Thursday, October 28, 2010

Game 2 - Clippers

Good win on a back to back for the Blazers. Even though it was the Clippers, never underestimate a team on their opening night at home. They played with good energy, but it helped that Kaman and B Diddy shot horribly from the field. Some thoughts.

-Blazers are killers on the boards. And we don’t even have Oden and Pryz. It’s scary to think about how we will be when we get two of the top 5 rebound rate (# of rebounds they collect as a % of the total number available when they are in the game) guys in the league back. We could be devastating.

-Wesley Matthews had a really tough game, but I wouldn’t say a horrible one. That’s the nice thing about guys who do something else besides score, they can affect the game when their shot is off. Also his stats are a little mis leading, as he found himself with the ball in his hands at the end of shot clock multiple times for unexplained reasons. Someone would dump him the ball with 3 seconds left and he was forced to get something up. So take his horrible FG% with a grain of salt.

-Roy started off hot again, racking up 18 in the first half. Then went silent for a lot of the 2nd half. Interesting to note that the 3rd quarter was probably our worst quarter (and Roy’s most laid back). I feel like in years past we’ve let teams back in the game because we relax, and guess where that comes from? Roy. Hopefully this is something he figures out sooner then later. Because as much as I like them, we can’t rely on 15-3 4th quarter runs every game.

-Batum has more then impressed me so far this season. I thought he’d be good, but I think his 3 point shot has gotten even better. He is now a guy that I borderline expect to make an open corner 3. Couldn’t have said that last year.

-Aldridge hasn’t been flashy but I still think he’s getting it done. With 19 and 10, he has been more aggressive on the glass, which is great. He just needs to find that fine line of using his jumper to setup his inside game, not using the inside game to setup the jumper.

-Andre Miller played really good, in the stagnant 3rd quarter he made a concerted effort to get to the rim (not always successfully) but that’s what I like to see out of somebody else then Roy. Someone noticing the slump and knowing how to break it. Great player, awkward fit.

-Armon Johnson was somewhat of a non-factor tonight, which is to be expected from a 2nd round rookie.

- Camby continues to impress. He CRUSHED the offensive glass, and you could argue that’s the reason we won.

Overall not a bad game considering it was a back to back and it was the Clippers season opener at home. Hard to match that energy sometimes, but the Blazers did just enough to get the win, and that’s what matters.

4 comments:

  1. I love national tv broadcasts because it gives me a chance to actually watch the Blazers. I thought they played alright. Shot horribly but thank goodness for all of the offensive rebounds giving us more chances. I didnt like the streaks we went through, but thankfully we came out on top. I am really liking Batum's play. Hope we keep it up for the remaining three games on this road trip.

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  2. I was pleasantly suprised by the back to back wins. I must say I'm still worried/frustrated with Nate and his style. I know Matthews ended up getting the ball at the end of the shot clock a few times and we had to spread around the minutes but having Matthews bring the ball up so much in the 4th Q and take the last shot is confusing to me. I need to see dre day or another seasoned pro take the majority of these shots. Overall I'm happy with the way we played and not having the huge point swings we have been so famous for. O ya, Go Beavs and Trojans. :-)

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  3. Is this blog done with? Just kidding. I know life is busy Kyle!

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  4. Ouch! Sorry Yost, it's tough to make it every game. I'll try to do better though!

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