Mike Barrett's Blog - Portland Trail Blazers Official Blog

New Lineup Downs Spurs

2009-11-06T23:23:00.000-08:00

A new wrinkle against an old nemesis did the trick.

It wasn't a masterpiece, by any means, but the Trail Blazers were able to put together a wire-to-wire victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night at the Rose Garden, winning 96-84.

The Blazers, who won last season's series against the Spurs 3-1, blew out to a 15-point first-quarter lead, thanks to a new starting lineup. The upped that lead to 17 in the third quarter, and then held on as the Spurs charged back. After San Antonio cut the lead to 80-77 with 2:30 left, Steve Blake nailed a huge three pointer on the wing that pretty much put the game away. Blake also had the dagger three against the Thunder in Oklahoma on Sunday.

There was a buzz around the Rose Garden when I arrived at the building Friday afternoon. Everyone was talking about a new starting lineup. When I finally did my pre-game TV interview with Nate McMillan, he filled me in. He said he would start Steve Blake and Andre Miller together in the back court, and would move Brandon Roy to the small-forward spot.

McMillan said he wanted to get quicker, get better passers on the floor, and didn't want to sacrifice Blake for Miller in that starting five. It was a bit of a surprise, as everyone assumed Miller would eventually start, but thought it would be at the expense of Blake.

The lineup immediately set a different pace at the start of this game, and it was clear the plan was to push the tempo and look to get easy baskets. The Blazers, despite some shaky shooting in the early minutes, built a double-digit lead, and led 29-14 after one.

The Spurs, who were playing the second of a back to back, never did go away, however. Even after losing Tony Parker to a sprained ankle late in the first half, San Antonio continued to make the Blazers work and continued to hit big shot after big shot to stay in the game. Blake's three, and Greg Oden's defense, finally put the game away.

Oden, who was up against crafty Tim Duncan in this game, ended with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots. He ended with five fouls, but was able to stay in the game. After he picked up two quick fouls in the game, Joel Przybilla came in and grabbed 10 first-half rebounds. Przybilla ended with 13 rebounds in 18 minutes in the game.

As for the new backcourt, the ball was certainly in Brandon Roy's hands less, but it didn't hurt his production. He finished with 24 points on just 15 shots, and also grabbed five rebounds. Blake ended with 15, and Miller, who struggled from the field (2-9) finished with 4 assists and 6 rebounds.

There's still plenty of room for improvement, as the Blazer bench unit shot just 8 for 24, and the team finished with only 11 assists, but to make a change this major, and to beat a very good San Antonio team, had everyone feeling like the change was a success.

The Blazers played great defense on the Spurs all night, and held them to just 38 percent shooting. Oden constantly bothered Duncan, who ended up just 5 for 14 from the field. And, Manu Ginobili, who's been playing great off the bench, was just 4 for 14.

On Tuesday, Atlanta outrebounded Portland by 10, and that didn't sit well with the Blazer coaches. The team responded by outrebounding the Spurs 48-37. Portland was also very, very good at the foul line, going 27 for 30 on the night (90 percent).

McMillan is still, obviously doing some searching and some experimenting, but he appears to have settled on this lineup, at least for the time being. Not only did it get Miller into the starting five, but created a chance to use Jerryd Bayless, who played his first minutes of the regular season. He played only five minutes, but kept the heat on the Spurs and showed flashes of penetration at the offensive end, and solid defense.

To hear McMillan's post-game comments, click here.

The home stand wraps up on Sunday when the Blazers host Minnesota. Then, we're off on a five-game road swing. This was a small step, in the bigger picture, but much-needed win over a very talented team.

Atlanta Breaks Through at Garden

2009-11-03T22:45:00.000-08:00

The Portland Trail Blazers lost only seven times at home last season, and created an atmosphere of invincibility at the Rose Garden. One of the losses came as a result of a last-second bank-in three pointer by Orlando. The other loss took a total collapse by Portland at the free-throw line, and a buzzer-beating three pointer to force overtime. In other words, you didn't come to Portland and expect to win.

