Trail_Blazer76
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<font color="Red">Blazers: 17-23 (Won 1)</font> <font color="DarkOrange">Warriors: 17-25 (Lost 2)</font>
<font color="Red">By Trail_Blazer 76</font>
When: Saturday, January 24th
Where: Rose Garden
Time: 3:30pm ET
Probable Starters
Key Matchup
Zach Randolph vs Amare Stoudemire
This will be a great preview of a potential future rivalry, as these are two of the best young power forwards in the league. In Amare's abscence Zach has stolen some of his thunder, look for Amare to play more agressively than normal, particularly on the defensive end. Zach has made claimed that: "There is nobody that can stop me", so he will most likely refrain from taking any jumpers and spend the whole game in the paint. Both will play physical and attempt to out-do the other on the offensive end.
X-factors
<u>DA & JJ</u>
Derek Anderson cannot go 0-10 in this game. The Blazers are relying heavily on bench scoring, and most of it will need to come from him. If his outside shot is falling, it's over because there is no way that they can double team Zach. Ideally, on-court leadership comes from a pg or at least a starter, but DA will need to be vocal and keep all Blazer tempers under control.
Joe Johnson is very underrated as a scorer, and needs to prove that tonight. The loss of Marbury leaves a huge gap in their offense, so JJ will not only need to pick up his scoring, but not settle for outside shots. Going to the hole can get the Blazers main scorer (Z-Bo) into early foul trouble, and get the Suns free points at the charity stripe.
The Blazers are struggling more than any team of their ability level. They have lost two in a row, and only won three of their last 10. However, now that the suns have lost Marbury there offense has suffered a significant loss of penetration. The Blazers will need to limit the Suns' outside shooting, and prevent easy point in the paint. The main focus should be preventing Marion's fast break points, and maintaining Amare in the post.
The Warriors will have their hands full in Portland. For the Warriors to have a chance, they must rebound rebound and rebound. 2nd chance shot opportunities will be key in this game. The Warriors have given up way too many offensive rebounds during their road losing streak. If Dampier continues his dominance in the paint and gets a little help on the boards, the Warriors will be in great shape.
<font color="Red">***Trail_Blazer76's Prediction***</font>
Both teams are struggling, but the Suns have lost seven in a row. Regardless of how "hungry" they are for this win, the Blazers are excellent at home (14-5).
Blazers by 7.