Phoenix Suns (3) vs. Portland Trailblazers (6) Series Thread

[Xylus]

http://assets.espn.go.com/i/teamlogos/nba/sml/trans/pho.gif vs. http://assets.espn.go.com/i/teamlogos/nba/sml/trans/por.gif


Yes sir, motherfuckers. The Suns came out of nowhere and nabbed the 3-seed. Sorry Denver. Sorry Utah. Go fight it out amongst yourselves.

Let's introduce the starting lineups.

PG - Andre Miller vs. Steve Nash
SG - Rudy Fernandez vs. Jason Richardson
SF - Nicolas Batum vs. Grant Hill
PF - Lamarcus Aldridge vs. Amare Fucking Stoudemire
C - Marcus Camby vs. Jarron Collins

Trailblazers' Bench: Martell Webster, Juwan Howard, Dante Cunningham, Jerryd Bayless

Suns' Bench: Goran Dragic, Jared Fucking Dudley, Leandro Barbosa, Louis Amundson, Channing Frye


Why the Suns will win: They're playing the best basketball of their season going into this postseason, possibly better than any other team in the West. Their defense is solid and their offense is inarguably the best in the league. Amare Stoudemire cannot be stopped right now. They also have home court advantage and a great home record this year. No Brandon Roy. Also, tlong.

Why the Blazers will win: They play great defense, and it's improved ever since they got Camby. Speaking of, the Suns are missing Robin Lopez right now, so Camby will have his way on the offensive glass. The Blazers will most likely outrebound the Suns every game of the series. Even though they're missing Brandon Roy, they've already beaten the Suns once this year without him, and they own the season series, 2-1.


Xylus' Prediction: Suns in 5. If Brandon Roy makes a miraculous comeback, the series could get interesting.

[lil_penny]

lets get it!!!!! should be a good series if roys is able play and doesnt drag ass.

:toast

[lurker]

Did you see the schedule? Suns/Blazers got screwed.

[Xylus]

Did you see the schedule? Suns/Blazers got screwed.

I haven't yet. I can't seem to find it, either.


Edit: Just found it. What's so bad about it?

[Bob Lanier]

:lmao :lmao

Suns 4, Blazers 0, new serious injuries among Blazers players 2, Schlong http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg61/poulterakos82/sheep_sex_costume.jpg

[Bob Lanier]

Also I'd dispute the "great defense" description. While the Blazers do play better defense than the Suns, they also play at a very slow pace, which makes the edge seem disproportionate. Statistically, the Blazers are as much worse than the Bobcats or Magic as they are better than the Warriors or Raptors; of playoff teams, only the Hawks, Nuggets, and then, back near the Nets and Knicks, the Suns, are worse.

However, the Suns' offense is the best in the league by a huge margin, and while Portland's is actually pretty good they've too many holes to fill right now.

[xellos88330]

I wonder if Portland will be able to play through the TLong Curse. I hope that Portland pulls out a couple of gutsy wins to make this series a good long one.

I am pretty sure that Portland can get things going in the open court. With Roy hobbled they are going to have to run run run. What better team to do that with than the Suns.

[Xylus]

I am pretty sure that Portland can get things going in the open court. With Roy hobbled they are going to have to run run run. What better team to do that with than the Suns.

I think running with the Suns would be the worst thing the Blazers could do. The best chance they have of winning is to slow the game down to a ridiculously slow pace, and force the Suns into half-court sets every time down the court.

[pauls931]

I think running with the Suns would be the worst thing the Blazers could do. The best chance they have of winning is to slow the game down to a ridiculously slow pace, and force the Suns into half-court sets every time down the court.

True, they need to slow it down and guard the 3 to have any chance. Pretty much the Spurs bread and butter in the past.