Now, this is certainly not panic time (just five games into the season), but the Trail Blazers have now dropped two-straight home games and Friday night welcome the San Antonio Spurs to the Rose Garden.

The home-court advantage is as much about attitude as it is about talent. It's a mystique, that creates a swagger, that creates confidence. Clearly, the Blazers are frustrated and need to get that attitude back. We shouldn't limit the discussion to just home games, as there are certainly concerns that go beyond games at the garden.

But, they are just that- concerns. No one is feeling at this point that a major overhaul in philosophy is necessary, or that wholesale roster changes need to happen. It's the X factor that's missing. I just can't put my finger on what that X factor is. Again, we're just five games into the season, so that's the good news.

The problem isn't creating positive results at the offensive and defensive ends. The problem right now is sustaining those results. Never was this more on display than in Tuesday night's game at the Rose Garden. Momentum constantly switched back and forth. The Blazers led by as many as 12, but couldn't find the combination to ultimately lead them to a win.

Last season at home when the Blazers led at halftime it was over. They were 26-0 when holding a halftime advantage. This year, in their last two home losses they've led at halftime and they've lost both.

Atlanta is a very talented, and very good team. Let's also get that out of the way. In broadcasts and on this blog I always try and give credit to the opponent in situations like this. The Hawks deserved this win, and will be among the elite teams in the east this season. I don't think there's any question about that.

But, the fan in me says that all of that shouldn't matter. The Blazers simply win at home. I know the team has that attitude, and I hope this stretch doesn't poke big holes in that thinking. Because, again, that attitude is what carries you on your home court.

Nate McMillan and the Blazer coaching staff is obviously searching a bit right now. That's what they're paid to do. They're trying different combinations, different defensive schemes, running on some possessions and walking it up on others. I have no doubt that they'll lock on to a successful formula. Afterall, they see this team a lot more than the rest of us do, and have forgotten more about basketball that we'll ever know.

There are a couple of key numbers that stood out to me in this game. First, the Blazers came into this game having outrebounded opponents 172-140 in their first four games. They were outrebounded by Atlanta 46-36. The Hawks also had 50 points in the paint to Portland's 34.

I've said this many times in the past, but when you win 54 games the challenge is to tweak without changing what you are. So many teams struggle because they never really know what they are. Brandon Roy took 3 shots in the fourth quarter of this game. That's clearly not what the Blazers are. Give some credit here to Atlanta's defense, which wanted anyone but Roy to shoot the ball. The Blazers also went long stretches in the second half of this game with both Joel Przybilla and Greg Oden on the bench. The effort was to go smaller, play a zone defense, and out-quick the Hawks. The result was that rebounding deficit I mentioned above, along with the inability to create easy shots with either big screens, high percentage points in the paint. That's part of the searching.

I also got the feeling that Portland was going small in order to create opportunities to run and get easy baskets. I sit about five feet from where McMillan stands for 90 percent of the game. I can't tell you how many times, after grabbing a defensive rebound, Nate waives his arm in a windmill fashion and yells "push, push, push!" So, when Nate talks about wanting to run more, he's not just saying that to make you happy. The Blazers ended up taking only two shots in transition. They were successful on both attempts. Atlanta had 18 fast-break points. The Blazers, by the way, are last in this category in the NBA.

Back to the big guys for a moment. Oden was in foul trouble again in this game. He played just 16 minutes. But, in those 16 minutes he nearly had a double-double, and ended with 8 points and 9 rebounds. Przybilla played 19 minutes and ended with 4 points, 6 rebounds, and two blocked shots. Joel started the second half, and Portland quickly regained control building an 8-point lead midway through the quarter. By the end of the quarter, Atlanta had jumped back on top and led by 3. The Blazers tied it a few times after that, but never led again.

One comment I've heard over and over again by both coaches and players is that there is too much thinking going on and not enough reaction. This illustrates that the team is in an adjustment mode. It's a mode we all knew would take some time to figure out. And, it's not like couldn't see this process coming. It doesn't make it easier to stomach now, but some struggles early in the season were inevitable. I've talked at length about that in the two months.

