Game Thread PLAYOFFS: ROUND 1, GAME 1: BLAZERS @ GRIZZLIES - 4/19/15, SUNDAY, 5:00 PM (PST), TNT & KGW (1 Viewer)

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---------PROBABLE STARTERS---------

PG

DAMIAN LILLARD VS MIKE CONLEY

SG

C.J. McCollum VS COURTNEY LEE

SF

NICOLAS BATUM VS JEFF GREEN

PF

LaMARCUS ALDRIDGE VS ZACH RANDOLPH

C

ROBIN LOPEZ VS MARC GASOL



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WHEN: 5:00 PM, SUNDAY, 4/19/2015

WHERE: FedExForum, Memphis, TN

TV BROADCAST:

AND

RADIO BROADCAST:

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--------------BENCH--------------
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS

BLAKE , FRAZIER , CRABBE

GEE , FREELAND , LEONARD , KAMAN

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES

[
UDRIH , CALATHES , ADAMS , CARTER

ALLEN , GREEN , LEUER , KOUFOS



INJURIES
TRAIL BLAZERS
Chris Kaman (back injury): PROBABLE
C.J. McCollum (left ankle sprain): PROBABLE
Nicolas Batum (right knee injury): PROBABLE
Alonzo Gee (foot): QUESTIONABLE
Arron Afflalo (strained right shoulder): DOUBTFUL
Dorell Wright (fractured left hand): OUT
Wesley Matthews (ruptured left Achilles’ tendon): OUT
GRIZZLIES
Tony Allen (left hamstring strain): PROBABLE
Mike Conley (right foot sprain): PROBABLE
Jeff Green (low back tightness): PROBABLE



HEAD COACHES

- VS –

TERRY STOTTS --- DAVID JOERGER




BLAZERS' OFFICIAL GAME NOTES ​

SEASON SERIES NOTES
• Memphis won all four regular season contests between these two teams in 2014-15, marking the first time that the Grizzlies have ever swept the Trail Blazers in a season series.

• The Trail Blazers utilized three different starting lineups (eight starters overall) in four regular season games against Memphis.

• Portland is 2-9 against the Grizzlies dating back to the start of the 2012-13 season.

• In four games against the Grizzlies this season, Damian Lillard averaged 22.0 points on 40.3% shooting (31-77 FG). Lillard dished out 7.2 assists in the four regular season matchups.

• LaMarcus Aldridge averaged a team-high 22.3 points per game against the Grizzlies in the regular season (three games). In his past seven games against Memphis, Aldridge has produced 24.1 points. He has also shot at least 50.0% from the floor in three of the past four matchups.

• LaMarcus Aldridge has scored 10+ points in 25 consecutive games against the Grizzlies. He has scored 20 or more points in 10 of those 25 contests.

• Portland’s reserves outscored Memphis’s bench, 96-87, in four regular season games in 2014-15. In the two most recent contests on Feb. 22 and March 21, Portland’s bench accumulated a +34 scoring advantage (63-29) over the Grizzlies’ reserves.

• Memphis limited Portland to an average of 93.8 points per game, while keeping them under the 100-point mark in all four contests.

• Chris Kaman hauled in an average of 10.3 rebounds in three games (one start) against Memphis in 2014-15. He recorded 16 points (matches his season-high) and 11 rebounds against Memphis earlier this season on Nov. 28 to earn one of his four double-doubles.

• Memphis out rebounded Portland in three of the four games this season and fi nished with a +10 rebound advantage. Portland finished the season ranked second in the NBA in rebounding (45.85 reb/game), while Memphis ended up 21st in the NBA with 42.56 rebounds per contest.

• At 35-17. Memphis was third in the Western Conference for most in-conference wins. Portland was 31-21 against Western Conference foes.

• Memphis forward Zach Randolph averaged 16.5 points on 43.8% shooting in four games against Portland this season. He registered two doubledoubles, both of which came in the first two games.

• In the final regular season game between these two teams on March 21, Mike Conley and Jeff Green combined to score 40 points on 14-of-20 shooting (8-9 3-PT). Both LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum exited the game early due to injuries and did not participate in the second half.

PLAYOFF SERIES NOTES
• This will be the first ever meeting between the Trail Blazers and Grizzlies in the NBA Playoffs. Memphis is one of five Western Conference teams that Portland has never matched up against in the postseason.

• In playing Memphis in the first round, Portland will embark upon its fourth consecutive playoff matchup against a team from the Southwest Division.

• Memphis swept Portland in the 2014-15 regular season (four games). The last team to win a first round playoff series after being swept by that team in the regular season was the Hornets against the Hawks in the 1998 NBA Playoffs. Atlanta swept the regular season series, 4-0, before Charlotte took the postseason series three games to one.

• Memphis has served as the fifth seeded playoff team twice before prior to its 4/5 matchup with Portland. The Grizzlies were swept as the fifth seeded team by the Dallas Mavericks in 2005-06, but more recently advanced past the L.A. Clippers (4-2) and Oklahoma City (4-1) to reach the Western Conference finals as the five-seed in 2012-13.

