Monday, December 3, 2012
It's a Block Party !!!! .....
..... And EVERYBODY'S invited !!!!
| Portland Trailblazers at Dallas Mavericks | |||||
| Nov 5, 2012 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Portland (3-1) | 23 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 102 |
| Dallas (2-2) | 23 | 18 | 27 | 23 | 91 |
| Portland Trailblazers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Damian Lillard | 32 | 5-11 | 1-3 | 2-2 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
| Wesley Matthews | 33 | 5-9 | 3-5 | 2-2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Donte' Thomas | 34 | 8-16 | 1-3 | 1-2 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 18 |
| J.J. Hickson | 33 | 2-10 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Lamarcus Aldridge | 34 | 10-17 | 0-0 | 8-8 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 28 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Delonte' West | 19 | 1-4 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Randy Foye | 25 | 5-11 | 2-6 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| Jajuan Johnson | 20 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Tyler Honeycutt | 10 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Meyers Leonard | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Elliot Williams | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| Nolan Smith | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 36-80 | 8-19 | 22-24 | 55 | 24 | 2 | 12 | 8 | 102 | |
| Dallas Mavericks | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Darren Collison | 34 | 6-14 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| O.J. Mayo | 34 | 10-20 | 3-7 | 2-2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 |
| Shawn Marion | 31 | 4-5 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 34 | 3-12 | 1-4 | 2-2 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9 |
| Chris Kaman | 33 | 5-11 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 13 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Vince Carter | 19 | 4-8 | 1-3 | 2-2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Elton Brand | 14 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Jae Crowder | 12 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Rodrigue Beaubois | 15 | 3-10 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Dauntay Jones | 10 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Wright | 8 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Troy Murphy | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 38-89 | 5-16 | 10-12 | 39 | 22 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 91 | |
Michael Wilbon
ESPN.com
November 5, 2012
DALLAS -- It's not everyday Dirk Nowitzki goes 3-12 from the field and finishes with only 9 points and 7 rebounds... just tonight. It's not everyday a game in the NBA can be described as a Block Party... just tonight.
After giving up 100+ points in 3 consecutive games, the Blazers really tightened up defensively, holding the Mavericks to just 42% shooting from the field and allowing 91 points.
Lamarcus Aldridge continued his tear, finishing with 28 points and 15 rebounds, 6 offensive, and 10-17 shooting from the field. Dirk Nowitzki was doubled every time he touched the ball in the post, and the rotation by the Blazers was picture perfect for Head Coach Terry Stotts, as the Blazers kept shooters from getting hot by contesting many of the open jumpers.
"We did a much better job tonight on defense, especially on Dirk, we were able to rotate defenders on and off of him... he didn't shoot a great percentage and it worked out for us.
If we continue to play like this, we should be able to beat anybody in the league. Contributions from everyone across the board, still trying to find a way to get [Delonte'] West more opportunities, more pick and rolls for Hickson, the Lillard/Aldridge combo is deadly, in time, we'll be able to figure out things like that, but right now, we're looking pretty good, I think this was our best game so far this season," Head Coach Terry Stotts said.
The Blazers head back home for a 3 game home stand, starting Thursday against the LA Clippers.
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[Interviews]
[On-Court Interview]
Doris Burke: I'm here with Lamarcus Aldridge who finished the game with 28 points and 15 rebounds, you've been playing some of your best basketball this season, what's going on with you?
Lamarcus Aldridge: [Laughs] Ahh man, nothing, nothing at all. I'm just trying to do my part in helping this team win ball games, whether it's scoring, rebounding, defense, whatever. We have a really good team here, and I'm just trying to lead by example. My teammates are following suit, so whatever I can do out here, I'm gonna do it.
DB: You guys held Dirk to just 9 points, what were you guys able to do that was so effective defensively?
LA: We gave him a lot of looks defensively, doubled him from different areas of the court, put different defenders, we tried to make things tough for him. We knew that the team goes as he goes, and he's one of the best players in the game, and we just didn't want him beating us, and it worked out for us.