We are very, very early in what is going to be a long season. That's the good news. Tell yourself that when you're reaching for the panic button. Call me an apologist, but that's the reality.

Early in this busy schedule the Blazers don't get two-day breaks between games very often. They have one now. McMillan is giving the team Wednesday off, and that's probably exactly what they need.

To listen to McMillan's post-game comments, click here.

Blazers Grind Out Road Win

2009-11-02T00:34:00.000-08:00

Following the loss in Houston on Halloween, the Blazers recommitted themselves to the defensive end of the floor. Nate McMillan, and others, called out the team for surrendering 111 points to the Rockets, and for allowing their backcourt to go for a combined 69 points.

Sunday night in Oklahoma City, the results of the post-game discussion from the night before were pretty impressive. The Blazers held the previously-unbeaten Thunder to 34 percent shooting, and 74 points overall, winning the game 83-74.

It wasn’t the prettiest thing to watch, but getting the first road win was the most important thing that came out of the night. The Blazers shot just 41 percent from the field, but had the clutch buckets down the stretch and held on.

Steve Blake, who had been passing up shots in an effort to get others involved, took more of the offense upon himself in this game. Blake led the Blazers with 18 points, on 6 of 9 shooting, including going 4 for 5 from behind the three-point line. He also hit the dagger three, off a pass from Brandon Roy, with 90 seconds to go in the game, that made the score 77-68, and pretty much ended it.

Roy, who scored 42 against the Rockets on Saturday, had Thabo Sefolosha draped on him most of the night on Sunday. Brandon ended with a hard-earned 16, but went just 5 for 17 from the floor. Greg Oden played a big role in this game as well, as he ended with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and a blocked shot.

Martell Webster had the highlight of the night, a rim-rocking jam over Etan Thomas in the third quarter. He also stepped up and played tough defense on Kevin Durant, who had a nightmare shooting night, going 3 for 21. Some of that was due to Webster, but Durant also missed a bunch of open shots.

Oklahoma City was led by Russell Westbrook’s 23 points, but he ended with a whopping 9 turnovers. I truly don’t remember doing a game where a player had 9 turnovers. You’ve got to give Blake some of the credit there. He drew two offensive fouls on Russell, who repeatedly tried to back Blake into the paint, and hounded him into several bad passes.

Maybe the most impressive part of this win was the fact that the Blazers went most of the way without LaMarcus Aldridge, who went knee to knee with Jeff Green in the first half. He tried to get it loose at halftime, but was in too much pain. It’s just a bruise, so isn’t serious. Aldridge told me on the flight on the way home that he’s just sore, but should be fine to play on Tuesday against Atanta.

We’ve talked so much about expectations and how they can weigh heavy on a team. After losing to Denver at home, and to Houston on Saturday, another loss in Oklahoma City wouldn’t have gone over well. The mood on the flight back to Portland was much, much lighter than we’ve seen in recent days.

It’s a three-game homestand now for the Blazers, starting with the Hawks on Tuesday. The Spurs come to town on Friday, and Minnesota will be in at the Rose Garden on Sunday.

It’s good to be home, and better to be home with a road win. Even if it was ugly.

A Statement Win for Denver

2009-10-29T22:55:00.000-07:00

The NBA season is very long, but this one will sting a while. No one should need to be reminded how much games against division rivals mean, even if it is October.

For the Denver Nuggets, it's a very impressive start to the NBA season. They've started with two victories over the two teams that came into the season poised to steal their division crown- Utah, and Portland. And, they've done it without sharpshooter J.R. Smith, who is serving a seven-game suspension to start the year.

This was the very definition of a grind-it-out win for Denver, who was playing in the second of a back to back. It was ugly. Both teams struggled to find any flow. Denver hung around, stayed in the game by shooting 49 free throws, and won it when Portland opened the door by missing free throws late in the game. They outscored the Blazers 35-27 in the fourth quarter and won the game 97-94.

