SB Nation User Blog: hotstuffdb22

Oden Will Miss Rookie Game

hotstuffdb22 — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:57:25 -0000

Oden Will Miss Rookie Game

Here's the quote from O-Live:

"NBA.com reports that Trail Blazers center Greg Oden (sore left knee) will miss the Rookie Challenge because of a sore left knee. Oden bumped knees with Golden State's Corey Maggette during the fourth quarter of Portland's 105-98 loss to the Warriors Thursday night. Oden is listed as day-to-day.

Oregonian NBA reporter Geoffrey C. Arnold will report more from Phoenix shortly."

1/25/09: A Great Day for the Western Conference

hotstuffdb22 — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 13:51:16 -0000

Check out these games today for Western Conference Teams:

Mavs @ Celtics (1pm EST, 10am PST)

I hope the Mavs lose so we improve our divisional standing. Who's worse - Mark Cuban or Kevin Garnett? I think Garnett is more of a foul taste, but Cuban is right up there in my view.

Spurs @ Lakers (3pm EST, 12 PST)

I think the Spurs can pull this out. Neither of these two teams are going to fall in the conference standings, so this should be an exciting game to watch. Possibly a preview of the Western Conference Finals in 2009.

Suns @ Hawks (6pm EST, 3pm PST)

Again, I hope the Suns will lose. Should be interesting to see whether they break their 3 game losing streak. When do we play the Suns next? We should be able to beat them now, they don't look that good.

Rockets @ Pistons (6:30pm EST, 3:30pm PST)

Hoping for a Rockets loss. I don't think the Rockets have a shot at this game after losing Yao (along with their other injuries).

Jazz @ Nuggets (8pm EST, 5pm PST)

Can both teams lose? I'd like to see the Nuggets lose, as this would distance us by 1 game from a Northwest division tie with them. However, after losing to the Cavs last night at home, I don't expect Utah to have the energy to pull this out. I hope they do, though. I do feel bad for the Jazz owner who just had some legs partially amputated.

Clippers @ Warriors (9pm EST, 6pm PST)

This will be like watching the JV teams play after the varsity squads. Nobody cares, but since it's later in the evening/day, what else do you have to do? Okay, we'll sit and watch this entertainment simply because it's basketball, but also a nice preview to tomorrow nights game for us against the Clips.

Nine Western Conference teams are playing today. Seven of these teams are the top 9 in the Western Conference. The only top 9 teams not playing are the Blazers and Hornets. Maybe somebody could set these two teams up on a Xbox and tell us the outcome?

A great day for the Western Conference. An even better day to improve our playoff position and hopes.

Go Blazers!

UPDATE 2: Tis so Sweet: Welcome to the NBA, Mr. Bayless, aka HUMAN HIGHLIGHT FILM (BAYLESS FTW)

hotstuffdb22 — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 03:35:08 -0000

[Note from Ben: Title shortened due to length.]

Bayless time has officially arrived. Portland needs to make room in the rotation for him - RIGHT NOW.

Tonight's performance was spectacular. 7 points in 6 minutes. "Acrobatic drives" is an understatement. Bayless is where "Hang-time-wait-more-hang-time-and-you-just-fouled-me" happens. The guy played so well tonight he deserves a minimum of at least 15 minutes a night.

It's time for Sergio to pack his bags. He's had enough time to prove himself, and hasn't. I wish him the best, but we need to make room for J-Bay. When Sergio was playing tonight and made another silly-Sergio-mistake, the Chicago TV announcers said, "my goodness, you'd think he would know not to do that." Sergio has had enough time in Portland. Time to trade him.

The only way to make room for J-Bay is to have him take Sergio's minutes, like he did tonight during the 2nd half. Bayless is a special player - you can tell it in the way he moves on the court. I don't know why Nate keeps fiddling around with Sergio when he has a player like Bayless.

If both Bayless and Oden make steady improvement from now till the end of the season, we might make the 2nd round of the playoffs this year - that's how much Bayless counts for us.

Update 1:

Hello everyone,

I appreciate the comments in this discussion. Some of you have done a nice job of raising different perspectives in this debate. Here is an article just posted on O-Live (J Quick) talking about the same issue.

I spoke to three team sources about this issue last night in Philly. The consensus seems to be what Quick wrote. Sergio is better at running the offense, but this is it. There weren't a lot of positive remarks given towards him - one coach rolled his eyes, and I know he was being honest, as I know his family pretty well and have seen this person in multiple contexts. However, when the conversation changed to Bayless, both had a lot more to say, using words like "great potential" and "has showed in practice what he can do - it's incredible." Thus, I think Portland is pretty high on Bayless. Nonetheless, they are giving plenty of opportunity to Sergio.

Update 2:

Unbelievable. BaylessFTW. This kid belongs. Any doubters? 23 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds, 11-11 FT, 6-9 FGA/FGM . Make room for this kid in the rotation. He belongs. This is a breakout game for him. He was incredible - posterizing the nets with a dunk + foul is where "why we drafted you and your the summer league MVP" HAPPENS. This is the NBA, baby. Welcome Rex!!!!! Vote him in for the all-star team - do it now, Portland, vote him!!!