[peteee]

half-half chance IMHO. Blazers would be more favorable if they had HCA, considering how awful a gym Rose Garden is. Even w/o Roy and Aldridge, I think the Blazers can still get the job well done defending their home courts with more efforts and better teamwork. although the Suns are now fully healthy and have HCA, they still need to play hard if they want to qualify, especially at the defensive end.

[pauls931]

half-half chance IMHO. Blazers would be more favorable if they had HCA, considering how awful a gym Rose Garden is. Even w/o Roy and Aldridge, I think the Blazers can still get the job well done defending their home courts with more efforts and better teamwork. although the Suns are now fully healthy and have HCA, they still need to play hard if they want to qualify, especially at the defensive end.

Either you like getting shot at or you lost some kind of sig bet... What's up being an OKC fan?

[peteee]

Either you like getting shot at or you lost some kind of sig bet... What's up being an OKC fan?
is there anything wrong with the pic of the world's sexist retard? not that I lost a sig bet or anything alike, I just like the pics that I use.

As to the Lakers - Thunder series, I see a 20% chance of 8th seed miracle happening and it won't be anything depressing even if we finally lost the series to the defending champs. For a team founded for only two years, it's already satisfying enough to play the playoffs isn't it?

[SpursRulez4eVeR]

suns in 6 or suns/portland in 7, it all depends on how healthy the blazerz r...

[oligarchy]

is there anything wrong with the pic of the world's sexist retard? not that I lost a sig bet or anything alike, I just like the pics that I use.


RUHTARD. :lol I love the slanted head.

http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/goonies-sloth-12.jpg

[da_suns_fan]

Suns should seriously win every game.

[pauls931]

Um, last I checked, the Suns entire system was built on tricking teams into running with them.

True, anyone saying portland should run with the suns is going to end up getting the Blazers swept. You have to do the following.

1. Slow it down.
2. Guard the 3.
3. Guard the pick and roll.
4. Rebound.

If you can do 3 of the above solidly, you can beat the suns. At best, I can see Portland doing 2 of the above. With most of their scorers out, portland might actually have to do all 4.

[clambake]

the suns are looking scary good. the ball movement is amazing.

[dirk4mvp]

Suns sweep, imho. Led by 2 time MVP Steve Nash.

[Ghazi]

great fucking mvp mix :cry

[pauls931]

Suns sweep, imho. Led by 2 time MVP Steve Nash.

I don't know, seems like the more hurt portland is the better they play. But Roy is probably the breaking point for them. But I think the Rose Garden is probably the second hardest arena to win in behind the Palace in SLC.

[JMarkJohns]

Suns in 5, but I think three games will be very close in the final minutes, so the Blazers could pull out another win and make this very interesting.

[Red Hawk #21]

When I checked the standings last night and saw : (3)Phoenix Suns VS (6) Portland Trail Blazers, I thought "Damn, this is gunna get ugly". Suns are gunna kick the dogshit outta of the Blazers, even if Brandon Roy makes a comeback their still gunna get spanked. Poor Blazers...

[Muser]

Phoenix in 5.

[dirk4mvp]

I don't know, seems like the more hurt portland is the better they play. But Roy is probably the breaking point for them. But I think the Rose Garden is probably the second hardest arena to win in behind the Palace in SLC.

I forgot to mention how Amare is gonna take a steaming hot shit on Aldridge, the softest big man to ever play basketball. Not really gonna be a competitive series, imo.

[urunobili]

Suns in 4 :wakeup

[lil_penny]

I forgot to mention how Amare is gonna take a steaming hot shit on Aldridge, the softest big man to ever play basketball. Not really gonna be a competitive series, imo.

If dirk didn't play as a sg he would hold the title.

[dirk4mvp]

If dirk didn't play as a sg he would hold the title.

You know what I said to be true. Dirk has more toughness in his elbow that Landry tried to have for dinner than Aldridge does in his entire body.

[HarlemHeat37]

Getting played by an ugly felon screams toughness..

[dirk4mvp]

Getting played by an ugly felon screams toughness..