DB: The balance that you guys seem to be displaying on offense was apparent this game as well, how are you guys able to get points from everybody.
LA: You know, like I said, we have a good team here, we have a lot of guys who can go get buckets, but the offense will be there. Defense is where we want to make our mark, and if we can do that, we'll be an even scarier team.
DB: Ready to go home?
LA: [Laughs] Man!!!
=====
[Media Room]
Thomas: "It feels good to finish off a road trip with a win. Obviously, you want to continue the success you're having, and carry over the same energy, the same momentum into the next game, and hopefully we'll be able to do that against LA."
+++++
[Interviews]
[On-Court Interview]
Doris Burke: I'm here with Lamarcus Aldridge who finished the game with 28 points and 15 rebounds, you've been playing some of your best basketball this season, what's going on with you?
Lamarcus Aldridge: [Laughs] Ahh man, nothing, nothing at all. I'm just trying to do my part in helping this team win ball games, whether it's scoring, rebounding, defense, whatever. We have a really good team here, and I'm just trying to lead by example. My teammates are following suit, so whatever I can do out here, I'm gonna do it.
DB: You guys held Dirk to just 9 points, what were you guys able to do that was so effective defensively?
LA: We gave him a lot of looks defensively, doubled him from different areas of the court, put different defenders, we tried to make things tough for him. We knew that the team goes as he goes, and he's one of the best players in the game, and we just didn't want him beating us, and it worked out for us.
DB: The balance that you guys seem to be displaying on offense was apparent this game as well, how are you guys able to get points from everybody.
LA: You know, like I said, we have a good team here, we have a lot of guys who can go get buckets, but the offense will be there. Defense is where we want to make our mark, and if we can do that, we'll be an even scarier team.
DB: Ready to go home?
LA: [Laughs] Man!!!
=====
[Media Room]
Thomas: "It feels good to finish off a road trip with a win. Obviously, you want to continue the success you're having, and carry over the same energy, the same momentum into the next game, and hopefully we'll be able to do that against LA."
+++++
Houston, We Have A Solution
Thomas records first triple-double, leading Blazers to 112-104 victory
| Portland Trailblazers at Houston Rockets | |||||
| Nov 4, 2012 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Portland (2-1) | 36 | 21 | 30 | 25 | 112 |
| Houston (0-3) | 27 | 26 | 27 | 24 | 104 |
| Portland Trailblazers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Damian Lillard | 33 | 7-12 | 0-2 | 4-4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 18 |
| Wesley Matthews | 20 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Donte' Thomas | 35 | 7-10 | 0-1 | 6-6 | 11 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 20 |
| J.J. Hickson | 33 | 4-9 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| Lamarcus Aldridge | 37 | 4-10 | 3-7 | 0-0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 19 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Delonte' West | 26 | 7-9 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Randy Foye | 22 | 4-10 | 3-7 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| Jajuan Johnson | 15 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| Tyler Honeycutt | 10 | 1-3 | 1-1 | 1-2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Meyers Leonard | 5 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Elliot Williams | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| Will Barton | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 48-85 | 5-12 | 17-21 | 48 | 27 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 112 | |
| Houston Rockets | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Jeremy Lin | 36 | 3-7 | 1-1 | 3-5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| James Harden | 39 | 6-22 | 3-9 | 6-6 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 21 |
| Chandler Parsons | 33 | 5-9 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| Patrick Patterson | 32 | 7-11 | 0-1 | 3-4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Omer Asik | 34 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Marcus Morris | 17 | 5-11 | 0-1 | 2-3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 |
| Carlos Delfino | 18 | 3-4 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| Toney Douglas | 15 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Donatas Montiejunas | 15 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Daequan Cook | 6 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Terrence Jones | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cole Aldrich | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 39-84 | 8-19 | 18-22 | 46 | 29 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 104 | |
2 Hours Ago by Martellus Clark | ESPNportland
HOUSTON -- The Blazers won their first road game of the season tonight, defeating the Rockets 112-104 in Houston a night after losing in Oklahoma City. Led by Thomas's first triple double of the season {16th of career} the Blazers were able to hold off Houston's late rally attempt, after failing at that task against the Thunder.
