While many are impressed with the way Portland has played without centers Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla, they are seemingly not surprised. The Trail Blazers have displayed great intensity at the defensive end, while their small-ball lineup has put up the points needed to win.
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Currently at 25-17, the Blazers are second in their division and fifth in the Western Conference, but they also have brutal stretch in their schedule which includes two games against Boston and three against Utah, in addition to singles versus New Orleans, Houston, Dallas, Charlotte, San Antonio, L.A. Lakers, Oklahoma City, and Phoenix. How they respond during this period will be crucial in determining their second-half success and run to the playoffs.
It is shooting guard Brandon Roy who is at the reigns for Portland, while putting in 23.4 points and dishing out 5.1 assists – both tops on the team – while also adding 4.6 rebounds and 1.03 steals per game. Second in the scoring column is power forward LaMarcus Aldridge (16 points per game), who also leads the team in rebounds 8.3 (2.3 offensive, 5.9 defensive) a night. Point guard Andre Miller (12.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 5 assists) and small forward Martell Webster (10.6 points, 4.1 rebounds) round out the top four Blazer performers, all of whom have stepped up their games to make up for not having a true center in the lineup.
As good as this team has been playing, it is scary to think where they may be if they could just keep healthy star center in their lineup. Regardless, they have fought the adversity and find themselves in playoff contention, so get some tickets and support this surprising Portland Trail Blazers team for the rest of the season and into the playoffs as well.
Through a series of trades and strategic moves by the front office, the team expects that sales of Portland Trail Blazers tickets will be extremely strong due to the team’s strong prospects for going deep into the postseason. Spaniard Rudy Fernandez- a stellar guard- and Brandon Roy promise to deliver many a night of hot shooting excitement.