alex42083
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http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/04/behind_the_blazers_locker_room_16.html
If there was ever any question what the tone of the Trail Blazers would be before Tuesday's crucial Game 2, it was answered the minute the locker room doors were opened to the media 90 minutes before tipoff.
Seated at the front of the room, with his back to all the locker stalls, was point guard Steve Blake. With his hands intertwined behind his head, he sat about five feet from a television, watching the nightmare that was Game 1.
To put it mildly, Blake is a fiery guy, one who leads the team in kicking over the metal bench on the team's practice court and the one who last season in a fit of rage threw a folding chair like a discus at a practice in San Antonio. When coach Nate McMillan told him to go pick up the chair, Blake did. And threw it again.
Even though his back was to the locker room door entrance, his rigid posture and fixed stare on the television screen oozed intensity. Do I approach and risk being treated like a San Antonio folding chair? Or do I heed to the do-not-disturb vibe Blake has been putting out ever since Game 1, when his Houston counterpart, Aaron Brooks, went for 24 while Blake muddled in mediocrity?
In the Portland media circles, Blake is not regarded among the friendliest guys on the team. He can be short with answers, and as he admits, he doesn't suffer fools easily. However, I have always had a good relationship with Blake, even if it has included some short answers or a couple warnings that I was asking a question that he felt was out of place.
So, I felt fairly confident when I approached him from behind and asked if I could join him in watching the tape of Game 1. Pleasantly, he obliged, and I pulled up the chair in front of Brandon Roy's locker.
The game was in the third quarter, with Houston up 74-53. I ask what he can get out of watching this again.
"Right now I'm just watching how they defend the pick-and-rolls, seeing if I can pick up anything,'' Blake said.