The Blazers shot a season-high 52% from the field tonight, and had 6 players in double figures in scoring, including newly signed G Delonte' West (signed for 2 year/8.34 million) who finished with 15 points, on 7-9 shooting. Coach Stotts had this to say about the addition of West.
"He's a great ball player, and he gives us exactly what we need coming off the bench, he can score, he can play defense, and now he gives us another option of our closing lineup as well. He looked good out there, we'll teach him the system, get him a couple plays out there, so I think he'll be fine."
{That closing lineup Coach Stotts is talking about? The Blazers have used a different closing lineup in each game this season. Lakers: Lillard, Matthews, Thomas, Aldridge, Leonard. Thunder: Lillard, Matthews, Thomas, Hickson, Aldridge. Rockets: Lillard, West, Matthews, Thomas, Aldridge.}
The Blazers started the game off on a 9-0 run but couldn't seem to stop the Rockets from scoring runs, giving up multiple 8-0 runs. The Rockets hung around seemingly all game, as the 2nd unit provided them with efficient play, hustle and tough defense, also putting up 36 points in the process.
"We did a good job today of keeping them off the glass, we knew with Asik and Patterson, amongst others, they were gonna crash and possibly get around 15 offensive rebounds, I'm not sure how many they finished with, but our guys did a good job of boxing out and not giving up too many second chance points," Head Coach Terry Stotts said.
"Overall, it's our 3rd consecutive game giving up 100, and I don't like that all. We have to tight up defensively, I'll try to slow the offensive tempo down because we have the tools defensively to keep teams shooting 42-45% and at the same time, we have the tools to be able to score 110 points a game, we have the weapons, so we're going to have to find a balance. We've proved we can win the 110-105 type games, but championship teams don't give up 107 points a game, and that's what we need to not to.
It's a process."
Game Notes
Head Coach Terry Stotts was accessed with a technical foul for arguing with a referee about a non-call in the 3rd quarter.
+++++
Blazers Can't Hang On, Lose To Thunder
Thomas had an all-around game, but it wasn't enough to can't carry Blazers to victory.
| Portland Trailblazers (1-1) at Oklahoma City Thunder (1-1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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1 Hour Ago by Martellus Clark | ESPNportland
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Russell Westbrook was 6-14 shooting, Serge Ibaka didn't have a double-double, J.J. Hickson finished with 14 points and 15 rebounds, Aldridge and Thomas both scored more than 25, yet the Thunder found a way to win the game at home 111-107.
The difference? The bench. After having 37 points off the bench against the Lakers two nights ago, the Blazers were only able to muster 15 points against the Thunder. The Thunder did not have that same problem, as they erupted for 41, including 27 from Kevin Martin.
The Blazers were up the entire game, their biggest lead being 10, they were also up 4 with 2:57 left in the game, but the clutch contested baskets by both Kevin Durant and Kevin Martin were too much for the Blazers to overcome.
"We blew that game, we had it in our possession but they wanted it more.. so our guys just gave it to them," Head Coach Terry Stotts said.
"It's really tough to come into a building like this, against a team like this, and get a W, and it's going to be even harder knowing that we should be 2-0. To work that hard and be so close, and to have it slip away.. it's tough. We didn't get enough production off the bench, and we're still giving up too many points on defense, we have a lot of work to do to get to where we want to be, but the season's still young, so no need to worry now."
The Blazers need to quickly put this game behind them as they travel down south to take on a tough Houston team tomorrow night in their first back-to-back of the season.
Game Notes
The Thunder were 26-29 from the free-throw line, compared to 15-18 from the Blazers. The Blazers also had 0 fastbreak points.
