Game Preview: Chicago Bulls (6-4) vs Portland Trail Blazers (10-2)

The Portland Trail Blazers are a bit of a sore spot for me. Yes, I have a massive, unabashed man crush on Ben Gordon, but my love of LaMarcus Aldridge is up there with anyone in the league. You might even recall that the Bulls once drafted LaMarcus Aldridge and traded him for *drum roll* TYRUS THOMAS.

The only positive from that trade was that Thomas was so horrible that the Bulls weren't any good, so David Stern fixed the draft happened to pull the lottery ball for the Bulls to win the first overall pick in the draft, and thus Derrick Rose.

Think of Aldridge as a really, really good Carlos Boozer: he can bang down low with a variety of post moves, and he can hit the 20 footer with ease. The entire NBA (including Aldridge) knows that he would be a perfect fit for the Bulls, and trade rumors persist. GarPax won't do a deal for him, nor would the Trail Blazers wan the older Boozer, so I doubt a trade ever gets done. He's the best thing in Portland this side of Portlandia.



Damian Lillard

On top of Aldridge, the Blazers have a wonderful point guard by the name of Damian Lillard. There is almost always an East Coast bias in national sports coverage, so the Lillard doesn't receive as much attention as he deserves, but he is a wonderful compliment to Aldridge in the Blazers' offense. Lillard is taking 7 3's per game (wow), but managing to connect on 39% of them. Lillard is also quite quick, and he can get to the rack on occasion in spite of his small stature.

Three Point Shooting

The Blazers are a team tailor-made to 21st century basketball sabermetrics. Three point shooting is incredibly valuable, so in addition to Lillard, the Blazers have Wesley Matthews and Nic Batum drilling three pointers at will. About 50% of both players' shot attempts are three pointers, and the Blazers have trigger happy Mo Williams coming off the bench to pour in even more points. The Blazers are second in the NBA in scoring at 110.7 PPG, and their offense could really thrive with Jimmy Butler sitting out and Lillard penetrating.

I'm really worried about this game. I thought the Bulls would show-up for last night's game (and they did-- for a half). This is another long trip from Denver to Portland, and I think it's safe to say the Bulls will not be adjusted for this late night affair.

For the first time this year, I am expecting the Bulls to lose, in spite of a valiant effort from Kirk Hinrich. The Blazers fire power, and the lack of Butler and

Final Score: Blazers 105 Bulls 92

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