Just a couple of hours after LaMarcus Aldridge found out that he was not going to be a starter in the All-Star game, he put together one of the best performances of his career. To top it all off, it was yet another game on TNT. It seems that every game involving the Blazers on national television involves LaMarcus Aldridge becoming superhuman. The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Denver Nuggets 110-105 and improved to 32-11 on the season and 17-4 at home.
With all the talk of LA’s performance, it is easy to forget how this game started. Portland was not playing particularly well. Denver was shooting 66% at one point and were swishing threes from anywhere on the court. At one point, Denver had a 12-point lead and had everyone in the arena scratching their heads. What also flipped the usual script of a Blazer game is that the Blazers came out hot. Wesley Matthews hit two three-pointers and led by as much as six in the early going of this game. You would think with the two swishes from Matthews that this would be a three-point shootout. Guess what, the Blazers only hit four three-pointers the whole night.
Denver made adjustments. Ty Lawson, one of the quickest point guards in the NBA, carved up the Blazers’ defense and Nate Robinson, Mr. Heat Check, had it going early. Portland didn’t seem to have an answer defensively. Whenever Portland tried to make a push, Denver would get two easy lay-ups at the rim. All of a sudden the Blazers are staring at a 10-point deficit with 0:14 remaining in the second quarter. The momentum started to shift when Wesley Matthews was fouled on a desperation half-court shot to beat the buzzer. He swished all three free-throws and Portland was able to go into the locker room with just an 8-point wall to climb.
In the third quarter, the defense cranked up. Nicolas Batum, whose defensive effort was overshadowed by LA’s big game, took Ty Lawson out of the game. In the entire second half, Ty Lawson was 0-for-5 and was non-existent. Denver started to crumble as the Blazers were converting more on their fouls and Portland was finally able to get consecutive stops, which had been an issue for the first half. With Lawson struggling to get involved, Denver was forced to have either Nate Robinson or Randy Foye bring the ball up and as Denver Head Coach Brian Shaw said, “the ball then just became stagnant”. The Blazers outscored the Nuggets by three in the third quarter and were only down by five. The momentum was shifting.
The fourth quarter really showed the dominance of Portland’s defense. There were two shot clocks violations that produced extra possessions for Portland and they also forced Denver into a couple of traveling calls, which was surprising to see. There was even an over-and-back call. The fourth quarter had everything. Enter LaMarcus Aldridge. He scored the last 15 points for the Blazers and was unconscious. With Denver not having JaVale McGee (I do not know if they would have helped anyway), LA abused the frontline of this Denver team. Aldridge got to the line four straight times at the end of the game to seal it up. You may find it annoying when the Moda Center chants M-V-P when LA is at the foul line, but you cannot argue with his effect on this team this season. He has become so dependable, especially in the fourth quarter, that you almost expect the Blazers to win any kind of game. It is also interesting that aside from one TNT game (Houston), the Blazers have had some entertaining matchups and LA dominance. While people may think that this was a statement game for LA, I think the Minnesota game on Saturday will be THE statement game if there ever is one.
Portland won again without the help of their normally friendly three-point line. Portland only went 4-for-18 and shot just 22%. Keep in mind that two of those threes came at the beginning of the game. The Blazers out-rebounded the Nuggets 40-35. It was funny to watch the Blazers slowly crawl their way up in the category. The Nuggets, at one point, were up 29-21 in rebounds. Denver went 10-for-23 and shot 44% on the evening from three. In the second quarter, that shot was automatic for the Nuggets and it felt like it was going to be a long night. Probably the most telling stat is the turnovers. The Blazers took care of the basketball for the most part, while the Nuggets had a whopping 19. In the fourth quarter, the Nuggets simply gave Portland too many opportunities to get back into this game and that stat is evidence of that. What is also impressive is that Portland went 30-for-34 and shot 88% from the FT line. Getting 14 extra shots on the FT line is mighty impressive and is one of the many reasons why the Blazers regained control over this game.
The obvious MVP is LaMarcus Aldridge. He finished the night with 44 points (a career high) on 15-for-29 shooting, 13 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. He also swished 14-of-17 from the line. Portland should play on TNT more often if LA plays at this level. In the fourth quarter, nothing could stop him. He was hitting from the top of the key, from the elbows and was bullying his way to the rim. He was fantastic tonight and I am running out of adjectives to connect to LA as Robin Lopez would say.
Nicolas Batum had a quiet game offensively, but he finished with 6 points on 1-for-5 shooting, 10 assists and 7 rebounds. Like I mentioned above, probably the biggest effect was the defense on Ty Lawson in the second half. Once Lawson was not able to run freely, the Denver offense was forced to a halt and the wheels came off. LA had a great game, but I wonder what this game would have been like if Batum had not stopped Lawson as he did.
Lastly, Wesley Matthews was the offensive horse throughout the game. He finished with 24 points on 8-for-15 shooting, 2-for-6 from three and 4 assists. Probably the most significant momentum shift, other than Damian Lillard’s fantastic dunk, was Batum’s alley-oop to Wesley out of a timeout. I do not know what it was, but the feeling in the building changed after that.
The Blazers will get a day off today before taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves tomorrow in their second matchup of the season. If you remember, the Timberwolves absolutely torched the Blazers in Minnesota. With Kevin Love also being named a starter over LA, this game should prove to be an excellent matchup. These two teams will tip off at the Moda Center at 7:00 p.m. PST. Stay tuned!