Portland vs. Utah, CNN vs. The Sith

With that hugely historical election night behind us, we can bring our focus all the way back to the things that really matter, like early season NBA games. Finally. Actually, I want to share one thing with you from last night. I'm not sure who CNN has in charge of technology, but I'm pretty sure NASA needs to hire them. CNN could put a man on Endor. Seriously. And they use this amazing power in only the most useful ways possible. Whatever the costs to develop and use this stuff, I'm sure it was totally worth it. Seriously, it adds so much depth to their coverage.


Wow. That happened. Anyways, Portland at Utah tonight. Deron Williams will probably sit out with his bum ankle. Normally that would get me excited about Portland's chances, but the Jazz have been rolling people even without their top-tier point guard. Scary stuff. On the other hand, I have three members of the Utah Jazz on my fantasy team. Thats right, I play fantasy basketball. Make fun of me.

Something interesting to watch for will be how the Blazers respond to the physical style of Utah. This young team got muscled and intimidated by that style at times last season. Handling it well could be a good indicator of positive team development. Go Blazers! (And Carlos Boozer, Andrei Kirilenko, and Ronnie Brewer.)

A monument to Martell Webster's 3rd Quarter

Portland 103, Utah 89 (boxscore)

This was going to be the night I stopped with the game recaps for a while. But again, this team has a habit of making special things happen, so here we are: A Monument to Martell Webster's third quarter. Let me set the scene a little.

Throughout the first half, Portland was playing horrible for the most part. It was painful to watch an already beat-up Roybot having to contend with the defensive wrath of Jerry Sloan. The crowd kept trying to get into it, but Portland and Utah were keeping things quiet. The score at the half of this ugfest: Utah 42, Portland 39.

Coming out for the third quarter, we learn Roy is going to sit out the rest of the game. Not encouraging. Then Martell started hitting. And hitting. And hitting.

If you didn't see the game, I know what your thinking. A bunch of catch and shoots, Martell got his spot up stroke going and hit from gaps in the Utah zone. Wrong. Wrong! Nailing a few consecutive jumpers gave Martell the confidence to transform into something we've only seen flashes of before. When I described it to a friend via text message, I said he looked like a slightly bigger Kobe. He was absolutely killing the Jazz.

He started moving without the ball, pure fluid off screens to get open. Then he started posting up his smaller defender. He pulled up off the dribble. He took it hard to the rack. And yes, the catch and shoot was sprinkled through all of this. When the horn finally ended the quarter, Portland was up 75 to 64, the Rose Garden was on fire, and Jerry Sloan was nearing spontaneous combustion. Needless to say, the game was all but over. Martell's damage in his 12 minutes of fury? 7-9 from the field (including 3-4 from 3), 7-7 from the line: 24 points. Fitting that this was against Utah and Deron Williams, whom the Blazers infamously passed over to draft Martell. For the first time in Webster's career, people forgot about that, even if it was for just one quarter. Here's to many more. (Watch the video)

A wonderful time to be a Blazer fan.

Blazers vs. Utah: Six wins in a row

Portland 99, Utah 91

This is getting ridiculous. The youngest team in the league just keeps winning, and oh yeah, leading scorer LaMarcus sat out again. I'm trying to ground my euphoria by remembering how early it is in the season and how young this team really is. That said, they are playing beautfiul basketball. Love that zone, Nate.

Any Blazer fan should be ecstatic over Outlaw, who is averaging 19 points, 6 boards, a steal and a block off the bench during this streak. His confidence and enthusiasm is bursting at the seams, and this consistent production is a thing of beauty.

Blazers vs Utah: Mandatory Recap

Nice stats and some victories will get you Player of the Week. Tonight Roy's 16, 3, and 3 won't register a blip on the national radar, but illustrate exactly why his value far exceeds that of any weekly award. For better or worse these Blazers play like a family, and Roy is the backbone, the provider.

LaMarcus out of with plantar fasciitis, the Utah defense was intent on suffocating Roy all night. Brandon was perfectly content, allowing his teammates to feast on an unusual bounty of wide open jumpers. In 2005, Martell Webster got drafted after a mesmerizing pre-draft workout with the team. The Jazz might as well have been those chairs and cones he took to school on that fateful day as he dropped a career high 25. Travis Outlaw again contributed at a rate that ESPN will soon have to stop calling him "Tracy" in his highlights and take down the infamous picture of Bo that graces his player profile. Thanks to an accompanying flurried perimeter zone defense backed by Pryzbilla at his most gangster, Portland utterly dominated the first 2 and a half quarters of this game. Jazz fans booed their team, and had the salt rubbed in when an overweight second grader in a Brandon Roy jersey would not stop doing the robot all over his courtside seat.

When Utah got energized and mounted the inevitable NBA comeback, Roy shook off the beatings and got the most difficult and critical points of the game. We've seen this so many times before. Last season, before most of us knew LaMarcus could shine like he is doing, before Portland landed the number one pick, Roy sparked hope of a brighter future for this franchise.

Whatever embarassment of riches this team comes to be, Roy will always be at the head. He's the one most likely to end up in bronze outside the arena. The best part of a game like tonight? Knowing that we will be given many more like it.

Box Score