Portland Trailblazers NBA News - Trailblazers Basketball Blog

The Portland Trailblazers had a rough 2011-12 season

alleyoop — Sun, 06 May 2012 19:19:31 +0000

The Trailblazers had a rough season filled with disappointments and injuries. The Blazers had high hopes for 2011-12 but they fell flat. Here is a look at the players that made the biggest impacts for the team:

Team MVP: LaMarcus Aldridge - 26-year old power forward LaMarcus Aldridge had another stellar year in 2011-12 for the Blazers. He played in 55 games (all starts) for the Trailblazers last year and he averaged 36.3 minutes, 21.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.

Biggest Surprise: J.J. Hickson - The Trailblazers claimed 23-year old power foward/center J.J. Hickson off waivers from the Kings and he looked great for the Blazers. Hickson played in 19 games (10 starts) for the Blazers last year and he averaged 31.6 minutes, 15.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists on 54.3% shooting from the floor. Hickson had a rough time in Sacramento, where he played in 35 games (9 starts) in which he averaged 18.4 minutes, 4.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game on a paltry 37% shooting from the floor. This was a steal for the Blazers.

Biggest Disappointment: Raymond Felton - 27-year old point guard Raymond Felton was supposed to get the Blazers to run in 2011-12, but it didn’t work out that way. Felton played in 60 games (56 starts) for the Blazers last year and he averaged 31.8 minutes, 11.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He shot only 40.7% from the floor and 30.5% from three point range last year for the Blazers.

The Portland Trailblazers didn’t get much from their rookies in 2011-12

alleyoop — Sun, 06 May 2012 19:08:29 +0000

23-year old guard Nolan Smith was the Blazers’ first round pick last June. His playing time was sporadic until the end of the season when he looked pretty solid. Smith played in 44 games (4 starts) for the Blazers last year and he averaged 12.3 minutes, 3.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He did have issues shooting the ball as he only made 37.2% of his shots from the floor, 28.9% from three point range and 71.4% from the free throw line last year. Smith will need to improve his shooting if he wants to start playing more. 22-year old guard Elliot Williams missed all of the 2010-11 season due to injury. He played in 24 games (0 starts) for the Blazers last year and he averaged 6.2 minutes, 3.7 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Williams looked good in his limited P.T. for the Blazers last year.

Kaleb Canales was over his head running the Portland Trailblazers

alleyoop — Sun, 06 May 2012 19:00:14 +0000

The Portland Trailblazers were 20-23 when they fired Nate McMillan as the head coach. They promoted Kaleb Canales as the interim head coach and he was overmatched in his new role. The Blazers were only 8-15 (34.8%) under Canales. While the Blazers had some injuries to deal with, it just seemed like the Blazers gave up when they changed coaches. I see no way that Canales is still the head coach when the 2012-13 season begins.

Utah Jazz 96, Portland Trailblazers 94

alleyoop — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 04:21:17 +0000

The Trailblazers were outrebounded 48-36 last night and it hurt them in the end. J.J. Hickson (20 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots) and Jonny Flynn (18 points, 5 rebounds and 11 assists) led the way for the Blazers last night. Nolan Smith was also solid with 16 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 steals. Wesley Matthews (14 points) and Kurt Thomas (10 points) also pitched in for the Blazers in this game. The Trailblazers finished up the 2011-12 season with a 28-38 record.

San Antonio Spurs 124, Portland Trailblazers 89

alleyoop — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:56:26 +0000

The Trailblazers only shot 38.5% from the floor last night and they were outrebounded 47-38 in this game. They also didn’t play ANY D as the Spurs shot 59.3% from the floor, so the final score is no surprise. Wesley Matthews led the way for the Blazers last night with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals. J.J. Hickson also had a solid game as he finished up with 14 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots. Raymond Felton (13 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 steals) and Nolan Smith (10 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal in 33 minutes) also pitched in for the Blazers. The Trailblazers are now 28-37 on the year.

Memphis Grizzlies 93, Portland Trailblazers 89

alleyoop — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 13:01:26 +0000

The Blazers only shot 37.2% from the floor last night and it did them in. J.J. Hickson (23 points, 13 rebounds and 1 assist) and Jamal Crawford (21 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals) led the way for the Trailblazers last night. Wesley Matthews also had a solid game as he finished up with 16 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal. Luke Babbitt only shot 3 of 10 from the floor but he still finished up with 10 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals in 41 minutes on the floor. The Trailblazers are now 28-36 on the year.

Jamal Crawford was a bust for the Portland Trailblazers

alleyoop — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:55:09 +0000

The Trailblazers thought that 32-year old shooting guard Jamal Crawford would give them instant offense off the bench, but he didn’t play that well for them so far this year. Crawford has played in 59 games (6 starts) for the Trailblazers so far this year and he is averaging 26.8 minutes, 13.8 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. He has only shot 38.4% from the floor and 30.7% from the three point line so far this year, and that is pathetic. He plans to opt out of his contract over the summer, and that’s a good thing for the Trailblazers.

Utah Jazz 112, Portland Trailblazers 91

alleyoop — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 23:29:32 +0000

The Trailblazers only shot 39.2% from the floor and they were outrebounded 49-39 last night and it did them in. Wesley Matthews led the way for the Blazers last night with 21 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. J.J. Hickson (16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots), Nolan Smith (16 points, 3 rebounds and 1 steal in 39 minutes) and Luke Babbitt (16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot) also had solid games for the Blazers last night. Jonny Flynn pitched in with 11 points, 2 rebounds and 7 assists in this game. The Trailblazers are now 28-35 on the year.

Phoenix Suns 125, Portland Trailblazers 107

alleyoop — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:40:53 +0000

The Trailblazers didn’t play ANY D last night as the Suns shot 60% from the floor and it was the big reason for the loss. J.J. Hickson (22 points, 8 rebounds and 1 assist) and Jamal Crawford (22 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal) led the way for the Blazers last night. Wesley Matthews (19 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot) and Luke Babbitt (18 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists in 39 minutes on the floor) also had solid games for the Blazers last night. Nolan Smith pitched in with 14 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals in 33 minutes off the bench. The Trailblazers are now 28-34 on the year.

Sacramento Kings 104, Portland Trailblazers 103

alleyoop — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:30:04 +0000

The Trailblazers were outscored 25-22 in the 4th quarter and it did them in last night. Wesley Matthews led the way for the Blazers with 31 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. Raymond Felton also had a rock solid game for the Trailblazers as he finished up wtih 19 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal. Nicolas Batum (14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 blocked shot) and J.J. Hickson (10 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots) also pitched in with solid games last night. The Trailblazers are now 28-33 on the year.