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Interviews
[Media Room]
Thomas: It's tough. It really is... We have to find a way to close games out, and it starts on the defensive end. We'll learn from this experience, but we have to get ready for Houston tomorrow.
===========
[Locker Room]
Aldridge: I mean, I don't what needs to be said. We know what we didn't do, and we know what we did do. Hopefully, as the season goes along, we'll know what we did do, and we'll have no idea what we didn't do cause we did everything we needed to.
+++++
Interviews
[Media Room]
Thomas: It's tough. It really is... We have to find a way to close games out, and it starts on the defensive end. We'll learn from this experience, but we have to get ready for Houston tomorrow.
===========
[Locker Room]
Aldridge: I mean, I don't what needs to be said. We know what we didn't do, and we know what we did do. Hopefully, as the season goes along, we'll know what we did do, and we'll have no idea what we didn't do cause we did everything we needed to.
+++++
Blazers to Sign G Delonte West
A deal has not yet been reached, but it is expected to be done by early Friday.
1 Hour Ago | Associated Press
PORTLAND -- Delonte West will soon be apart of the Portland Trailblazers, after be waived by the Dallas Mavericks earlier in the preseason. West, who is believed to be the backup point guard behind Lillard, brings a much more complete game to the 2nd unit of the Blazers than that of current backup point guard, Nolan Smith. With the ability to defend around the perimeter, and score, West adds more firepower to a Blazers bench which now features 4 newcomers: West, Foye, Honeycutt**, and Johnson.
(** - Honeycutt was acquired via trade with Sacramento. Portland receives: Tyler Honeycutt; Sacramento receives: 2013 2nd Round Draft pick.)
Aldridge Explodes in Season Opener
Thomas's first points of the season was a steal that led to a breakaway dunk
| Los Angeles Lakers at Portland Trailblazers | |||||
| Oct 31, 2012 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Los Angeles (1-1) | 29 | 24 | 29 | 28 | 110 |
| Portland (1-0) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 37 | 121 |
| Los Angeles Lakers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Steve Nash | 35 | 6-8 | 0-0 | 5-5 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Kobe Bryant | 40 | 15-28 | 0-2 | 5-6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 35 |
| Metta World Peace | 35 | 2-10 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Pau Gasol | 34 | 4-12 | 0-1 | 2-3 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Dwight Howard | 38 | 10-12 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 23 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Antwan Jamison | 18 | 4-10 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Jordan Hill | 13 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Darius Morris | 8 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jodie Meeks | 10 | 2-3 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Devin Ebanks | 7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Duhon | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Steve Blake | 4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 44-88 | 3-8 | 19-24 | 42 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 110 | |
| Portland Trailblazers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Damian Lillard | 33 | 5-13 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Wesley Matthews | 29 | 2-6 | 1-2 | 5-5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Donte' Thomas | 35 | 12-28 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 24 |
| J.J. Hickson | 30 | 2-7 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Lamarcus Aldridge | 36 | 14-18 | 0-0 | 6-6 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Randy Foye | 23 | 7-14 | 6-10 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Jajuan Johnson | 18 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Nolan Smith | 15 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Tyler Honeycutt | 13 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 3-4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Meyers Leonard | 14 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Elliot Williams | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Will Barton | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 48-98 | 9-20 | 16-20 | 56 | 30 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 121 | |
Michael Wilbon
ESPN.com
October 31, 2012
PORTLAND -- When somebody on the team has it going.. when somebody on the team has the hot hand, you feed them the rock, and that's exactly what the Blazers did with Lamarcus Aldridge. Aldridge finished the game with 34 points on 14-18 shooting, and pulled down 11 rebounds in the process, 5 of them being offensive, in the Blazers home win against the Lakers 121-110.
