The Trail Blazers watched their 4th quarter lead dwindle and disappear in the midst of an 11-0 Orlando Magic run Saturday night. Portland seemed in control nearly the entire game, but ultimately fell victim to a great final surge from their opponents in Florida, 92-83.
But the real story Saturday night was the dismal performance from a guy they recently gave a 5 year extension to: LaMarcus Aldridge. He struggled, to put it mildly, through 31 minutes of action in the first game of the Blazers' current road trip.
His final stat line: 31 minutes, 3 points, 1 rebound, 3 steals, 1 turnover, (-10).
3 points and 1 rebound from someone you expect to become an all-star power forward in the NBA?
Hardly stats Portland expects from its 65-million-dollar man. One can imagine that with any sort of effort from Aldridge, the Portland squad could have finished off the Orlando team it held down for three quarters. Unfortunately, thanks in part to a lackluster performance from LaMarcus, the Blazers found themselves on the losing end.
Portland fans have been getting on Aldridge this season, pointing to his new contract as the source of his lack-of-effort performances. While Portland head coach Nate McMillan doesn't seemed alarmed over Aldridge's poor play, he will certainly expect Aldridge to put up better numbers.
The Blazers will next head to Miami to take on the Heat Sunday night. Last time Portland played them, Aldridge sat out with an injury and the Blazers lost by 7, so a bounce back effort from LaMarcus should give Portland the edge they need.
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