As I sit at my desk and write this article, our Portland Trailblazers are trying desperately to claw back from a 12 point deficit against the much hated Lakers. The scene in the Staples Center, an all too familiar one since the injury to Brandon Roy. The young and scrappy Blazers jump out to a quick start, not unlike a young colt jumps out of the gate, with zeal, and at times oblivious to the fact that they aren’t supposed to win. But as we all know it’s not always the quickest horse out of the gate that wins. More often than not it’s the jockey that takes advantage of their opponents mistakes, waits for their moment, and seizes their opportunity. And always, I repeat, ALWAYS finishes strong. The point being that no matter the athletic competition, experience, confidence, and above all, strategy can often balance the scales against physical ability. And when the Blazers leader and captain Roy, crumpled to the floor of the Rose Garden on that now infamous evening, so did apparently the confidence of his teammates and their fans.
During the magical mystery tour that the Blazers took us on during December, the Blazers went on the second best winning streak in franchise history. This young bunch of kids went 13-2 during a holiday season no Blazer fan will ever forget. And these were quality wins. Two wins against Utah, one on the road, one at home. They pulled off the same act against Denver, even dropping 116 in their win in the Mile High City. Not to mention quality wins against Golden State and New Orleans. All of a sudden this young team was blossoming right before our very eyes and the love affair between this town and this team seemed to be reignited. Indeed Rip City was reborn.
Travis Outlaw was becoming more than just a formidable specimen with amazing raw ability, but rather a 6th man extraordinaire with a hot hand and a cool demeanor. LaMarcus Aldridge was finding his way on the block and stretching out opposing defenses with his perimeter game. Coach Nate McMillan’s philosophy of two different units on his roster seemed to be creating beautiful chemistry amongst starters and bench players alike.
But most impressive of all was the fact the Blazers seemed to look and feel like the belonged on the court with the elite teams of the Western Conference. I don’t think any of us were fooled into thinking they would finish near the top of the conference, but a playoff appearence looked like a possibility.
With the new year came the cold winter rain that torments all Portlanders, and with that, also a small dose of reality for the Blazers. After losing a double overtime heart breaker in Toronto on January 13th, the Blazers previous road woes of recent years came slowly back, the bottom finally falling out with a four game road losing streak to go into the All-Star break. ( a streak that included a loss to a troubled Indiana Pacers squad and a 20 point defeat in Dallas)
Nonetheless the Blazers and fans entered the All-Star break with a sense of optimism and direction. They had played quality opponents and weathered the storm so to speak, even overcoming the injury of veteran and big time contributor James Jones.
Unfortunately things started to slide the other way. The Blazers bench seemed to go back to the streakiness that plagued them in the past. Increased defensive pressure on the All-Star Roy, forced more responsibility on Aldridge and the point guard duo of Steve Blake and Jarrett Jack.
But saddest of all was the way the buzz around town just seemed to die. Bars that were full of people glued to the game in December, seemed to be tuned into anything but the Blazers come late February. Gone were the old timers talking about the glory days, Maurice Lucas, and how Travis Outlaw looked like the next Jerome Kersey. Talk of the playoffs became exclamations of “wait ’til we get Oden!”
Lost was the exceptional improvement this team has made this year. Almost immediately people forgot that just two years ago this same franchise won just 21 games, and featured crowd pleasers such as Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, and Ruben Patterson. Forgotten, the fact that the team showed up weeks early voluntarily to training camp. Somehow over the course of half a season Blazer fans had become spoiled.
And now as the Blazers are no doubt stepping onto a plane to Portland, tired and trying to forget tonight’s loss to the Lakers. Their thoughts must center on how to salvage a winning season from this roller coaster ride that has been 2007-08. But deep down they know as well as everyone else that salvation lies within. Above all they must believe they belong in that upper echelon with the Spurs and the Lakers and so on. Recent second halves without number 7 in the back court have appeared strained and without rhythm and leadership. Of course, the hallmark of a true contender is depth, and the ability of the supporting cast to pick up the load when called upon. Just look at Detroit and San Antonio.
As the season wraps up, certainly home attendance will remain steady. But the real enthusiasm seems to have all but disappeared. Regardless, I believe this gritty squad will press on with or without any real meaning to the remainder of their games.
Surely, Coach McMillan will be talking to the fellas about the importance of finishing strong and with confidence for the upcoming season. And with a good bounce here and there they could still finish .500 or better. Which, in this year’s Western Conference would be an impressive feat. But knowing this team, they are just taking one game at a time. And more than likely, a winning season will be just enough to wet their appetite for next year.
So as the sun begins to creep out of it’s winter slumber. And people all over town start to emerge from various vegan grocers, coffee shops, and vintage clothing stores to enjoy the sunshine. Memories of a bunch of guys (most under the age of 26) standing tall among the NBA elite, fade into the back of most minds.
But let us not forget the most romantic part of fandom. Not the ultimate satisfaction of seeing your team win it all, but the struggle it took to get there. Not the final seconds before the confetti drops, or the parade down Broadway. What it’s all about is the road up the mountain. It’s watching guys battle through nagging injuries to win the second half of a back to back in Milwaukee.
Perhaps someday stories of this thrill ride of a season will be told by some of us to our kids when we take them to their first game or when we try to give them some cheesy analogy about not giving up when you feel defeated. Or maybe that’s just me.
Either way one thing is for sure, this team will be back and no doubt so will the support of some of Portland’s more “fair weather” fans. But hey, everyone is welcome back on the bandwagon. After all, a little fair weather never hurt anyone…especially in Portland.
Related Posts:
Categories: sports
No Comments »