The game was back and forth all night as neither team was able to get a comfortable lead. Kobe did what Kobe does, 35 points on 15-28 shooting, but just couldn't get enough from his teammates. In the fourth quarter, Portland put their best perimeter defender, Thomas, on Bryant and it paid off, as Bryant went 3-9 in the quarter, as the Lakers gave up 37 points in the 4th with little offense.
Thomas, in his first regular season game back from injury, was 12-28 from the field, but managed to post his usual 'almost triple-double' numbers doing posting up 24 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Coach Stotts had this to say about his team's performance.
"I'm proud of our guys, we did an excellent job holding off a good team, especially a team like the Lakers, but we have to look at the bigger picture and that's we're not going to win many games giving up 110 points. We would like to keep teams in the 90-95 range, so we'll continue working on defense in practice, and possibly slowing the tempo down offensively. Our transition defense needs to get better, and we absolutely have to contest every shot that's taken.
Outside of that, offensively we did a good job getting offensive rebounds and second chance points. Foye gave us a spark off the bench, Honeycutt came in and provided too, our bench did exceptional today. As a whole, if we can tighten up defensively, we should be alright.
The Trailblazers are off for a 3 game road trip, starting Friday against the Western Conference champions, Oklahoma City Thunder.
Game Notes
The Trailblazers had 56 rebounds (15 offensive) out-rebounding the Lakers by 14. The Trailblazers also had 37 points off the bench, 20 from Foye.
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Interviews
[On-Court Post Game Interview with Aldridge]
Doris Burke: Lamarcus, you put up 34 points on Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard tonight, also hitting a high percentage of your shots... what made you so effective against those bigs tonight?
Lamarcus Aldridge: I just played my game. I played Lamarcus Aldridge basketball, we played Portland Trailblazer basketball, and we came together tonight and wanted to start the season off right, and that's what we did. My teammates put me in a good position all night, and I was able to capitalize...
DB: It just seemed like every offensive rebound opportunity was going your way, you racked up 5 tonight, especially in critical moments, is that something you've been working on this off-season.
LA: It is! I wanted to get easy opportunities, and I wanted to be a better rebounder, so spent the summer just fighting in the trenches, just going after the ball. Coach says our 120% effort given will be 20% better than what our opponent will be giving, so we come out and fight, and tonight it paid off for us.
DB: What did you think of the new guys? Thomas, Lillard, Foye....
LA: They came up big tonight. I think Foye hit like five 3's or something like that, and Thomas and Lillard for being young guys did extremely well. I'm expecting big things from them this season. We have a good team here.
DB: Is this something we'll see all season from you?
LA: Definitely.
+++++
[Media Room]
Thomas: I wasn't nervous, it's what I do, there's nothing to be nervous about when you know what you're doing, and you have to do is go out there and execute. They doubled hard on LA {Lamarcus Aldridge} tonight, and I got alot of open looks and they just didn't fall... Nothing else to say about that. Just gotta knock them down..."
Interviews
[On-Court Post Game Interview with Aldridge]
Doris Burke: Lamarcus, you put up 34 points on Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard tonight, also hitting a high percentage of your shots... what made you so effective against those bigs tonight?
Lamarcus Aldridge: I just played my game. I played Lamarcus Aldridge basketball, we played Portland Trailblazer basketball, and we came together tonight and wanted to start the season off right, and that's what we did. My teammates put me in a good position all night, and I was able to capitalize...
DB: It just seemed like every offensive rebound opportunity was going your way, you racked up 5 tonight, especially in critical moments, is that something you've been working on this off-season.
LA: It is! I wanted to get easy opportunities, and I wanted to be a better rebounder, so spent the summer just fighting in the trenches, just going after the ball. Coach says our 120% effort given will be 20% better than what our opponent will be giving, so we come out and fight, and tonight it paid off for us.
DB: What did you think of the new guys? Thomas, Lillard, Foye....
LA: They came up big tonight. I think Foye hit like five 3's or something like that, and Thomas and Lillard for being young guys did extremely well. I'm expecting big things from them this season. We have a good team here.
