PORTLAND — Crisp basketball? No. Fluid basketball? Not even close.
But … basketball? Yes. And when’s the last time someone saw that inside the Rose Garden?
Friday, the Trail Blazers stepped onto their home court for the first time since they were eliminated from the playoffs last April.
Granted, it was just an intrasquad scrimmage as part of their annual Wells Fargo Fan Fest, but to be in uniform in front of a crowd again?
“It was kind of weird, actually,” Blazers forward Luke Babbitt said.
If a legitimate scrimmage and an All-Star game were ever tossed in a blender together, it would have looked like Friday night’s exhibition.
Blazers coach Nate McMillan divided up the first and second units and created a competitive environment for the first three quarters or so, but there were also an array oooh-and-ahhh-inspiring dunks rarely seen in the regular season.
The game was broadcast on Comcast, and guard Elliot Williams got the most air time — in more ways than one.
The 22-year-old, who did not play a minute last year because of season-ending knee surgery, led all scorers with 19 points and wowed the crowd with his leaping ability during warm-ups and the game.
McMillan praised his athleticism afterward and acknowledged that Williams has been impressive in training camp thus far.
But more than anything, the point of Friday’s event was to begin conditioning players for the physical rigors of an NBA game — especially considering the first official one is just nine days away.
True, the 48-minute exhibition may have featured a running clock, but McMillan opted to reduce the shot clock to 20 seconds in order to ensure a quick tempo.
“You gotta be in great shape to play that kind of basketball,” McMillan said.
McMillan allowed the veterans to sub themselves in and out as they pleased, but there were certainly examples of fatigue throughout the night.
Perhaps the most salient came when guard Wesley Matthews missed a wide-open dunk on a breakaway in the first half. The third-year guard admitted he was tired at that point, but also quickly pointed out that he threw down a reverse jam on alley-oop pass in the second half.
The first unit comprised Nicolas Batum, Gerald Wallace, Kurt Thomas, Raymond Felton and Matthews. Center Marcus Camby sat out due to a sore back. The second unit was composed of Nolan Smith, Luke Babbitt, Armon Johnson, Chris Johnson and Williams, although a slew of training-camp players not under contract subbed in throughout the game. Smith, a rookie point guard, was the only Blazer to play with each unit.
Perhaps the biggest indicator that Portland is still working its way into shape was the combined 3-point shooting. Together, the Blazers were 4 for 34 from beyond the arc. The first unit was 1 for 17.
For what it’s worth, the first unit won 67-47 and Wallace was named Most Valuable Player. But anyone who thought the result was meaningless to the players should look no further than Matthews.
After the game, the 25-year-old got hold of a stat sheet that had him down for three steals.
Visibly upset, Matthews yelled out “I had at least four steals!”
Once again, this was an exhibition.