Go Blazers!!!

Hey! I got tickets to the Philly Game!!!

hotstuffdb22 — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 23:08:55 -0000

Somehow, someway, my wife and I are once again representing the Blazers faithful this upcoming Wednesday night in Philadelphia. We'll be 7 rows up, wearing red Roy and Aldridge jerseys. We're gonna scream and let Philadelphia know Blazer Nation is the strongest fan base in the entire world. Call me crazy, call me stupid, but I'm a diehard fan on a mission to cheer this team to a championship.

If any other Blazer fans are going, let me know and we can meet up!!

(Somewhat OT): Anyway to receive Blazer score updates by dialing a phone number?

hotstuffdb22 — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 16:59:22 -0000

Occassionally during the year, I find myself in some remote place where I have no access to either television or the internet to view a Blazers game. Or, sometimes I'm travelling on the road when the game happens to be taking place and thus the same situation arises.. However, my heart burns to know how the team is doing. All I have is my cell phone.

Another caveat is that I don't believe in text messaging. I used to have it, but it occupied too much of my time, so I dropped it. Thus, is there any phone number I can dial to know the score of a Blazer game?

Back in the 90s, one could dial some number to the oregonian and receive an update on a blazers score. I tried searching for this, but came up empty.

Thanks!

Everyone Wait ! The Cart Is Ahead of The Horse!!

hotstuffdb22 — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 13:03:59 -0000

Quick claims The Player has gone through a transformation.

However, we've known since the beginning of last year that Roy would be great, maybe not as soon as we all expected. Okay, so Roy is taking steps to greatness, we can all agree on that. But these are microsteps.

Defeating Phoenix, yes, is huge considering the context. However, it's only one game.

Anyone who has been a fan of the Trailblazers for at least 10 years, will agree with this: Following this team is like attending a Wedding on Friday and a Funeral on Saturday.

Roy gave us a wedding to celebrate this past week. But folks, I warn you, the Funeral is ahead.

We still don't have a second chair violin, though we do have a few people trying-out for it. Brandon Roy is doing a great job playing like Freddie Highmore who starred as Evan Taylor in August Rush. However, what the directors of August Rush didn't show the audience was all the heartache and pain Evan Taylor and the others went through for the final performance. And also, this story itself was a fairy tale.

We face Denver twice and Dallas ahead. One thing we'll know at the end of the week is how long the wedding reception will be.

At the end, this is all somewhat like a fairy tale. Until we have a 2nd fiddle, and consistency in other places, expect the highs to be high and the lows to be low. This team, and Brandon, will be great when the Funerals turn into hospital visits. Brandon has placed a camel on his back the past several games, but neither he nor the team are anywhere close to being given the noteriety of being mentioned with the top teams in the league or the top players.

If anything this shows, the gap between Brandon and the rest of the team is large. Further, because of the size of the gap, the coaches need to realize there are some major pieces missing. For as great Brandon is, the team is that much further behind. When Steve bLAnk is your guy providing some second fiddle on different nights, things are not as great as they might seem.

OT: Has anyone outside Oregon/Washington successfully listened to Brian Wheeler call the Blazer games online?

hotstuffdb22 — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 21:53:49 -0000

OT: Has anyone outside Oregon/Washington successfully listened to Brian Wheeler call the Blazer games online?

I want to listen to him, but everytime I've tried on NBA.com, I've been unsuccessful. Perhaps there is an alternative way besides NBA.com to listen to games???

Thanks a bunch!!

Note: The Link is to NBA All Access for those interested

Thanks everyone!!!

Junk Drawer: Blazer "Vent" and "Extend" Thread For Boston Loss

hotstuffdb22 — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 03:37:46 -0000

This is a "vent & extend" thread for the Blazers loss to Boston tonight. Feel free to express your "vent" below, followed by who or what you think should be "extended" in the player rotation or team offense/defense.

Please note: Some comments may not be 100% accurate, as this is only one game.

Vent:

Channing Frye - You cost us the final 3:00 min. of the second quarter. Your errors sent the momentum into Boston's pockets and they ended the half on a 14-0 run. Not even the Bush-White-House has done something this bad. Maybe you missed your real talent and should've gone on this tour?? Your air-head ballerina play where you jumped up in the air and then decided to drop the ball was the worst play any NBA player has made. Further, you made things worse by fouling some Celtic on the other end who made the bucket. Even Stan Van Gundy on ESPN said that was the worst 24 seconds of NBA basketball he's ever seen. Further complicating matters, your teammates (Steve Blake and Rudy) decided to copy your ballerina move. You embarrassed us in front of a national audience. I can't stand your preppy attitude towards basketball. Get aggressive. Block shots. Rebound. Help on weakside defense. Just move your body!!! Lastly, letting Kevin Garnett dunk on you with about 2:00 minutes remaining was perhaps the biggest letdown of all of your "depressions." We could've cut the lead to under 10, but you we're out on the three point line with your Kodak camera taking pictures of Rajon Rondo. Get your head in the game!!!