DB: Is this something we'll see all season from you?
LA: Definitely.
+++++
[Media Room]
Thomas: I wasn't nervous, it's what I do, there's nothing to be nervous about when you know what you're doing, and you have to do is go out there and execute. They doubled hard on LA {Lamarcus Aldridge} tonight, and I got alot of open looks and they just didn't fall... Nothing else to say about that. Just gotta knock them down..."
Aldridge and Thomas Lead Blazers to Preseason Victory
Lamarcus Aldridge had the hot hand, scoring 28 points on 10-15 shooting
| Utah Jazz at Portland Trailblazers | |||||
| Oct 20, 2012 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Utah (0-1) | 28 | 19 | 31 | 25 | 103 |
| Portland (1-1) | 28 | 25 | 22 | 30 | 105 |
| Utah Jazz | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mo Williams | 36 | 5-19 | 0-2 | 7-7 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 17 |
| Gordon Hayward | 34 | 5-8 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Marvin Williams | 35 | 7-17 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 |
| Paul Millsap | 34 | 5-10 | 0-0 | 6-7 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 16 |
| Al Jefferson | 31 | 10-20 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Derrick Favors | 23 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Raja Bell | 12 | 2-3 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Alec Burks | 18 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Jamaal Tinsley | 6 | 2-3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Enes Kanter | 10 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Earl Watson | 6 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Demarre Carroll | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 40/89 | 5/12 | 18/21 | 43 | 27 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 103 | |
| Portland Trailblazers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Damian Lillard | 33 | 2-18 | 0-6 | 0-0 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Wesley Matthews | 37 | 6-14 | 2-6 | 2-3 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 |
| Donte' Thomas | 38 | 9-17 | 1-2 | 3-5 | 10 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 22 |
| Lamarcus Aldridge | 34 | 10-15 | 0-0 | 8-8 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 |
| J.J. Hickson | 36 | 2-7 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Randy Foye | 22 | 6-11 | 3-7 | 3-3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Jajuan Johnson | 19 | 3-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Nolan Smith | 16 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Will Barton | 4 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Meyers Leonard | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Elliot Williams | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| Joel Freeland | -- DID NOT PLAY -- | |||||||||
| TEAM TOTALS | 39/90 | 6/21 | 21/24 | 43 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 105 | |
1 Hour Ago by Martellus Clark| ESPNportland
PORTLAND -- The Blazers did just enough to hang on in their preseason matchup against the Utah Jazz tonight, defeating the Jazz 105-103 in front of their hometown faithful.
Led by Lamarcus Aldridge's 28 points (14 in the fourth) and 9 rebounds, the Blazer's were able to steal the game back after blowing an 11 point 3rd quarter lead. Thomas, in his first game back from a broken forearm injury last season, posted a triple double, scoring 24 points on 52% shooting, dishing out 12 assists and pulling down 10 rebounds.
"I felt good out there, I could've done a better job on the defensive side of the ball, I gave up too many points to [Marvin] Williams, but over time, I'll get my legs back under me, and I should be good," Donte' Thomas.
The defensive gameplan was to try and keep the ball away from the post and into Williams's hand for an outside shot. He proved he would be able to hit from beyond the arc, shooting 4-6 from deep.
Randy Foye provided the much needed spark off the bench. After scoring 0 points in the first half, Foye would finish the game with 18, while shooting 3-7 from the 3-point line. Rookie guard Damian Lillard had a rough outing, finishing with only 4 points on a whopping 2-18 from the field.
"I liked Lillard's activity. I'm not going to read too much into his shooting performance, it just wasn't his game. He had a ton of great oppurtunites, a lot of open shots and they just didn't fall tonight, and the more he missed in a row, the more it looked like it became a mental thin, but he knows we want him to continue doing what he did, attacking the basket, taking those midrange jumpers, and continue to force the defense to react. That's the only way we're going to succeed," Head Coach Terry Stots said.
