, they lost, along with Denver, and meanwhile Dallas and Utah both won.

It’s like after spending the last few weeks blowing my bankroll at the craps table, I took the 100 I was left with, stopped by the roulette table on my way out, and plopped it down on 00, just for the heck of it. And BAM! Jackpot. Then I bet it 3 more times, and 3 more times it hit.

To break it down a bit more, in my mind the best matchup is Dallas. And I am convinced the best chance for this to happen is for Dallas to end up 3rd, Portland to end up 6th. That means we need to finish above San Antonio and OKC. 

Therefore, any Spurs or Thunder loss is GOOD, particularly if it is a game they “should” win.  

Next, we need Dallas to stay at third, which means either Utah or Denver needs to win, while the other needs to lose. As Utah has a favorable schedule and has been looking good lately, that means the most likely way for Dallas to end up third is for Utah to be 2nd, Dallas 3rd, Denver 4th  (or below). For this to happen,  

Utah winning is GOOD.  

Denver losing is GOOD.  

Dallas winning, (except against us) is GOOD. 

All four happened tonight. Which leaves the West looking like this: 

1. L@kers
2. Dallas
3. Utah
4. Phoenix
5. Denver
6. OKC
7. Portland
8. San Antonio

With Utah and Dallas’ remaining schedules, I think it is very possible Utah passes them eventually, especially if we can beat Dallas. Same goes for OKC—if we beat them, we have a great chance of finishing ahead of them. Which would leave us having Dallas in the first round, setting us up nicely. 

Now, lest this post be merely a jinx, it remains to be pointed out that the Blazers still have to play very well, and win the games they “should” win, esp. Dallas and OKC. But our chief obstacle in the way of this particular matchup has nearly dissolved. Fate has set things up nicely for it to happen. If it doesn’t materialize, it will more likely than not be because the Blazers didn’t take care of business. For the Blazers, the challenge, therefore, is not in their stars, it is in their hearts—at least after tonight. 

Also, the L@kers lost, again, which is the sweetest cherry on top. I gotta say it was a good day. 

Ite Blazeres!

And oh man it feels so good. There are a number articles out there complaining, whining, and even bitterly making fun of the Blazers, STILL. One guy I saw on ESPN (I can't remember) suggested the Blazers might trade the pick!!!

Anyway, in the midst of some of that ridiculousness, I have seen a couple things that just make my heart start to pound. One was last night, in the comments about the lottery, some guy said (paraphrase) "oh they will be a nice team with Brandon Roy and Randolph" and then a few posts later the same guy says something like, "Oh wait, I forgot they had Aldridge too, wow, I am not even a Blazer fan, but I will pay to watch all those guys play together."

And on ESPN.Com, Chris Broussard tips his hat to the Blazers in his discussion of the draft, and even says,

" ...they already had perhaps the best young nucleus in the league with Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Jarrett Jack and Martell Webster.

The trio of Oden, Roy and Aldridge is going to be ridiculous."

 Of course, whether it's Oden or not isn't set in stone, but still, isn't it NICE to hear people say that about the Blazers????

Here's the link: http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=2879899&name=broussard_chris