Since the Portland Trail Blazers lost in embarrassing fashion to the Utah Jazz at the end of February, they have lost only 3 times (2 of those times against Western Conference playoff teams). Perhaps a combination of an easier schedule, more time off, a healthy(ier) Brandon Roy and solidified starting unit, the Blazers are finally taking care of business and headed down the home stretch all but guarantying their spot in the Western Conference playoffs. Not only are they sure to make the playoffs, it appears that a first round exit is no longer imminent as a 7th seed and a decidedly more favorable matchup seem likely.

Indeed, it has never been more fun this season to be a Blazer fan than this last stretch of awesome play. All the front office drama, ticket price increases, and absurd amount of injuries haven't deterred the Blazers or their fans, as the team and seemingly entire city gear up for a playoff run.

With everything clicking at the right time, what is there to criticize? After a brief respite from life and an awesome trip to Florida, I came back this week to watch some game tape hoping to see what everyone has been raving about. Although I was impressed by the offense and increased energy on defense, one thing stood out to me the most:
Where have the Blazers' second unit gone?

I checked out some stats on the second unit in order to find out whether I am just imagining the "bench woes" or if the second unit is indeed struggling. To clarify, the second unit is most commonly comprised of Jerryd Bayless, Rudy Fernandez, Martell Webster, Juwan Howard and LaMarcus Aldridge ( or another starter such as Andre Miller or Brandon Roy). With the addition of Marcus Camby , Jeff Pendergraph's minutes have understandably plummeted and to much fan chagrin (including my own), so have Dante Cunningham's .

At first glance, the second unit seems to struggle most with creating offense and getting back on defense Upon further investigation, what I found is certainly indicative of this. On 82Games.com, the 5 man unit of Fernandez, Bayless, Webster, Aldridge and Howard shoot 37% while allowing almost 48% opponent shooting. What is more, the majority of their shots are not close range. With Webster and Rudy on the floor, it is obvious many shots will be deep jumpers (3 pointers) and the numbers certainly indicate this.

Sadly, both Martell and Rudy seem to have lost their shot at the same time, which appears to be the main reason offensive production for that second unit is so low. Even with Howard or Aldridge and Bayless to score, much of Nate's offense relies on the two wings drawing the defense from whoever is in the middle. If the two wings can't hit a shot, defenders wont bother to stay out on them and this is certainly a trend we have seen lately. Rudy has been struggling with nagging injuries all season and especially of late, so I think in a fit of magnanimity I'll just allow that Rudy most likely struggles because of those injuries. Martell has no such excuse and whatever the problem is, whether it's insecurity or lack of confidence, the Blazers need him to reignite his shot and pose a legitimate threat to opposing defenders.

A perfect example of the above analysis would be Sunday night's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. During that game, the Blazers boasted an early 10 point lead and then the starters watched from the bench as the second unit allowed the Thunder a huge run and ability to briefly gain a lead. This occurred again later in the game as the first unit built another lead right out of half time, only to watch the Thunder get right back into the game once the starters sat for rest. Frustrating to watch as a fan and even more so for Nate McMillan, who no doubt needs to be able to rest the likes of Brandon Roy and Marcus Camby.

What became apparent during this game was the second unit's decided inability to create any offense or offensive rhythm without the guidance of Brandon Roy or Andre Miller. The second unit came in as quick shooting, trigger happy, and almost reckless bunch of guys who failed to control the game as their starters had. They were sloppy, too relaxed, displayed poor spacing and allowed poor ball movement.

Defensively, the second unit fared even worse as simply put, they played lazy. Whereas the first unit stifled the Thunder's offensive firepower with energy and execution on defense (perfectly executed switches on picks, great movement on the perimeter and several heads up plays, just to name a few reason why the first unit's defense was awesome) , the second unit looked the polar opposite in every way . Their rebounding was stagnant, there were numerous miscues and players missed assignments all over the place. I hardly expect a unit composed of Martell Webster and Rudy Fernandez to be defensively on par with the first unit, but what they lack in raw skill they can at least make up with effort and energy. Of late, there has been little of that on the defensive end.

Now, I know what you are thinking, "leave it to Sophia to find something negative about the team when they have clearly been playing so well". Although the team has been playing extremely well overall and there have been brilliant flashes and clutch plays from bench guys, lately the second unit has been more consistently bad than good and this is a serious concern. And it should go without saying that no team goes far in the playoffs without a solid bench and reliable role players in the second unit.

Through all the trials and tribulations of this season, I am truly elated that the Blazers are poised to get into the playoffs with good position. There was a time not too long ago when I thought the Blazers wouldn't even be able to get into the playoffs. Now , my competitiveness sets in and I'm in attack mode, as a fan I want the Blazers at the very least, to get into the second round and in order to achieve that we need our bench unit to step up and start playing solid basketball.

Sophia Brugato | Twitter! | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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