"Overall, it was good performance from our guys, we came out in the first half, and did what we wanted to do offensively and defensively, we contested shots, we fought for rebounds, we did alot of the little things. The third quarter, not so much, I think we gave up like a 14-0 run or something like that, and we didn't recover from that until the 4th. We gave up too any open jumpers, and our transition defense is something we'll need work on, because we can't give teams any easy oppurtunities."
The Blazers are off to play Denver for their next preseason matchup.
Meet Thomas; Donte' Thomas
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Donte' Thomas is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Portland Trailblazers. During his collegiate career where he starred at UConn alongside Kemba Walker, he had career averages of 14ppg, 7rpg and 4apg. He was highly recruited out of high school, and his final decision came down to UConn where he chose the Huskies over UCLA, Arizona, Indiana, Duke and North Carolina.
During his junior year at UConn he averaged 17ppg, 9rpg and 4apg where he was named an NCAA All-American alongside teammate Kemba Walker. Although Kemba Walker was the star of the team, many believed Thomas was the better player because of his all-around contributions, and rightfully so, he was drafted in the First Round 7th Pick by the Portland Trailblazers, 2 picks ahead of college teammate Kemba Walker.
In his rookie year, Thomas averaged 22ppg 6rpg, and 6apg, the only rookie to a average at least 22+, 6+ and 6+ since since the Big O, Oscar Robertson. His season would be cut short due to a broken left forearm, where he would eventually miss the last 29 games of the season. Thomas was also selected to the All-NBA Rookie First Team.
"He reminds me much of myself, even as a rookie, but just a different brand, he's definitely more physical than I was... He's got good ball handling skills, which I expect to improve over the course of time, his rebounding is decent, if he put the work in this summer he should average alot more, last year I think he just tried to out jump players, [this summer he's been working with Hakeem and Shaq], and one of the things I love most about him is he is a flat out scorer... Oooowee can this kid score. He can take you to the hole, he can knock down the mid range, or he can beat you with bullyball on the block. He's pretty much a walking triple-double every time he steps out there on the floor," Hall of Famer Magic Johnson said.
Returning from injury, Thomas, alongside NBA All-Star Lamarcus Aldridge, are expected to lead this young group of Blazers (average age is 24) back to playoffs.
• Thomas in recent weeks, recently signed with Jordan Brand, and is expected to have a signature shoe this season.
• Thomas wears #11 in honor of his uncle, Isiah Thomas.
• Thomas recorded 6 triple-doubles in his rookie season.
• Thomas's game has been compared to LeBron James, James Harden, Rudy Gay and Paul George.
===========
VITALS
Name: Donte' Thomas
Height: 6'9
Weight: 231 lbs.
Play Style: All-Around
Secondary Position: Power Forward
College: Conneticut
Personality: Laid Back
Play Type: Mid Range
Play Type 2: Post Up High
Play Type 3: Isolation
Play Type 4: P&R Handler
Play Initiation: Yes
ATTRIBUTES
Overall: 87
Shot Inside: 78
Shot Close: 76
Shot Medium: 84
Shot 3PT: 73
Free Throw: 77
Layup: 78
Dunk: 83
Standing Dunk: 68
Shoot In Traffic: 72
Post Fadeaway: 77
Post Hook: 73
Shoot off Dribble: 76
Ball Handling: 79
Off Hand Dribbling: 75
Ball Security: 73
Pass: 77
Block: 69
Steal: 64
Hands: 81
On Ball Defense: 91
Off Rebound: 61
Def Rebound: 73
Low Post Offense: 80
Low Post Defense: 71
Offensive Awareness: 70