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GRIZZLIES' OFFICIAL GAME NOTES



GO BLAZERS!!!​

kjironman1 said:

Blazers vs Grizzlies pregame

One of the simple sayings in sports is that the players play the game but i am putting a little more stock in the coaches for this series. Coach Stotts has had plenty of time to look at the Griz and what Dave Joerger has been doing with and without Conley and Allen. Terry Stotts has shown the ability to adjust and make decisions on the fly. There is a tendency to look at players but in the end the team has to perform. Every report i am hearing at this point is saying that Arron Afflalo is not going to play today. Other than that the Blazers have pretty much everyone at or close to full strength. Kaman is a go and Batum say he is feeling just fine. CJ put together a good workout and says he will be fine. Alonzo Gee says he is going to be able to go with his foot injury also. This Afflalo injury however is a bit disturbing if he in fact does start missing Playoff games. It makes me wonder if he will be available at all for this series?

The Blazers should for the most part go with what they know today. At this point they have played 4 regular season games but exactly how many minutes did they have their starters on the court? Every game seemed to have an * by it because someone was missing. Same goes for this series but they do have Aldridge, Lillard, Batum, and Lopez. Who gets the start? My pick would be Gee with CJ coming off the bench but Allen Crabbe might get the nod. Many feel Crabbe would be a better pick because he knows the system better but i go with Gee if he is in fact available in this first game because he is bigger and more physical. Plays better defense and shoots the 3 a little bit better. Gee also has a more powerful game going to the rim.

Defense will indeed play a huge role in this series and the Grizzlies do play defense. The Blazers will be looking to do what the Blazers are good at. They will try to move the ball and set up open looks from shooters. They will also try to get Aldridge going often and early. The Grizzlies will shut the lane down so Dame will not get those easy driving layups. Lillard will pay a price for every drive he makes. Randolph will try to push Aldridge out off the left block and make him shoot from a less than comfortable place. Of course you will see Gasol slide over and help out. This is where it gets sketchy...If Aldridge's shot is "On" and he is making the Griz pay then they will have to adjust and leave someone open. The Griz will cruise the lanes at this point and try to stop passing out. The rest of the Blazers need to stay active and not get lazy waiting for LA to make a decision. This is also where Batum and Lopez come in. That two man show has got to be working and whether it is Gee or Crabbe they must hit the open look it generates when the lane collapses.

On the other side the Blazers will have to put a body on Randolph and even try to deny him the ball. If i had my druthers i would rather have Gasol shooting mid range than Zbo pulling up from his patented bump up and step back. He is just way too comfy there going right. I also keep a 7 footer on him all the time. Portland does have a number of them. I also feel the Blazers should move away from there leaving Lopez alone on the offensive boards tendency for at least short stretches. Other than Gasol, Portland can run a bigger lineup than these guys. If you play some Leonard with Freeland and Kaman we have what is called triple towers. They did this for a few minutes against Dallas. I wonder if that was just a tinker with the lineup or a look at what could happen?

If there is a game to steal it is usually the first one. Today's pick is Nic Batum. Many of us have said this for a long time. If there is an X Factor it is Batum. A big game from Nic and a win today does wonders for all of Blazerland!
Go Blazers! May Blazermania BEGIN!

Kjironman is a fan!!!

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BigGameDamian said:

Another problem is if Vince Carter gets hot there's no one on Portland's bench that's going to be able to slow him down. I would have liked to start Gee instead of Crabb. Just my opinion.

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Boob-No-More said:

Exactly when was the last time Vince Carter got hot?
BNM

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SlyPokerDog said:

KJ, I really enjoy these write ups that you do. Great job!

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S550 said:

I just hope win or loose dame is respectable out there

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PDXFonz said:

Is it 5 pm yet?....

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OneLifeToLive said:

I still don't think we have seen this best teams basketball. I think that the series, if it matters to them, will get it out of them. If Portland plays the way they can. That means Nic, Damian, LA and the rest. They can win this

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KingSpeed said:

It is here in Memphis

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OneLifeToLive said:

I still don't think we have seen this teams best basketball. I think that the series, if it matters to them, will get it out of them. If Portland plays the way they can. That means Nic, Damian, LA and the rest. They can win this

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Sinobas said:

7 people on our injury list! That is a Blazer playoff record as far as I can remember. But why isn't Conley and Allen listed on theirs? They are banged up too.

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MAS RipCity said:

Is this Batum's last chance as a Trail Blazer? I've been on the fence whether he should return next season, but always held out until the playoffs to see how he performs on the biggest stage - he was fantastic in the Houston series last year.

No Wes. No Arron. It's his time to shine. We all saw how good this team is when he's dialed in (Clippers comeback, anyone???). We need Nico and we need him to be aggressive and we need him to get RoLo going in the pick and roll. Who knows, maybe Gasol gets into early foul trouble because we're making him work on defense?

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Sinobas said:

7 people on our injury list! That is a Blazer playoff record as far as I can remember. But why isn't Conley and Allen listed on theirs? They are banged up too.

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