TUALATIN, Ore. — There is almost always some good associated with bad news, particularly if an issue has been providing suspense for a while.
Yes, the Blazers shutting down Brandon Roy indefinitely due to sore knees was devastating to a fan base who viewed the shooting guard as the cornerstone of what they hoped would be a resurgent franchise. But his long-term absence does offer one benefit — certainty.
Assuming there are no other major injuries down the road — which, granted, is about as naïve an assumption one can make with the Blazers — coach Nate McMillan now knows the core group he will be coaching for the rest of the season.
So how does that change his approach? Or does it?
“It’s not a drastic change. It’s not where all of a sudden we’re going to be drastically different,” McMillan said. “But you do tweak it. You add a few things with the personnel you have. You change some of your calls with guys like Wesley (Matthews) Nic (Batum), Rudy (Fernandez) and Andre (Miller.) But it’s not like all of a sudden we’re running the triangle.”
McMillan said that LaMarcus Aldridge will be the team’s No. 1 option, but that he still wants his squad to establish a consistent inside-outside game.
Matthews has been among the Blazers’ primary “outside” features, averaging exactly 20 points per game when playing at least 30 minutes this season. The swingman’s production has been especially noteworthy given how Portland doesn’t run anything for him.
McMillan said that sometimes players start to press when they get a play called for them, and that Matthews has been just fine in his current role within the offense. Matthews isn’t complaining.
“It’s been about eight years since a play has been run for me,” joked Matthews, who said they didn’t call plays for him at Marquette either. “If a set is run for me, I don’t even look at it like I have to take the shot. I’m comfortable out there.”
Where they stand
In baseball, managers often won’t start checking the standings until August or September. But what about in hoops?
The Blazers (17-16) currently hold a half-game lead over the Rockets (16-16), tonight’s opponent. But is expanding its lead over the ninth-place team even something Portland is thinking about at this point, or is winning and winning alone its only concern?
“Of course you know where you are, but it’s a long season ahead of us,” McMillan said. “Right now, you think about winning and taking care of home court.”
Matthews had a different take.
The second-year player said he gets angry whenever he sees the standings because the Blazers’ record serves as a reminder of the games they should have won.
“I need to stop looking at them (the standings). I get mad. I get so mad when I look at them,” Matthews said. “There are seven losses we shouldn’t have had. Just games we should have won. We put ourselves there. That’s the hardest thing.”
Not many players have an exact number of games in which they feel they should have come out victorious, but when called on it, Matthews delivered.
“Jersey, D.C., Philly, Utah, two against Oklahoma City, and we gave the Boston one back,” Matthews said. “We have to play like we did against Utah (on Thursday). Build our lead and keep it.”
Not an All-Star yet
Marcus Camby has been the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year, but he’s yet to make an All-Star team.
Doesn’t look like that will change this year.
The 7-footer is currently eighth in the voting among Western Conference centers, more than 600,000 votes behind Houston’s Yao Ming, who is out for the season.
Camby is, however, the only Blazer who’s among the conference’s top-10 vote-getters for any position.
Is making the team a career itch he’s been longing to scratch?
“Winning a championship. I never really set individual goals, I’ve always set team goals,” Camby said. “I look at the All-Star break as a time to rest. As long as Yao Ming is in the league, he’s always going to have those votes.”
Matt Calkins is the Blazers beat writer for The Columbian. He can be contacted at 360-735-4528 or e-mail matt.calkins@columbian.com
