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On Friday, Portland put forth a more spirited effort against a young but physical Magic team with enough size to cause the Blazers problems. The Blazers shot 39.8% from the field and went 9 of 32 on three-pointers (28.1%). “We just couldn’t make (shots),” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “But I thought we did a pretty good job of getting a lot of shots that we wanted to get. We got some really good looks. I thought our intensity was good. We played hard. And that’s who we got to be. You can hang your hat on a game like that, saying, ‘We just couldn’t get over the hump, offensively.’ But I thought our defense was really good against a good team.”
It preceded Game 2 of the NBA Finals between Denver and Miami; Nuggets assistant coach David Adelman is Rick's son, and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is a Portland native who vividly remembers Adelman's Trail Blazers teams. "To be included with the past winners is special," Adelman said in a statement. "Chuck was a great coach and respected by all those who coached against his teams. To receive an award like this I have to thank all those who helped me along the way, in particular my assistant coaches and front offices. I would also like to thank the players I had through the years. Their effort and cooperation made everything I did possible. Good players make coaching much easier."
Mark Medina: Warriors GM Bob Myers on asking NBA to look into Portland handling Gary Payton II injury: "Good question, but I don't want to answer that. I can't go down that road of accusations." Myers said the Warriors will evaluate Payton II in a month
Teams monitoring Damian Lillard injury ahead of trade deadline
Numerous teams are watching Portland intently to see how the Trail Blazers handle Damian Lillard’s ongoing issues with an abdominal injury, since an extended absence or a potential surgery — avenues that the Blazers have resisted to this point — would certainly have a significant impact on their trade deadline approach.
Nine years removed from his last G League game, he is back in a level he remembers best for the time he and his Erie BayHawks teammates ate saltine crackers all day before a game in Portland, Maine, because the team bus had broken down during a snowstorm. “In China, I had so much fan support and so many amazing things going on,” said Lin, who paced the Beijing Ducks last season in scoring (22.3 points per game), assists (5.6 per game) and steals (1.8 per game). “To surrender all of that and to come here, honestly, some people think I’m crazy.”
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Adrian Wojnarowski: Sources: Joining the 16 current playoff teams in Orlando: New Orleans, Portland, Phoenix, Sacramento and San Antonio in the West and Washington in the East. If the 9th seed is more than 4 games behind the 8th, No. 8 makes playoffs; Fewer than 4 games, a play-in tournament.
However, the stoppage was seemingly for a Portland timeout. The NBA’s official play-by-play includes no timeout at that time. If not a Trail Blazers timeout, why did officials stop play for a commercial break? That question might determine whether Warriors get suspended. Suspensions could create quite the conundrum for Golden State. Teams must have eight players “able to participate” in each game. The Warriors had just nine healthy players last night – including Poole, Cauley-Stein and Spellman. Losing those three would drop Golden State below the limit.
Portland City Manager Jon Jennings, former co-owner, president and general manager of the Red Claws, said anyone who thinks the Celtics would be swayed by such an argument doesn’t understand the NBA team’s strong ties to Portland. “There is a long, long history with Maine and the Boston Celtics,” Jennings said. “The Celtics have given us no indication whatsoever that they have any interest in leaving Maine or Portland – in fact, I think it’s the exact opposite, I think they’re very happy.”
Lillard, who grew up in Oakland, has bought into Portland as a home in a way no star player has since perhaps Porter, whose children grew up here, and who remains in the city as the head coach of the University of Portland. “My family is happy here,” Lillard said. “I’m happy with my situation here.”
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Sitting inside the locker room at Cross Insurance Arena in Portland, Maine, earlier this week as the Celtics prepared for an exhibition game in conjunction with the Red Claws, Bradley shook his head while reflecting back to the series of events that helped jump-start his NBA career. "I was a completely different person when I came back from Maine," Bradley said. "I remember I came back, and I hadn't got a haircut, and they called me a 'man on a mission.' That first practice, when I dunked on Perk and Doc ended it, from that day on, I felt like I belonged in this league."
This is the new video for "It's Real" by Wild Ones, a Portland indie band that just put out its debut record. The video—which is very strange but also oddly hypnotic and enjoyable—features lead singer Danielle Sullivan exchanging pensive glances with members of the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, all taken from the Heat's Game 6 victory over the Celtics in the 2011 playoffs. The video is worth watching just to experience Glen Davis's slack-jawed, vacant stare being accompanied by hazy and soothing female vocals. It's just too bad the video didn't include this moment.
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