The Trail Blazers set for the first of three meetings this season with Phoenix Tuesday, and the Suns will be bringing a very different team into the Rose Garden from the one that opened this campaign.
Shawn Marion is gone and Shaquille O'Neal is at center, but the Suns are only 2-4 since Shaq has joined their lineup. "He's a load, even at his age (36)," Portland center Joel Przybilla said. "I think once he gets into a rhythm with their offense, he's going to be a valuable weapon. We can't let him dominate down low on Tuesday."
WARRIORS 110, BLAZERS 104: Portland (31-29) fell a little further out of the playoff picture Sunday, dropping six games behind eighth-place Golden State (36-22) and 4 1/2 games back of ninth-place Denver (35-24) in the Western Conference.
Portland won the first two meetings with Golden State, but the Warriors benefited from 21 points off 16 Blazer turnovers. The Blazers scored only five points off eight Warrior giveaways as their road record plummeted to 9-21.
"You can't turn the ball over against this team," Portland coach Nate McMillan said. "You have to grit your teeth in this type of game. Playing with intensity and emotion at home is good, but you have to come with even more on the road. You have to go out take games like this, and tonight we made too many mistakes."
