Trail Blazers 93, Memphis 79: Pieces come together; Greg Oden unleashed

**tlongII** · 11-11-2009

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindbla...his_79_pi.html

Blazers star Brandon Roy shoots over Grizzlies center Marc Gasol in the Blazers' 93-79 victory Tuesday night in Memphis. Roy finished the game with 20 points and seven rebounds.

MEMPHIS -- More and more, the Trail Blazers are learning just how much Greg Oden means to their success.

On Tuesday, Oden was the difference for the Blazers as they jumpstarted a five-game trip with a 93-79 rout of Memphis that ran the Blazers winning streak to three.

After playing only four minutes in the first half after two quick fouls, Oden was powerful on offense and intimidating on defense, helping the Blazers break away from a 45-45 halftime tie. Oden had 14 points, six rebounds and two blocks in the second half, and keyed the Blazers' decisive 14-1 run in the third quarter.

"I was 0-fer in the first half," Oden said, referring to his statistical line. "I wanted to get something going. And by running and giving energy, I thought it could definitely open things up."

The emergence of Oden is getting the Blazers close to completing the diamond that coach Nate McMillan likes to make with his hands when talking about this team. McMillan puts his forefingers and thumbs together to symbolize the connection between Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Oden, and himself.

Prior to this season, that diamond has never been complete because Oden has been learning the ropes. But now, the team and Oden are getting the picture.

"The biggest thing about tonight is seeing how Greg is a huge part of what we do," Roy said. "If we can keep him on the floor it makes us a much better team. It opens everything for all of us. So in a lot of ways, it starts with him."

Portland (5-3) has now beaten Memphis (1-7) eight consecutive times, and Tuesday's victory had moments from nearly every Blazers player.

"It was a team effort," said Aldridge, who had 16 points and 12 rebounds. "Everyone had a hand in it."

The Blazers played pick-your-poison throughout the game, early on mixing the attack inside with Aldridge (5-for-5 start) and outside with Brandon Roy (4 for 4). In the second half, the Blazers added another facet -- the fast break -- to the sharp shooting of Steve Blake (four three-pointers, 14 points) and the inside dominance of Oden.

"They can't take away everything," McMillan said. "We just have to trust in each other. It's all the things we talk about -- sacrifice, and just play the game."

Oden made his presence felt all over the court, as his inside scoring eventually drew double teams, which helped opened up space for shooters like Blake, while satisfying the itch of point guard Andre Miller to run. The Blazers scored all 10 of their fast break points in the second half, which were ignited by Oden rebounds, and accentuated by Miller's aggressive passing.

After the game, Oden was the one guy every player singled out.

"You certainly knew when he was in the game," Blake said smiling.

Oden said McMillan has presented him with a hard-and-fast rule: One foul per quarter. In other words, if he has two fouls before halftime, he is going to sit.

"Coach told me he is giving me a foul a quarter; I have to be more careful with that," Oden said. "I definitely didn't want to get those two fouls that quick, but I knew it. I knew it. I said whenever I get the chance to get back in, I was going to go back in with energy."

Oden made an immediate impact, getting fouled on the opening possession of the half. Later, he had a follow dunk that tied the score at 52. He also added a nice pass inside to Miller for a layup and then caught a lob pass from Miller for a dunk.

"It shows what he can do for us, and how he can help us on the floor," McMillan said.

Roy led the Blazers with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting and continued to be a playmaker, tying Miller for the team lead with seven assists. Roy, who said he is still adjusting to playing with a three-guard lineup, said he is trying to learn how to remain aggressive without handling the ball as much, while also remembering to keep his teammates involved.

"I'm just trying to stay unselfish, but still stay aggressive to make plays," Roy said.

Notes: Travis Outlaw had four points on 1-of-9 shooting, but he had perhaps the most memorable play of the night, a high-flying, ed-arm dunk over Rudy Gay. After the dunk, even Gay had to shake his head and smile at the Blazers bench, which was off its feet waving towels. "It was like that guy in high school who would dunk in a game," Roy said. "Afterward it would seem like he scored 20, because that's all anybody remembered. That was Trav tonight." ...

Memphis rookie center Hasheem Thabeet, the second overall pick, broke his jaw in the first half when he collided with teammate Zach Randolph. ...

The Blazers made 9 of 18 from three-point range. ...

Aldridge is averaging 10.2 rebounds over his past four games. ...

The Blazers, who entered the game as the NBA's top free-throw shooting team (84.1 percent), made 20 of 23 on Tuesday (87 percent). ...

With the Blazers' new three-guard lineup, many wondered how Roy would handle guarding high-scoring small forwards. On Tuesday, he helped hold Gay to 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting. Gay entered the game averaging 22.3 points. ...

The NBA on Tuesday released its ballot for the 59th All-Star game and it includes four Blazers: guards Roy and Miller, forward Aldridge and center Oden. Sixty players from each conference are on the ballot. The 2010 All-Star game will be played at Cowboys Stadium on Feb. 14 in Aldridge's hometown of Dallas.