Blazers Transition Defense - Boston did a lay-up drill tonight. We looked like the older team. They fast-breaked us to the willy nilly. Nuff said. No excuses here.

Extend:

Jerryd Bayless - You're the reason this game became respectable. You should be in the normal rotation. For saving us national embarrassment on national TV, I give you the game MVP honors. Now I finally see why KP drafted you. You should be given at least 12 minutes a game.

Ike Diogu- This guy deserves more PT. He should at least take Channing's spot (at least until Martell returns). He played an excellent game against Chicago a few weeks ago, and doesn't make as many bone-head errors as Channing. You play with patience, and it appears that you actually think before you act. Great job.

All in all, thanks to Bayless for making the boxscore look better. I appreciate this more than anything else tonight.

Greg Oden Speaks!!!

hotstuffdb22 — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 22:06:36 -0000

Greg Oden Speaks!!!

Somebody... fast, get Jason Quick... Greg Oden is talking!!

I hope Jason doesn't get too upset...

I WAS ON HOLY GROUND TONIGHT!! -- UPDATED W/ PICTURES!

hotstuffdb22 — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 04:49:35 -0000

I went to the game tonight in DC and had a fabulous time. I'll first write about my thoughts on the game, then I'll tell y'all about something special that happened afterwards.

Game:

Rudy is the real deal. He hustled for all 4 quarters tonight. His energy fueled the win tonight. He had one spectacular put-back that is a "must-see" on highlights - the whole arena was in awe.

Brandon Roy is Brandon Roy. You got to love his consistency. In the fourth quarter, the Blazers had not scored any points for about 4 minutes. They looked lethargic, tired, and ready to go home. Enter Brandon Roy. He rattled off 9 points in a few minutes and put this game on his back. Without Roy or Rudy tonight, we would've been toasted.

Greg Oden. I was impressed with the big fella. You can tell the potential is there. He certainly looks better and better each game. He had a few amazing dunks that were worth the price of admission. This guy is phenomenal, even at this point. He had one block bigger than any building in Portland. It was huge. His put back off a Steve Blake miss tasted like a Loss Abbey Yellow Bus - mmmm, so nice.

Aldridge looked good. I liked his effort on defense more than anything else. He had a few clutch plays towards the end. He seems to set-up Roy fairly well. I think he's sometimes uncertain whether to pass or shoot, which messes a bit with the offensive flow. At the end, we he finally decided to dunk, we were all happy.

Rest of the team - nothing new to comment here - most guys looked pretty tired and this showed on the defensive end... The one player who stood out the most was Outlaw. Other than that, Pryzbilla hustled a lot which helped at times. He was injured for a moment but thankfully came back. Sergio got away with 1 travel, but then in the same possession, was called for a 2nd travel.

Our defense tonight was horrible. I'm sorry, but as much as I love these guys, there was little team defense. This could be due to the fatigue factor, but guys weren't switching, nobody seemed to be talking, and the weakside was left open a lot. The Wizards stayed in this game because our defense was so bad.

All in all, a gutsy win on a back-to-back. One can noticeably tell that these guys look awfully tired right now and I think this shows on the defensive effort. I'm not sure why Nate doesn't go deeper into the bench in a game like tonight. I'm happy they have tomorrow to rest before Friday's game at Boston. Sleep well Blazers, because it's gonna be a war on Friday.

Afterwards:

So my wife and I sat near Monty William's extended family during the game, and they gave us VIP- passes for after the game to meet players in the hallway!!! It was great. I litterally felt like a little kid getting ready for my first disney ride.

I'll post pictures at some point. All the players were very nice and kind. It's sort've hard to criticize them when you actually meet them because they're such friendly people. Both Nate McMillan and Mike Barrett were the easiet to talk with - I asked both about whether they "had heard of Blazers Edge" and both said "Yes" and smiled!!! I told Rudy he is the greatest Spaniard to ever play the game and he gave me a hug! Greg Oden is hands down polite. He was posing for multiple pictures with people. My wife thinks Aldridge is Hot, and I told this to LA after they had a picture together and he looked at her and smiled !!! Webster is straight up legit - very cool person. Batum just smiles. I don't know how much English he knows yet - seems humble. Steve Blake is like "office Joe." You wouldn't recognize him at all as NBA player. Outlaw dresses in style, but doesn't have much to say.... all in all, a great team that seems to really enjoy each other... I could write more about each player, but I'm going to retire for the night. If this wasn't Holy Ground, I'm not sure what is.

It's a great day to be a Blazer!!!

P.s. I enjoyed watching this team more "away" than at "home" in the Rose Garden. There's something special about seeing the few Blazer fans in the crowd during the game and talking with the players afterwards... they seem much more down to earth when not at home. The "blaze" seems more bright in dark "away" arenas. If you're able, I'd encourage to go to an away game to see this perspective - you'll enjoy it!!

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Now, with pictures... Enjoy! -- Ben
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