The Portland Trail Blazers stuck it to the best team in the East last Wednesday night in a 94-76 blowout over LeBron’s Cavaliers. This season hasn’t seen everyone contributing on a consistent basis, but Wednesday was a different story.
In the early stages of this season, Portland was really a one-man show. Delivering godlike numbers, Zach Randolph stole the headlines, buckets and boards, leaving his teammates with only mere scraps.
This one-man offense crashed faster and with more of a thud than Chris Webber’s career. With a quick glance at Portland’s stats, opponents were able to determine they could deny Randolph the ball or swarm him with a double or triple-team and walk away with an easy win. And they did. Night after night, Z-Bo was flocked with defenders in the low post, making it difficult to get a shot off or kick the ball out.
The Blazers needed an answer and Randolph was in desperate need of some company at the party.
In late December, star rookie Brandon Roy returned from a heel injury, providing the Blazers with another player who could create his own shot. When Roy made his entrance, the relief was apparent on the faces of head coach Nate McMillan and Randolph. They knew with Roy as “Option B,” Portland’s leading scorer would no longer be forced to dance the scoring tango alone.
On Wednesday night, the Blazers team had 21 assists. The Blazers as a team went off with four players including Randolph, Roy, Ime Udoka and LaMarcus Aldridge in double figures. Guards Dan Dickau and Juan Dixon were also on the verge of double digits with nine points each. Portland’s superior ball movement led to a solid outburst from Z-Bo scoring 26 points as well as a balance across the board making his outburst not needed for a victory.
“The scoring was very balanced. I think Zach likes it more that way. It is more of a night where he is free flowing through the game and we don’t need his two points. Sergio was moving the ball and I was trying to penetrate. We are just trying to take as much stress off Zach as we can, and he can still have good games because the defense can’t key on him,” said Roy.
Udoka played his best game this season. In charge of keeping King James from taking over the game, he held him scoreless until he knocked down a three-pointer with 3:51 remaining in the first quarter. Through three quarters LeBron was only able to muster 14 points and ended with 23 only after the game was assured. Udoka’s pesky defensive pressure forced LeBron to shoot a meager 38 percent from the field.
“I’m used to matching up with the opponent’s best player, it’s what my team needs me to do. I look forward to all of these guys. They all present a different challenge, but at the same time it’s a challenge I look forward to every night,” said Udoka. “You have to be able to go out there and stop people and that is something I take pride in.”