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Portland Trailblazers
As time wound down in the opening period against the Atlanta Hawks, Portland Trail Blazers guard Rudy Fernandez stripped the ball out of the hands of guard Joe Johnson and fired down-court. The clock ticked under four seconds when Brandon Roy snagged Fernandez’s heave, bounded towards the hoop, and jammed with authority. Fans jumped out of their seats as Roy flushed the ball through, cheering on the emphatic end to a very impressive quarter. The Blazers were in complete control, leading 25-15 after one, and were primed to return to form on their home-court and become the team that went 34-7 at the Rose Garden during their incredible 2008 season.
When it appeared the Blazers had all the momentum, the Hawks woke up. Atlanta, a young team predicted by many to finish as high as third in the Eastern Conference, shot just 5-19 in the first quarter. They accumulated just three assists, partly because of Portland’s defense, and partly because they primarily played one-on-one with little ball movement. As the second quarter began, they eradicated this trend, possessing the unselfishness that makes them so tough to defeat.
Blazers center Greg Oden made the first basket by either team in the opening seconds of the period, a layup on an assist from pass-crazy point guard Andre Miller, but the Hawks, unlike during the woeful first quarter, had an answer for Portland’s offense. This boost came in the form of Jamal Crawford, a 6′6″ skinny guard who certainly isn’t shy to shoot. He excelled in Golden State’s outscore-the-opposition system, and his game has translated to Atlanta. Last year, Hawks head coach Mike Woodson didn’t enforce a run ‘n gun system, but has changed his ways this year, playing substantially more up-tempo, though certainly not as extreme as Don Nelson’s in Golden State. Crawford, as can be imagined, adapted immediately and, as his play against the Blazers would indicate, will be a valuable albeit streak asset off the bench. He answered Oden’s basket with a three-pointer and then took the hit from Fernandez on another launch from deep and made all three free-throws.
His quick jolt brought the Hawks within six, but the deficit soon grew back to twelve. Oden grabbed Travis Outlaw’s miss and aggressive went straight to the rim, driving for a layup. He ran back down the floor with his right fist clenched and then slapped his hands enthusiastically. He came ready to play, as did point guard Andre Miller, Aldridge, and Roy. Outlaw scored the next six points for Portland, but Atlanta manage to develop an offensive rhythm and trimmed the margin to seven. Portland was cohesive as well, and because of their chemistry, they were able to keep their lead. Miller drove in for his only basket of the game and, after the Hawks first empty possession in three minutes, made one of the more brilliant passes of this young season. Near dead last in the NBA in fastbreak points, Miller pushed the tempo in transition, threaded the needle through backpedalling Hawks, and found a surprised Aldridge sprinting towards the rim. The power forward fended off Josh Smith at the rim and tallied one of many assists for Miller on the night, dunking ferociously.
Portland had many moments like this that got the fans out of their seats, but these plays were answered by Atlanta time and time again. After Aldridge’s slam, Smith made a tough running jumper in the lane, and after another basket by Aldridge from Miller, Hawks point guard Mike Bibby drained a three-pointer. It was that kind of night: a see-saw battle.
The final two minutes of the second period went like the previous ten and the 24 second-half minutes that followed. Roy hit a jumper. Smith hit a jumper. Outlaw dunked. Crawford hit two free-throws. Miller made a free-throw. Williams made two. Capped of by Smith’s jumper and the pair of free-throws hit by both Crawford and Williams, the Hawks scored 18 points over the final 5:13 of the second period, and found themselves down just one at intermission.
At some point in that second period, Blazers announcer Mike Barrett said “If the Hawks can get this under ten at half, they’ll be happy.” They were within one and, by the Barret-o-meter, ecstatic. Soon, they weren’t behind at all. Seven straight points early in the quarter gave them their first lead since it was 5-4, a four-point lead at that. The Blazers streaky, but, as Barrett’s partner Mike Rice said, “in a good way” Martell Webster followed with eight straight points, accounting for his total offensive production, over a span of a minute and a half in the third, draining two free-throws and two three-pointers. But the Hawks, as for any other spurt, had an answer. Their answer wasn’t a small 7-0 run like before. Oh no, this was huge, so huge it carried into the final quarter. After Portland guard Steve Blake extended Portland’s lead to eight, 64-56, Atlanta accounted for 20 of the next 27 points, grabbing a five-point lead on a layup by the ageless one Joe Smith with just over ten minutes remaining.
The Blazers battled back, as Aldridge dunked and Fernandez hit a three-pointer, but they and the Hawks had switched roles. They were now trying to stay close. And that’s where they would stay, just close. Portland climbed within one a few times. They tied the game a few times, too. But they wouldn’t hold a lead the rest of the way. They were too much for Atlanta early, and Atlanta was too much for them late.
Crawford capped off a 27-point night off the bench by sinking two free-throws with three seconds left, putting the game out of reach for Portland. Those were the final two points of the see-saw affair. With that, a impressive, resilient 97-91 come-from-behind win was the Hawks, a team just like the Blazers, on the rise and ready to prove they belong among the elite.
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