Brandon Roy was a little heated. And who could blame him. That was his teammate writhing in pain under the basket. So yeah, when he saw Trevor Ariza “bucking” with Rudy Fernandez on the ground, it wasn’t going to fly.

That was March 9, after another Blazers win at the Rose Garden over the Lakers. April 10 has been circled on many calendars around Portland and Oregon ever since.

The rematch - Rumble at the Rose Garden. Surely some choice words for Ariza will fill the air.

Standing there in the locker room after the game listening to Roy explain that he didn’t get upset until he saw Ariza’s reaction, it was hard not to think about lasting memories and the rebirth of a rivalry.

As a kid, it was evident as I watched from a small town in Nebraska as Portland lost to Los Angeles (4-2) in the Western Conference Finals in the early 90's.

Years later and back in Portland, I sat in the nose bleeds at the Rose Garden in 2000 as the Blazers dropped the Western Conference Finals (4-3).

And again in the nose bleeds in 2002 when the Lakers bounced Portland from the first round (3-0) for the second-straight year in a row.

Now, the rebirth 2009 style.

We’re not talking about who has more rings. Dead debate. We’re talking about rekindling a longtime rivalry that typically makes for classic hardwood dramatics, especially in or around the postseason: Walton and Kareem. Clyde and Magic. Shaq and Rasheed. Roy and Bryant?

Blazers and Lakers. “Uprising” versus “Best in the West.”

Physical play simply becomes the common denominator.

"We almost get into it every time with them. It seems like when we started beating them they start doing the bully thing and the hard fouls," Roy said about the history between the two teams.

"Every time we are going to show them we are not going to back down. We're going to be right there in their face."

Remember all the hype this match-up caused in the season opener in Los Angeles? Portland was tentative. Greg Oden went down. The Lakers were as advertised.

That part hasn’t changed. But Oden is back – as is Andrew Bynum – and the Blazers have grown-up all the way back to the playoffs. So what can we expect Friday between Portland and Los Angeles?

Roy will surely come out fired-up. As for Kobe Bryant – last time he was ushered out a side door of the Rose Garden, avoiding any media interaction after the loss.

That’s one way to beat the heat.

pic via: latimes

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