Damn scrah, are you currently doing a college term paper on that subject? Do you post about anything else, ever?

[IronMexican]

Suns in 4.

[HarlemHeat37]

Dirk's love life really interests me..

[dirk4mvp]

Obviously it does, considering it's the only thing you post about.

[Ghazi]

Harlem Heat, you're a little bitch

[HarlemHeat37]

Why do you feel that way, Ghazi?..

[lil_penny]

You know what I said to be true. Dirk has more toughness in his elbow that Landry tried to have for dinner than Aldridge does in his entire body.

Ill never try to argue lamarcus being soft, its true.. but dirk takes the award over him imo.. nothing against dirk he's a great shooter, but he's a 7 foot sg.. sg's don't usually get a lot of blocks and like to settle for jump shots.. pretty much fits dirks description like a glove.

[dirk4mvp]

lol Blazer fan talking shit. Enjoy your early playoff exit.

[lil_penny]

lol Blazer fan talking shit. Enjoy your early playoff exit.

lol we will both go ringless this year.. its now or never for you guys though..

Anyways I wasn't talking shit I was stating facts..

Dirk is:
Clutch
Excellent shooter
Great leader.

Dirk isnt:
Tough
A good judge of character(see crystal)

[dirk4mvp]

lol we will both go ringless this year.. its now or never for you guys though..

Anyways I wasn't talking shit I was stating facts..

Dirk is:
Clutch
Excellent shooter
Great leader.

Dirk isnt:
Tough
A good judge of character(see crystal)

I get it, you don't watch a lot of Mavericks games. You don't have to keep making it apparent.

[badfish22]

sg's don't usually get a lot of blocks and like to settle for jump shots

When you are the best shooting big man ever, its not called settling. Its called doing what you do best. Plus, he gets to the basket a good amount off the dribble. He does play more like a 7 foot SG, but that doesn't mean he isn't tough.

[lil_penny]

I get it, you don't watch a lot of Mavericks games. You don't have to keep making it apparent.

I'm not going to lie, I'm guilty of that. I've seen only a handfull of games this year from your mavs.. the games I saw that is what I observed. He's mentally tough imo. Physically he just didn't seem to be any more than lamarshmellow imo. I will give it to dirk that he will give elbows and the occasional pump fake to draw contact, but he doesn't seem like he likes contact other than that.

[j.dizzle]

PHX is in a great spot..Portland doesnt have any bangers on their team so if Phx beats them they wont be very tired after the series..Just gonna be a lot of jumpshots & Amare will get his. Gotta give props to phx, they been shooting lights out lately & Amare been giving out more facials then porntube.com hahahaha

[duncan228]

Blazers wait on Suns—and on guard Brandon Roy (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-trailblazersrest)
By Anne M. Peterson

Thanks to the Colorado Avalanche, the Portland Trail Blazers can give Brandon Roy an extra day of rest.

So just how did the NHL and the NBA teams collide?

The Blazers’ first-round playoff series against the Phoenix Suns was set for Sunday to accommodate the series between the Nuggets and the Jazz—which had to be scheduled around the Colorado Avalanche’s NHL playoff game against San Jose on Sunday.

In short, it means that Portland’s injured All-Star will have another day to — possibly—get ready for the Suns.

Roy has a torn meniscus in his right knee which kept him out of the final two games of the regular season. He will eventually need surgery to repair his knee, but doctors have told him that he can’t make the injury any worse by playing on it.

So Roy said he was going to try to play if he isn’t a liability to his team.

Roy, who is averaging 21.5 points a game, will test the knee on Friday or Saturday. If there’s no pain and swelling, he may play Sunday, coach Nate McMillan said.

McMillan is well aware that Roy’s “will-he-or-won’t he” status is drawing all the attention. But for the injury-plagued Trail Blazers, it is almost routine.

“I think a lot of people are writing us off already and I think a lot of that is due to the fact that Brandon—people don’t know whether Brandon is going to play so they’re not giving us a chance,” McMillan said. “We’ve been faced with that all season long so here we go again.”

