All of Portland was excited. All day there were complaints that it was only being broadcast on the radio. In the frenzy people forgot how to get across the river or over from 205 and jammed up I-84 and nearly all the bridges. I stayed home with my roommate and we tuned into the game.
Wheels and Tone, back in action, back at Dr. Jack's, on site, on location. Then inside the stadium with Terry Stotts, who explained the last loss was due to what an informed fan would understand was typical preseason jitters. As usual never downplaying the problems, never dismissing them, he explained it had to do with anticipating the moves of one's teammates, rather than an opposing team one hasn't been scrimmaging with constantly.
Then the opening: a new intro with Wheels' call of the The Shot, his screechy BaaaAAANG! and the crowd loud and packing the Rose Garden. Big cheers as the lineups get called out. A generally friendly greeting for the Jazz--this is pre-season after all, we'll save the ire and insults for when our record is really on the line--and then the big video screen montage. Then roars as the Blazers hit the court.
Big cheers for Steve Blake--starting because Lillard's foot got stepped on in the first game and --big cheers for everyone. Huge cheers for Aldridge, and the train noise they play that rumbles the seats. The Blazers were back.
The first preseason game at home went well for the Blazers, and much better than their previous game away in Salt Lake. Especially considering how no one on the Blazers' roster played more than 25 minutes--two of them, LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicholas Batum, held to 24 minutes exactly, just as Stotts said would happen.
However the Jazz, who left Gordon Hayward in for 34 minutes, Alec Burks in for 37, and Trey Burke in for 34, played slightly better, squeezing by with a 109-105 win--their second of the preseason and their second against the Blazers.
The highlight for them was Gordon Hayward's huge dunk over poor Joel Freeland: Hayward came around over a pick and drove to the hoop on the right side, then jumped real high and bounced off of Freeland. Freeland stumbled back, and Hayward ricocheted straight up and seemed almost to float. He slammed the ball in powerfully and came down and roared--an rare show of emotion for the rather straight-laced player.
They seemed to be determined to pull out the win, and kept the Blazers struggling to keep up the whole game. Any run by the home team was matched and overcome by subbing in the starters in interesting lineups. The Blazers weren't going to win it if they wouldn't break their rules, it was clear.
But more nuanced lineups from the Blazers and more solid performance from the bench players kept the Jazz struggling. Rarely was there an all-bench lineup from the Blazers--one starter was usually slipped in there somewhere. And the play of many of the bench players stepped up to the challenge the Jazz threw down.
Aldridge seemed to be back in the groove after a rocky start last game: he went 10 for 14 from the field in 24 minutes, scoring a total of 22 points. He also had a couple of assists and a block. That should scare the NBA, because that is a lot of output for a little amount of time.
Wes Matthews proved to be particularly helpful to the team, with 13 points and three sneaky steals (to add to his one from the previous game), as well as a 2/5 performance from beyond the arc.
The most impressive player in these early games however has to be Chris Kaman. Going 5-8, scoring 10 points, as well as grabbing 7 rebounds in the first game, last night Kaman scored went 4-8, scored 8, and grabbed 6. If he keeps producing at this rate, and rebounding at this rate, he will be every bit of the bench playing difference-maker that the Blazers have been seeking for the past couple years.
Of course, though, the highlight of the night was Meyers Leonard's baseline three. Barton drives to the hoop, Leonard leaks out to the corner, Barton shovels the ball over and Leonard didn't even think. He just caught the thing, went up with a tight, crisp shot, and drained it. If he can keep that shot up, and can hit it just like that, we may finally see Leonard get over the hump and actually become a producer this year.
Even more surprising, he had a shot to win the thing with another three and no one hesitated to give him the ball. Leonard made his way to the top of the key behind the line with under a minute to go and the Blazers down one--Barton again gave him the ball and he let it fly. The ball just managed to rim out and the game was effectively over. The crowd wanted it and let out a horrible noise when they saw it leave the hoop.
No one was indignant though, or even angry. Leonard proved he could make the shot, and Stotts has been promoting his new stretch-4/5 role, and it appears as if the shift might finally bring everyone on to Leonard's side. At the same time, giving Leonard the ball so much in crunch time could be another indication that Barton is developing an even greater conscientiousness as a facilitator.
Despite the loss, then, it was a close and tense game, with good play all around. A great home-opener. The only thing more you could ask for in this game was for Leonard to pull out the win--which would have been a magic start to the home-game season. Regardless, it's clear the Blazers are back, and Rip City is ready to stumble into the season with them for another shot at glory.
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