An All-Star Solution To The Blazers Crunch Time Problems

Some guy named Ernest Hemmingway once said courage is grace under pressure. If that’s true, then the 2012 version of the Trail Blazers have about as much courage as a certain Italian cruise ship captain. Since Portland’s opening night win over Philadelphia, the Blazers have gone 0-9 in games decided by 5 points or less, including 0-3 in overtime games. The lack of crunch time execution presented itself throughout January: a 3-point loss to Orlando at home, an overtime loss to Houston, a 3-point loss to Detroit and a 4-point loss to Utah. And then just when you thought that a 44-point spanking of Charlotte to start the month of February would turn things around, restore the team’s gravitas and break the close game futility streak, the Blazers go on the road against a 6-15 Sacramento team and gift wrap a 3-point win for the bottom feeders of the Pacific. The pull-your-hair-out games have only continued from there. A remarkable 39-point effort from Lamarcus Allstardrige was throw...