Defensive Awareness: 70
Consistency: 82
Stamina: 96
Speed: 87
Quickness: 80
Strength: 76
Vertical: 91
Hustle: 86
Durability: 90
Potential: 95
Emotion: 99
CONTRACT
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
2.67 million 2.98 million 3.37 million
Game: NBA 2K13
Platform: XBOX 360
Sliders: VTCRB and EAGLEROCK
Roster: VTCRB and EAGLEROCK
Current Draft Class: EXOGENESIS and VTCRB
Season Length: 82 Games
Playoff Formatting: 7-7-7-7
Player Roles: On
Chemistry: On
Difficulty: Hall of Fame
30 Team User Control is ON
Platform: XBOX 360
Sliders: VTCRB and EAGLEROCK
Roster: VTCRB and EAGLEROCK
Current Draft Class: EXOGENESIS and VTCRB
Season Length: 82 Games
Playoff Formatting: 7-7-7-7
Player Roles: On
Chemistry: On
Difficulty: Hall of Fame
30 Team User Control is ON
| Team Roster | ||||||
| # | NAME | POS | AGE | HT | WT | SALARY |
| 12 | LaMarcus Aldridge | PF | 27 | 6-11 | 240 | |
| 8 | Luke Babbit | SF | 23 | 6-9 | 225 | |
| 5 | Will Barton | SG | 21 | 6-5 | 170 | |
| 19 | Joel Freeland | PF | 25 | 6-10 | 225 | |
| 20 | Randy Foye | SG | 29 | 6-4 | 225 | |
| 21 | J.J. Hickson | C | 24 | 6-9 | 242 | |
| 7 | Jajuan Johnson | PF | 23 | 6-10 | 221 | |
| 1 | Jared Jeffries | PF | 31 | 6-11 | 240 | |
| 10 | Meyers Leonard | C | 20 | 7-1 | 245 | |
| 2 | Wesley Matthews | SG | 26 | 6-5 | 220 | |
| 24 | Ronnie Price | PG | 29 | 6-2 | 190 | |
| 4 | Nolan Smith | PG | 24 | 6-2 | 185 | |
| 11 | Donte' Thomas | SF | 22 | 6-9 | 230 | |
| 9 | Elliot Williams | SG | 23 | 6-5 | 180 | |
| Portland Trailblazers Depth Chart - 2012 | ||||
| STARTER | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | |
| PG | Damian Lillard | Nolan Smith | Ronnie Price | |
| SG | Wesley Matthews | Randy Foye | Elliot Williams | Will Barton |
| SF | Donte' Thomas | Will Barton | Elliot Williams | Luke Babbit |
| PF | Lamarcus Aldridge | Jajuan Johnson | Meyers Leonard | Joel Freeland |
| C | J.J. Hickson | Meyers Leonard | Jared Jeffries | Joel Freeland |
Welcome fellas, this is my first dynasty that I will be doing, and I'm actually pretty excited for it. This dynasty though, will not be like any others (or any that I know of)... Let me explain why and how I will be doing this dynasty. I am a MyPlayer guy, but have seemed to fallen out of love with the mode in 13 because there was just too many problems, and too much dumb stuff going on within the league. So I decided to give association another chance (I used to strictly be an offline association guy) but once I get into Association, I start missing MyPlayer and once I get back into MyPlayer, I miss Association. If only 2K could combine the two.... Which is exactly what I will be doing. Playvision will be on, plays will be set to automatic, I DO NOT SPAM THE A BUTTON or look to score 50 points every game, I play the game as if this 2K world is real, and I play exactly as if I was in the NBA. My created player is basically an Overall 87 version of myself, I tried making the player as close to my skill set as possible, for example, I'm a streaky shooter from the outside, but not that great, the rating I gave myself was 73. I will be using player lock on my player whenever he is in the game, I do not cheese and I do not abuse any moves. With myself being a SF, when I take myself out, I will still be on Player Lock with whomever the SF is at the time.
All trades will be posted in the OS Trade Finder thread, before the trigger is pulled.
Welcome, to the Rip City R!SE
Follow the actual dynasty page here: http://www.operationsports.com/forum...s-journey.html
Welcome, to the Rip City R!SE
Follow the actual dynasty page here: http://www.operationsports.com/forum...s-journey.html
d11king
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