Nic was awesome last night, and I'm glad Nate played him the entire second half. Check out his hilarious post game interview: http://www.nba.com/blazers/video/2010/04/19/batumwebster041810mov-1294490/index.html
Fuck it! Play him 48 minutes. The most impressive thing he did all night was that 1 on 1 defense he applied to Nash down the stretch! Nate has so much trust in him on the defensive end. Add Nash to the list of stars he has maned up in the key point of the game. Dirk, CP3, and Kobe to name a few!!!!
I loved Batum's exclamation about how he let Nash get open. Webster: "That was my Dikembe Mutombo moment."
The only thing about Batum's minutes is that sometimes when Nate brings in Martell for him, Martell plays really great and it's hard to rationalize taking Webster out. BUT in this last game, he finally realized he could play them together and by doing THAT, we can bench Rudy if he's not delivering.
The line-up of Miller, Webster, Batum, LMA and Camby should be what the Blazers close every game with. Best defensive line-up Portland has and probably the tallest they can put on the floor.
Depends on the situation. If we're leading, I love this line-up. If we're down, I think that either Bayless or Rudy should be in versus Webster, since Bayless can get to the rim, and Rudy is better at creating offense. The defensive line-up put a lot of pressure on Miller, and if he is double-teamed, I worry about getting off a good shot.
