A very impressive back-to-back home and home series against the Sacramento Kings for the Blazers as the Blazers beat the Kings in both games. I must confess I did not get a chance to watch game 1 of this mini-series so I will do what I can analyzing game 1, but tonight was something to watch. After a poor defensive outing against Houston earlier in the week, the Blazers were able to come out strong in these two games and put on a nice defensive effort. Robin Lopez may not show up in the stats sheet, but just the mere fact that there is a 7-footer in the paint can do so much for a team. It forces guards driving to change their shot just enough. There is also that mental game where eventually people do not want to drive into the lane as they are scared of the potential block. Let’s get into some statistics and see how the Blazers fared in both games.
Let’s start with Damian Lillard as he probably has the most glaring difference in stat lines. In game 1, he had 22 points on 5-for-13 shooting, 4-for-9 from three, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists with just 2 turnovers. He is going to get a triple-double this year. Rebounds have been an impressive stat to watch with him as it has slowly climbed to a point where it is definitely noticeable. You expect your point guard to maybe get 2 to 3 rebounds a game, but once you consistently rebound over 5 a game, that is impressive. Lillard has unearthed lots of new skills this season, but alongside the defense, I think the rebounding has been a very nice addition and one I was not expecting. Unfortunately, he did not duplicate this stat line in game 2 where he had 4 points on the night and was the only Blazer in the starting lineup NOT in double-figures. He shot an abysmal 1-for-15, 0-for-5 from three, but he did contribute with 6 rebounds and 6 assists with only 1 turnover. He had some nice cross court passes to Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum for open threes that made you forget his horrible shooting night and was able to still make his presence felt. Honestly, I think it was a little bit of bad luck. Some of his shots went around and out and it seemed like he couldn’t get his rhythm going. The Kings were also able to guard the paint well to the point where Lillard wasn’t able to get his free-throws in. Lillard has still been impressive as hell and I fully expect him to have a comeback game against the Pistons on Monday.
LaMarcus Aldridge keeps trucking along as he has been the Blazers’ rock so far this season. In game 1 he scored 20 points on 10-for-20 shooting and had 7 rebounds. Again, we take this guy for granted every night, but we honestly forget sometimes how dependable he really is. There is rarely a game where he doesn’t takeover at some point or is able to hit a clutch shot. What is more impressive is the fact that it seems like he is getting more and more un-guardable. He is able to hit that fadeaway shot of his while having two to three people on him. He is definitely in the prime of his career and what is becoming apparent is the chemistry between him and Damian Lillard. It is becoming a very Tim Duncan-Tony Parker type chemistry that I really hope will continue to build. In game 2, there was more of the same as he scored 22 points on 10-for-19 shooting and had 14 rebounds. LA was on from the start and was able to carry the Blazers through the first half and give them a commanding hold on the game. I was really happy that he was going to the rim early when his shot was not falling and was able to draw fouls or get a lay-up for an easy bucket. I know Blazer fans would like to see him do that more and were probably happy to see that kind of aggression from him tonight. Again, it seemed like the Kings could not guard him. Now I know it is the Kings, but it definitely feels like LA took a leap from last year and has become an almost unstoppable force.
Wesley Matthews has been a King crusher. He averaged 16 points against them last season and is averaging 18 points and 7 rebounds against them this season. The problem has been that he hasn’t had a lot of backup. He would torch the kings for 25 points, but it would be for nothing as the Blazers would not be able to finish. Both games we were able to do that and I would not be surprised if the Kings are tired of seeing him. Wesley’s determination on the glass has to be commended. He has been able to grab some very key offensive rebounds and to be an irritant when it comes to that aspect of the game. When you have three or four guys fighting so hard for the ball, more often than not you will get the ball back. Those add up and it is nice to see that this aspect of his game didn’t wait until after the all-star break where it might not matter or it was a little late to make a difference. This is right at the beginning of the season and making an immediate impact! After my little comment about him not doing anything last week, he seems to be completely coming into his own.
Robin Lopez (and his hair) has been rock solid. In game 1, he had 11 points on 4-for-8 shooting, 4 rebounds and 1 block. I did not get a chance to watch the game, but from what I hear, he made an impressive impact just by being in the game, by affecting shots, making players think twice, or forcing players to dribble themselves into bad positions where they would have to hoist up a bad mid-range shot or would simply cause an empty possession. Tonight, in game 2, he had his best statistical game as a Blazer as he had 12 points on 4-for-10 shooting and 10 rebounds. Lopez was able to shut down DeMarcus Cousins for the first half and was able to affect Cousins enough to cause Cousins to grab two quick fouls and be forced to sit down. Lopez looks a lot more comfortable now than he did just a few games ago. He seems to be that enforcer that the Blazers so desperately needed and seems to relishing in it. He loves the fact that he doesn’t need to score so that he can focus more on discouraging people from coming into the paint. You are also starting to see the effects of having two big guys in the paint in LA and Lopez as teams are having a hard time weaving their way through traffic for an easy lay-in. More often than not, their shot gets blocked or they hoist up a bad fadeaway shot that barely makes it in. Credit to Robin Lopez. I am excited to watch him this season as I love those physical players who are able to force people to settle for bad shots.
Nicolas Batum has been doing everything and was able to hit a clutch three-pointer to seal the Kings run in game 2. In game 1, Batum had 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting, 3-for-6 from three, 7 rebounds, and 8 assists with just 2 turnovers. In game 2, he, yet again, did everything as he had 12 points on 4-for-9 shooting, 2-for-4 from three, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists. Batum was able to ice the game for the most part as a steal by the Blazers was able to fall into the hands of Batum for a far-side three that was able to quell any sort of run the Kings were making at the time. I like the balance of his stat sheet. 10-15 points with 5-9 rebounds and 6-7 assists. I think that is right where he wants to be and I think that potential is finally starting to be shown. As long as he doesn’t get any weird injuries (knock on wood) he is going to very effective not just from a statistical standpoint, but from a defensive standpoint as well. For example, in game 2, Isaiah Thomas had hit about 3 straight shots and was becoming a bit of a problem. Head coach Terry Stotts put Batum on him and Thomas ended with 12 points. That is effectiveness.
I have to give credit to DeMarcus Cousins as he was really the only Kings player to give the Blazers grief. He had 33 points on 13-for-24 shooting and 12 rebounds. On a night where I thought we had shut Cousins down as he couldn’t seem to find his shot and was getting bogged down by defenders, he was able to turn it on in the 4th quarter and was able to put some impressive moves on Robin Lopez to make it a game.
Overall, what I can take away from both games is growth from the Blazers. I would not think that we could win a back-to-back home and home series against the Kings as the Kings have been able to give us grief for whatever reason. Glad to see that the Blazers are finally starting to take care of teams that are obviously worse than they are. That was probably the most frustrating part of last season. You would beat a team like the Spurs and then a couple of days later lose to the Wizards. That part of our season needs to be cleaned up and it is looking that way. Defense has also improved as in both games the Blazers held the Kings under 50% shooting. That may not seem like much, but when teams are shooting 60% against you, you’ll take it. The Blazers were drilled in between the Houston and first Sacramento game in their transition defense and it has showed. There is still the lingering free-throw problem as the Blazers shot only 68% from the line. You have to convert those or they will come back to bite you. Look at the Houston game.
The next game will be against the Detroit Pistons on Monday at 7:00 PM PST. This will be another test of beating a team that is probably worse than you and a game that you should take control of on your home floor. Stay tuned!