November 13, 2013 NOTES • Robin Lopez registered his third consecutive double-double for the second time in his career, the other time coming during the final three games of the 2012-13 season. • Thomas Robinson tied his career-high with 15 points (3/22/13, Houston vs. Cleveland), nine of which came in the fourth quarter. This is the first game in Robinson’s career that he has led a team in scoring. • Portland won with its leading scorer totaling 15 points or fewer for the first time since Dec. 18, 2004 at Detroit (14 – Stoudamire, Van Exel). • Along with a career-high tying 15 points, Robinson tied his career high of six field goals and set a new season high with eight rebounds. • LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez have both recorded double-doubles in each of Portland’s last three games. • Robin Lopez tallied new career-highs with 15 total rebounds and 10 defensive rebounds. • In the first matchup against Phoenix this season, the Trail Blazers were outscored 52-24 in the paint, tonight Portland outscored Phoenix in the paint 44-42. • Robin Lopez tied his previous season-high of 10 rebounds by halftime, the most rebounds grabbed by Lopez in the first half of any game in his career and the second highest in any half (12, vs. Dallas – 4/14/13). • The Trail Blazers’ bench tied a season-high with 34 points on 14-for-22 shooting, 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. • Every Trail Blazer that played in tonight’s game scored. • Tonight marks the first game of the season that the Trail Blazers made less than eight 3-pointers in the game. Portland still has yet to give up more than six 3-pointers in a game this season. For quotes from TRob, Wes and Stotts go here - http://www.nba.com/blazers/notes-quotes-trail-blazers-90-suns-89
Seems like Phoenix did everything they could to take away perimeter shooting, and it opened up a lot of opportunities for Robinson and Lopez to score inside.
containing the 3 point shot is detrimental because we normally can launch them with accuracy. Nothing more demeaning than scoring a contested 2 point shot, only to see us drain a 3 the very next play.
I've typed this before and am stating the obvious here.......he is a Brian Grant scrap and hustle type player. Plain and simple. He just goes after it and we need to utilize that. The man is a beast down low, but we can't run our offense thru him. That's OK as long as LA is out there with him, right?
The sooner Robinson realizes that he can be a better player by playing off of LMA's strengths the sooner Robinson will be forced to get more minutes.