The Trail Blazers held a seven-point lead with just over seven minutes left, but the Nuggets never faded. Behind Carmelo Anthony, they chipped away with clutch makes, and repeated trips to the foul line. Anthony, who ended with 41 points, was 18 for 19 from the foul line.

Portland got a huge third quarter from Brandon Roy, who ended the game with 30, and saw Rudy Fernandez step up in the fourth quarter. Fernandez, who ended with 22, was 6 for 9 from the field, and 8 for 8 from the line.

Until the final 2:25 of the game, the Blazers had been very solid at the free-throw line, going 30 for 33 until that point. But, a Roy miss at 2:25, followed by an Andre Miller miss at 1:40, and a LaMarcus Aldridge miss at 35.5, gave the Nuggets life. Despite the shaky trips to the line, the Blazers still had the ball trailing by one in what appeared to be their final possession. Greg Oden was fouled with 4.6 seconds left, and missed both free throws. The Nuggets hit two, and then survived a long three-point attempt by Roy as the final horn sounded.

Oden will be kicking himself for missing on both attempts on his late trip to the line, but it's not like that was the difference maker on this night. The Trail Blazers struggled from the floor all night, and ended up shooting just 35 percent from the field. Roy got the 30 points, but was just 6 for 16. Aldridge ended 4 for 15. Miller, off the bench, was 3 for 11, and Travis Outlaw, who was so sharp against Houston, shot just 1 for 8.

This game had an odd feel the entire night. Honestly, I had an uneasy feeling about this game the entire day. The Blazers survived 26 turnovers to beat Houston on Tuesday, and in this game looked to be thinking way too much about that. They were tight, tentative, and just couldn't get into any kind of a flow. Perhaps fearing turnovers too much. They turned it over only seven times, but I'll take 26 in a win versus 7 in a loss.

As I've mentioned for weeks, there are going to be nights like this early in this season. I have fully expected some struggles as this team acclimates to the new rotations, and new roles. It's natural. It doesn't feel any better to say that after a tough loss like this, but at the very least it's understandable. And, it's an opportunity to learn (sucks to say that, but that's all you can say).

To listen to Nate McMillan's comments after this game, click here.

Friday morning we hit the road for the first time this regular season. Saturday night the Houston Rockets, who bounced back nicely Wednesday with a win at Golden State, will host their home opener against Portland. They, no doubt, are confident they can beat the Blazers given the way Tuesday's game ended. After the game in Houston, we head for Oklahoma City to take on the talented Thunder.

Talk to you from the road.

Plenty of Positives in Opener

2009-10-27T22:46:00.000-07:00

On opening night at the Rose Garden on Tuesday, the positives certainly outweighed the negatives (there were a fair amount of both), and the ultimate goal was achieved. The Trail Blazers beat the Houston Rockets and got the season started with a win.

In the third quarter it looked like the Blazers were about to make this thing a blowout, as they built a 20-point lead, but the scrappy Rockets hung tough, cutting the lead to six very late, before falling 96-87.

There were also some odd things about this game, and that was probably expected. The Rockets, in their current state, are a very unconventional team. That will probably spell defeat for them on most occasions this season, but they also have the potential to cause people problems with how they play. It's so different that you really can't concentrate on how you want to attack them, or how at all times you can stop them. They'll be chippy at times, outwork teams on some nights, but mostly will probably see a lot of games like this one.

You could certainly argue that the final outcome of this game made it look closer than it actually was. The Blazers were in control most of the way, and there was never really a point where you felt like they would lose it. The Rockets did cut the lead to 6 with just over two minutes left, and that made some folks nervous, but it didn't exactly lead to finger-nail chewing.

One of the major heroes in this game for Portland came from the bench, and came from perhaps and unexpected spot. It's not totally out of character for Travis Outlaw to step up, because we've seen it on many occasions, but considering Portland's size advantage on the front line, I half expected the biggest numbers to be posted by a Blazer big man. Instead, LaMarcus Aldridge was hit with early foul trouble, the team never really went to Greg Oden, Brandon Roy struggled with his shot, and that left Outlaw the opportunity to have a huge impact off the bench.