Portland’s starting lineup was completely different in the opener than it was for the regular-season finale against Golden State. In all, the Blazers have used 16 different starting lineups.

Center Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla both sustained injuries that required season-ending surgery. Forward Nicolas Batum missed the first half of the season after shoulder surgery, and swingman Rudy Fernandez had midseason back troubles. Former forward Travis Outlaw, who was traded to the Clippers, sat out for a time with a foot injury.

Roy missed more that a dozen games with a sore hamstring earlier this year before the meniscus tear was discovered.

In all, 13 Blazers missed a combined 311 regular-season games because of injuries, second only to the Warriors this season. Only guard Andre Miller and forward Martell Webster have played in all 82 games.

The latest absence was forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who didn’t play against the Warriors after spending the previous night in the hospital with a gastrointestinal virus. He is expected to be recovered by Sunday.

“At the end of the day you still have to go out and play,” Webster said. “We’re going to rally together and play the game.”

Portland finished the season 50-32, hitting the 50-win mark for the second straight season. The Blazers wound up with the sixth seed in the Western Conference.

Third-seeded Phoenix finished 54-28. The Suns have come on late, going 23-6 since the All-Star break.

The Blazers have gone 19-8 since the break. McMillan gave his team the day off on Thursday.

Portland won the season series against the Suns 2-1.

The Blazers made it to the playoffs last season and fell to the Houston Rockets four games to two. With their youth and talent, they were expected to go further this season.

Until all the injuries happened. Now they head into the playoffs as the decided underdog, and Roy’s possible absence merely amplifies that role.

“We’re not making no excuses,” center Marcus Camby said. “There’s no excuses if you’re going to win the series. So we’re coming in confident.”

[DPG21920]

Suns are playing phenomenal. If they can continue to play this way, I think they have a great shot at getting to the WCF. If the Lakers eek their way there, or get knocked off early, I can definitely see them getting to the finals.

Don't know if they can keep it up, but for now, they are playing very, very well.

[duncan228]

Roy to have knee surgery, will miss playoffs (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-trailblazersrest)
By Anne M. Peterson

Portland Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy will have surgery on Friday and will miss the playoffs.

Roy, who averaged 21.5 points, needs the surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee.

The three-time All-Star was injured in Portland’s 91-88 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers last Sunday. He missed Portland’s final two regular season games.

Roy originally said that he would try to play on the knee for the playoffs. Sixth-seeded Portland plays the third-seeded Suns in the first round starting on Sunday in Phoenix.

[Bob Lanier]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Ax9KNSVN7RI/R5UVLwFoNRI/AAAAAAAAAF4/tV9fnjyvI7w/S660/writing+wall2.jpg

[badfish22]

http://www.formertrojans.com/sweepusc.jpg

[lil_penny]

the broom is official now.. phoenix just got a second round pass

[mojorizen7]

Most predictions i'm hearing from SUNS fans and anyone NOT a Blazers fan is predicting SUNS in 5.
I'm skeptical(as always). I just don't trust this team.
SUNS in 7

[TDMVPDPOY]

suns in 4....

port playin without roy

either black jesus is going to baptism a few blazers or they going to crucify him in his contract year

[TDMVPDPOY]

suns in 4....

port playin without roy

either black jesus is going to baptism a few blazers or they going to crucify him in his contract year

[tlongII]

Blazers in six. Amare will be shut down and the only games Phoenix wins will be when they shoot lights out from 3-point land.

[pauls931]

Blazers in six. Amare will be shut down and the only games Phoenix wins will be when they shoot lights out from 3-point land.

Bet DoK...

[TheProfessor]

Brian Smith on Twitter: (http://twitter.com/blazerbanter/status/12302496135)

"Camby rolled left ankle during practice. It is heavily taped, but he expects to play Game 1 against Suns."