The Blazers won 113-98 Predictions - Prediction Results Game Thread Brians Forensic writeup Most impressive Blazer - Most dissapointing Blazer
I voted Wes, a rare double double for a SG. Perfect from 3. Efficient shooting. Solid defense. You could make a great case for any of our starters outside of Lopez, but after game1 I was very worried about Wes performance so his moster quarter was the most unexpected. The games are much more fun to follow after a win!
Not statistically of course, but Freeland was the hustle player of the game. Some huge O rebounds and defensive plays. If he starts finishing shots better we've really got something.
I was impressed by Freeland. Dave at Blazersedge said it well, he didn't carry the team or anything but he was quite competent on the floor and allowed the other 4 players to do their thing. Last year our bench couldn't do that. But when a guy shoots 1/7 I had to give the game ball to someone else. Hopefully Joel can build on his performance. Joel has a chance to eat into his starters minutes as Lopez is struggling the most of any starter. It could turn into more of a split timeshare between the two. That is an amazing situation when you think of how we viewed Joel a month ago. He barely made the list of the top 500 NBA players with tons of unsigned scrubs ranked ahead of him.
I was mainly impressed with Matthews. Lillard and Aldridge will be our constant workhorses, but we will have that X factor starter. Matthews was that player last night. I'm so glad he came out with something to prove. I'm sure many were concerned with him, and I'm not talking about this forum. I think he wanted to put the concerns to rest with last night's performance. I hope he keeps it up. My second player has to be batum. Another X factor starter and he really set the tone early with his great 1st quarter. He was also very proficient defensively throughout the entire game as well.
This (thankfully) was a tough decision. It could have been Batum, who helped us get and stay ahead early. Damian to give us the nice cushion going into half, or Freeland and Matthews when Joel got the big O boards and fed Matthews a couple of times. Or LMA for providing the daggers. In the end, I went with Matthews, because damn. He was just money last night. Love seeing guys get career highs!!!
Nic's start was huge. But Wes deserves the game ball. Dame and LA also played very well. Actually the whole team had their moments. Some whose shots did not fall, still played pretty well.
This could have easily gone to any one of four or five guys. I picked Wes because I was so glad to see him back to his old self. Nic was huge. Dame was huge. Aldridge was money down the stretch, but Wes had been struggling since the preseason and I think this was a very good sign that he's turning things around.
