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

Reserved for me!

 

Time for a little payback! Let's even out the season series with an ass kicking sweep!

 

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!!!

 

I just hope win or loose dame is respectable out there

 

GO BLAZERS!!

 

I don't think we have a chance in this series and am trying very hard to not get emotionally involved taking a nothing to lose attitude, but it is not working. Probably will spend whole day thinking about the game and tip off can't come soon enough.

Go Blazers!

 

I'll be in flight from Chicago to Portland tonight when the game is on. I just signed up for the Sling TV 7-day free trial offer so I can watch the game live on my tablet. I wonder how many other Blazer fans will be watching the game on my flight.

BNM

 

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.

 

Exactly when was the last time Vince Carter got hot? The guy shot .333 FG% for the season and less than .300 3FG%.

Not worried. I'd rather Vince be jacking up shots than just about anyone on the MEM roster.

BNM

 

Put the fucking paint chips down, BGD... "(paint chips) are for closers!"

 

Given our current players available, and our opponent, we should play to our strengths.

This means utilizing primarily a big lineup and letting our mediocre backup guards warm the pines as often as possible.

 

Circa 2008?

 

Two things I'm looking for this series:

1) Freeland vs. Biebs - who gets the nod?
I'm hoping Biebs can draw their bigs away from the basket. ZBo has no desire to guard the 3, and if Gasol guards him out there it's taking DPOY away from the paint, which is a very good thing.

2) Can CJ continue his romp?
We're really going to need CJ's scoring off the bench. Will he continue to be aggressive. Will he be successful?

 

Yes he does I agree

 

So you'd rather have Lillard score 40 and lose than have Lillard score 8 and win?

 

Is it 5 pm yet?....

 

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

 

It is here in Memphis