Basketball Fiend

On December 5, in Boston, the Celtics laid the smackdown on the Blazers, 93-78. Last night, without injured star Brandon Roy, the Blazers exacted some revenge.

Thanks to a great defensive surge down the stretch and some crucial shots from LaMarcus Aldridge and Travis Outlaw, the Blazers handed the Celtics a 91-86 loss at the Rose Garden. It was just the fifth loss of the season for the Celtics, bringing their overall record to 28-5.

Some observations from Blazers-Celtics II:

1. For the Blazers, the game came down to three crucial plays: Rudy Fernandez’s diving steal with 1:17 left and the Blazers up by only two points, Aldridge’s beautiful turnaround over Kendrick Perkins with 59 seconds left to make it 85-81, and Outlaw’s brilliant spin-and-dunk on the baseline over Kevin Garnett to extend the lead to four points with 29.4 seconds left.

Those three plays showed that the Blazers could keep their composure (the shot clock was running down on all three plays) and make key contributions when it mattered the most.

2. Nate McMillan has really pumped self-confidence into these guys. It shows in wins like this one. Every single player was confident in his decisions and, for the most part, flawless in his execution.

3. The home crowd for the Blazers was amazing. At one point a Blazers announcer said that the fans had been standing for something like nine straight minutes. That’s incredible support; not to mention incredible endurance.

4. With Roy out, LaMarcus Aldridge really came into his own against the Celtics. He may have only been 9/22 from the field, but LA hit his shots when it counted. Aldridge had 10 points in the fourth quarter, including consecutive field goals down the stretch to keep the Blazers from losing the lead. He also did well on the defensive end.

5. Greg Oden is playing with emotion and confidence. You could see him enjoying himself out there in the fourth quarter. He was clapping his hands, pumping his fist and patting guys on the back after big plays. It’s great to see him hit his comfort level with interior shots, too. McMillan trusts Oden now and calls plays to iso him on the block, which is great news for the Blazers. A happy, healthy, comfortable Oden gives the Blazers yet another weapon to use in close games.

6. When Travis Outlaw plays intelligently and with energy, there’s nothing he can’t do. This guy’s athleticism is off the charts. When he pulled that spin move on Paul Pierce and then dunked over KG with the shot clock running down and 29 seconds left in the game, I just sat there in awe. What else can you do but admire a play like that? Not many guys in the league can make that play.

On top of that, Outlaw is a great offensive rebounder. Hell, the whole team seems to be great at cleaning the offensive boards. I heard a stat today that LA has had 89 offensive rebounds so far this season. 89! That’s close to three offensive boards per game. How do you contend with a team like that?

7. Add Sergio Rodriguez to the growing list of guys who can ice the game with free throws for the Blazers. They already had Steve Blake, Rudy Fernandez and Brandon Roy. Now they have Sergio. I can’t think of another team in the league with so many clutch free throw shooters. Definitely something to think about for the playoffs…

8. Jerryd Bayless got some fourth quarter burn and he looked great. Bayless is very effective with dribble penetration down the middle of the lane, which kills any chance of shadowing Portland’s shooters on the wings (because the perimeter defenders have to collapse to help on Bayless). That’ll be really effective against any team that tries to play zone defense against the Blazers. He gives the team yet another weapon to use when they need some offensive flexibility.

Which again begs the question: How can this team have so much talent?

9. It shows a lot of character that the Blazers were able to come back and hit the Celtics in the mouth. The first Blazers-Celtics game was supposed to be an indicator of where the Blazers stood and they performed poorly. But the resiliency that they showed last night proves that this is a team that you can’t count out in the playoffs; particularly at home.

10. What a great game. I hope for many more like this one to come.

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