Aldridge Knows That As He Goes, So Go The Trail Blazers

MEMPHIS – Though Game 1 versus the Grizzlies in Memphis wasn’t LaMarcus Aldridge’s best playoff performance — that’s a rather high bar to clear considering the way he played versus the Rockets this time last year — he was one of only a few Trail Blazers who you could reasonably say had a “good” game Sunday night. His 32 points on 34 attempts couldn’t be categorized as efficient, though when the rest of your team goes a combined 19-of-61 from the field and you end up trailing by as many as 29, you don’t have much choice as your team’s best player but to take a lot of shots, be they open or otherwise.


Not to mention that he held Zach Randolph to 16 points on 6-of-19 shooting, grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked four shots while playing a game-high 42 minutes. So as far as individual performances go, it’s tough to look at Aldridge’s in Game 1 and come away thinking he let his team down, rather than the other way around.


But while his raw statistical output was the only reason the Trail Blazers didn’t lose by 30, the 6-11 power forward said the way he started the game set a tone for his teammates that might have detracted from their collective performance. If he had been more calm and deliberate in the early going, perhaps they would have followed suit. Instead, he felt as though he forced the issue far too often, which ended up being contagious.


“It’s definitely one of our worst (offensive performances) because guys just rushed,” said Aldridge Tuesday prior to Portland’s practice at FedExForum. “Even myself, I was so anxious to be in the moment and be out here that even I was rushing early. When I finally slowed down and I started playing more under control then I got better. If I’ve been here, I’m the leader of this team and I’m playing too fast, then every other guy is probably following my lead. So I’m going to do better at setting the tone tomorrow night of playing in a better rhythm, making the extra pass and just trying to get guys more confident.”


One of the benefits of Terry Stotts’ “flow” offense is that it gives players the freedom to adjust on the fly in order to get the most out of ball and player movement. It lacks rigidity, resulting in a beneficial unpredictability that can make it very effective even against the most disciplined defenses. But the downside is that it requires players to make quick decisions based off of spit-second assessments of the defense, which can be difficult in a high-pressure situation of, say,Game 1 of a first round playoff series versus an opponent that you haven’t beaten in your last four ties. When that happens, players tend to go with their first, most comfortable inclination rather than going through their progressions, resulting Sunday night in an offense than was much more predictable and far less effective than it should be.


“I thought everybody competed offensively and defensively pretty well, but I think just be more confident, slow down a little bit,” said Aldridge of what the team needed needed to change in Game 2. “I felt like we had reads that we didn’t take advantage of and I feel like, just make more reads… I think we got so locked in into just doing the things that we know how to do that we didn’t play basketball.”


Aldridge put that onus on himself, saying that as the leader of the team, he can’t expect his teammates, especially the younger players getting their first real taste of playoff basketball, to be cool, calm and collected if he, a seasoned veteran, was unable to keep himself in check.


“This team looks to me,” said Aldridge. “Some guys do it vocally, some guys don’t, but I know the way I play and the way I lead is going to affect this team. I came out a little off and then Dame tried to find his shot and he was a little off. I think I never slowed down and I never settled down to get us back in rhythm. I think next game, I’ll be better at that.”


Which, in the end, might be more important than Aldridge simply playing better come Game 2. After all, even players of Aldridge’s caliber are going to have an off night every now and then, but if he’s able to instill confidence in his teammates by playing the right way, the Trail Blazers stand a much better chance of winning the series, even if Aldridge’s shots aren’t falling.


“I think (being a leader) is just natural now,” said Aldridge. “I know that everything I do, it means a lot out there, I know that guys are looking to me. I think that last game, I wanted to get going so bad that I probably pressed a little bit more or I took shots that were there, but I probably didn’t take them in the right rhythm. So I know that next game, if we’re not going so well offensively, I’m not going to just look for myself. I’m going to try to get other guys going, too.”


Casey Holdahl Beat Writer
Portland Trail Blazers

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