Blazers vs. Warriors; immediate rage please subside into big picture appreciation

Hopes of another inspired Blazer comeback were extinguished tonight by some calls that went the other way down the stretch. This sums it up. The best way I'm finding to deal with it is to focus on the fact that Oden had his best professional game to date.

Tonight we got our longest look yet at a major piece of the Blazers future, and it was pretty good. GO crushed in 22 points (7-11 FG, 6-8 FT), 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks in thirty minutes of work. It was the most we have seen him involved in the offense so far, during some stretches the team seemed determined to run things through the big man.

Keep in mind also that he is a long ways from being done developing. I'm not even talking as longterm as left handed jump hooks and slippery eels, but of things that will easily be corrected within this season. Tonight we saw the continuation of his bad habit of bringing the ball down to where humans can sometimes knock it free. He also tends to lean forward at his hips to shield himself from flying defenders, another bad habit that neutralizes much of his height advantage. These are little things that will be corrected soon and make Oden even more poised to punish opponents.

After thinking about all that, aren't you feeling a little better?