Does Jerryd Bayless look happy, or what? He had a career night as he led the Blazers, along with Brandon Roy, to a 105-102 victory over the Phoenix Suns, in Portland. JBay had 29 points, shot 9/15 from the field, 9/12 from the stripe and made 2/3 threes, including a huge one to seal the win.
This was definitely a coming out party for Bayless, if he hasn’t had one already. This was an assertion of relevance and you could see the validation on the youngster’s face.
I’m proud to say “I told you so” when I quote my tweet from the opening two minutes of the game before Bayless entered, “The tempo of this game has “Jerryd Bayless” written all over it. In felt-tip marker.” I’m more than glad that my prediction came true.
Credit must also be given to Martell Webster, who had a great game in the finer things, such as snaring key rebounds. He finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and a game high +18 in the +/- category. Roy combined with Bayless for a huge fourth quarter, when he really came alive and he finished with 27 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.
These images above and below tell the story of the game!
Check Bayless’ face (above) — he can hardly contain his excitement
Oddly, the loss for Phoenix was their 17th straight on TNT and came despite some clutch shooting from Steve Nash down the stretch (16 points, 13 assists).
