A Spur doing an awesome dunk? Meh.
So much for that anticipated rip-roaring start to the Rodeo Road Trip. It only gets tougher from hereon as we go up against the Blazermaniacs, to which we are a dreadful 0-2 in the season series. Jump in and discuss.
I have nothing so have an Oden moment.
(Insert customary Greg's Oden joke here)
Here's a little jinxing video for Portland (sorry Blazer fans, but we desperately need a win and get the team right...and at least Sam's already with the Nets on this one?)
This team seriously needs to come together.
"Team, I'm gonna keep it real. Just get me two wins on this trip and I'm calling it a season."
 San Antonio Spurs @ Portland Trail Blazers Where: Rose Garden - Portland, OR When: February 4, 2010, 9:30 PM Spurs time Watch: TNT
How They Stack Up
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Matchups
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 Blazers (29-22) |
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 George Hill No Love From Kelly Dwyer |
Point Guard Miller's a smart player, good distributor, and a big guard like Chauncey who can punish smaller PGs. And oh yeah, he went off for 52 points against the Mavs. With a defense as porous as the Spurs', we're dead meat, unless of course, we rediscover that old defensive magic. Advantage: Spurs |
 Andre Miller Mr. 52 Points |
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 Manu Ginobili Hubie: "Mano" |
Shooting Guard Yay, no Brandon Roy! (or so I assume) Bayless burned us the last time though, so I hope the coaching staff devised a plan to limit the kid. Advantage: Spurs |
 Jerryd Bayless Spurs Eater |
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 Richard Jefferson ??? |
Small Forward RJ has $14 million in the bank, and we don't so he probably doesn't care. Webster is a solid threat at both ends of the floor, and has been a bit more consistent for the Blazers. If RJ can channel his aggressive side for more than a few possessions, this will easily be in his favor. Somehow, I'm not convinced he will. Advantage: Neither |
 Martell Webster Preps-To-Pros |
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 Tim Duncan 20/10 |
Power Forward In case you didn't know, Timmy always gets the white box. This season, he's as good as ever, and nobody's been able to stop him. I like Aldridge, and he has all the physical tools to be a dominant PF. In fact, he's already one of the top PF's in the West, but he's not Timmy and never will be. Advantage: Spurs |
 LaMarcus Aldridge Athlete |
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 Antonio McDyess A Bit Washed Up |
Center It's a battle of old men. I can't even describe how exciting this will be. Advantage: Neither |
 Juwan Howard Washed Up |
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 Michael Finley Zombieland |
Bench & Role Players Blair is a monster and Blazer fans wished they could still turn back the clock. Fat chance, and they can't just keep plucking the good ones, y'know? In the end, BAM rules the world. Advantage: Spurs |
 Nicolas Batum Baby-Faced Frenchie |
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 Gregg Popovich Still Drunk |
CoachNate's been doing a great job, if somewhat unheralded, for several years. Both of these guys are having to deal with chemistry issues among some new additions, but Nate's job is made much harder by the injuries. Also, PtR member GhosTown hates Pop with a fury, at least for this season. Advantage: Blazers |
 Nate McMillan Great Coach |
| images via yahoo.com | ||
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Other Factors
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Intangibles |
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It doesn't matter if our opponent is missing its best player. We can't take advantage. AT. ALL. Advantage: Blazers |
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Mojo |
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The Blazers have disappointed due to key injuries. We have no mojo after nearly being T-Mac'd by Tyreke Evans. Or wait... maybe we do have one. See below. Advantage: Neither |
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Winner |
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| It's my birthday so I know we'll win (technically, it's the 5th but hey, not my fault that my country's a few hours ahead of everyone else). Well... that, and I'm crossing my fingers that we won't have to drop another season series. Ugh.
Prediction: Spurs win.
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Keys To The Game
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Strength of ScheduleBoth teams are playing the latter of half of their SEGABABAs. The Blazers lost to the Jazz the previous night so expect them to be a little more unwelcoming than the usual.
Last Time They MetThe last time we met, the Blazers -- Oden-less, Pryzbilla-less and Roy-less -- thumped us in a close game, in our home court to boot. And yes, they freaking got a crucial offensive rebound without a freaking center. |
Some Other ReadingBlazersBlazersedge - Here you'll find one of the busiest hoops blogs on SBN, including the most insane comment rate on game threads that you will ever find. Good luck keeping up with these guys, they're experts. Spurs48 Minutes of Hell: Best damn TrueHoop affiliate out there. Always a must visit Spurs site. |
Where to Tune In
TVThis game will be aired on TNT, so yay-yo. Do know that we actually play pretty bad on national television. If you have cable or satellite, you'll have to look up your individual channel. And of course, there's always League Pass for the haves. For the have nots, read on. OnlineAs always, NBA League Pass is recommended for those who are willing to pony up the cash. Most Spurs games will be broadcast there, which is especially helpful for those of us who aren't in the San Antonio area. This game is no exception. Please don't post links to illegal game feeds in the game thread. Links to illegal feeds are not permitted on SBNation, but you can probably find them out there on the internets if you're resourceful and desperate. In fact, nobody can stop you from googling "atdhe". You can also shoot an email to poundingtherockmail@yahoo.com for more assistance. NBA League Pass audio is still free this year, so check it out. RadioIf you're in the San Antonio area and aren't near a TV, tune in to WOAI (1200 AM). |
PtR Reminder: For you bored losers out there, we'll be having game threads for the All-Star Saturday and Sunday showcases, so make sure you check on the site. Wayne and LatinD will also be there to cover the whole shebang so it's gonna be a riot. And who knows, maybe Bakkie009 still has more revelations about himself.