Teammates Are Awed by Pippen

The Portland Trail Blazers traded for forward Scottie Pippen before the start of the season because they believed his veteran leadership was needed in order for them to reach the NBA finals.

But when Pippen was unable to lead Portland to home victories in Games 3 and 4, many Trail Blazer followers whispered that he was not worth the investment.

That all changed after Pippen had 22 points, six rebounds, six steals and four blocked shots in the Trail Blazers’ 96-88 victory in Game 5 on Tuesday. Even his teammates were awed by his performance.

“He just took over,” Bonzi Wells said of Pippen, who played well despite two dislocated fingers on his left hand. “He came out and attacked them. He stayed aggressive and played hard. That’s what won the game for us.”

Added Brian Grant: “Scottie gave his body up the whole game, and really motivated us all to take the ball to the hole strong. That is the thing we haven’t been doing the past couple of games.”

Assistant coach Tony Brown said Pippen has tried to be aggressive in the playoffs.

“Most games Scottie is trying to come out like that,” Brown said. “Because we had so many letdowns in Games 3 and 4, he took it upon himself to try and get us juiced early and into a good flow.”

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Point guard Damon Stoudamire told The Oregonian that he was surprised that the Lakers came out so flat in Game 5.

“What a game Shaquille O’Neal played, but where were the rest of the Lakers? That surprised me,” Stoudamire said. “I was looking for them to come out a little more emotional, a little more revved up. They didn’t come out the way we thought they would.”

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The Trail Blazers, who did not work out Wednesday, are confident they will be able to end their two-game home losing streak. After finishing the regular season with the fifth-best home record in the league, Portland had its confidence shaken after consecutive losses to the Lakers at the Rose Garden.

“It’s flip-flopped,” Steve Smith said. “We keep winning on their home court and they keep winning on ours. But it is our turn to win one at home now.”

Portland Coach Mike Dunleavy said the series is going exactly as he thought it would.

“Obviously, you all don’t listen to me when I talk,” Dunleavy said. “I told you from the very beginning that I didn’t think there was a home-court advantage in this series. I thought that either team was capable of winning every game on the other team’s home court, that it was going to come down to how you play every night, and that’s been the key.”