Outlaw had a terrific first half, was active on defense and around the glass, and ended with a game-high 23 points, on a very efficient 9 of 14 shooting. He also hit three shots from behind the three-point line, and ended up playing 33 minutes.

Roy ended with 20 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds, but wasn't thrilled with his individual performance. He was just 5 for 18 from the field.

Aldridge, who had to come out of this game very early after picking up his second foul, ended with 11 points and 6 rebounds. Almost no offense came from the center spot, but Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla combined for 22 rebounds and 7 blocked shots, so that's certainly something to build on.

As for the point-guard spot, Steve Blake and Andre Miller ended up playing almost exactly the same amount of minutes. Blake had seven points, and hit two three pointers. Miller had a great run in the second quarter, against Houston's second unit, and finished with 9 points and 7 assists, but was just 3 for 11 from the field.

What kept Houston in the game were constant trips to the foul line, and Portland turnovers. The Blazers were pretty sloppy, and ended with 26 turnovers. That's very uncharacteristic for this team, which was among the league leaders in taking care of the basketball last season. We won't see many 26-turnover nights for this team this season, that's for sure.

So, there are some bugs that needed to be ironed out, but this team is good enough to win on nights when they're not at their absolute best. They certainly didn't need to be in this game.

It could be a different story on Thursday when the Blazers host the Denver Nuggets. One major thing the Blazers have in their favor going into that game will be the fact that Denver plays at home on Wednesday night, and will get into Portland very late after that game. Back-to-back situations are a huge factor in this league, and sometimes are more telling early in a season than late.

To listen to Nate McMillan's post-game comments, as heard on the Blazers Radio Network, click here.

Wrapping up the theme of this being an odd night, is the fact that Portland never turned the ball over 26 times in a game last season. As McMillan said, "that's probably the last time we turn the ball over 26 times and win." Portland also recorded 12 blocked shots in the game. Their season high for a game last season was 10.

Triple Threat

2009-10-25T22:01:00.000-07:00

For all that we've talked about, and there's been plenty during the off season, it pretty much boils down to this- Portland's version of the "big three" is healthy, happy, and motivated. The table is set, and the cupboard is full. Even though it takes more than just the combination of three players to reach the truly-elite level in the NBA, the Trail Blazers are the envy of many teams in this league.

Tuesday night the Blazers will open the 2009-10 season with Brandon Roy, 25, LaMarcus Aldridge, 24, and Greg Oden, 21, as their equilateral triangle. Equal in their dedication to this team, to this city, just about equal in their youth, and certainly equal in their superstar potential (although you could argue that Roy is already there). If this franchise is going to win a second NBA title in the next five to seven years, it's going to be because of this trio. Dress up the crew around them, and vital it will be, but there is the core, and then there is everything else.

It's difficult to sit and judge eras of Blazer basketball, even though we all do it all the time. But, when talking about a combination of three (and it's difficult to keep it at that in all cases), this one is going to be tough to beat when it's all said and done. Where do you place these three in terms of ranking a cornerstone in this age of Blazer basketball?

I do agree that it's probably not fair to even begin to judge this threesome yet, and some of us have taken the cautious approach to not heap expectations too high. But, when you consider the fact that this group, still in its infancy, won 54 games last season, it's difficult not to get caught up in what could be.

So, was last season truly "Chapter One," or does that start now? It probably doesn't really matter, and the adjustments around these guys will continue for years. I guess what I'm saying is, when will the clock start ticking? Does that depend on your own individual expectations? Or, is that even up to us to decide? It's certainly not up to those three players to decide- not that it matters to them at this point.

Roy has clearly put himself in an elite group of NBA players in his first three seasons. It's also pretty evident that we haven't seen anything close to his best basketball yet. Nationally, however, the perception is often that Aldridge and Oden have as good or greater potential to be historical figures in this game- especially Oden.

As usual, it's all about the things we can't control- namely, injuries. A little over a week ago Bill Walton was in town mending broken ties and speaking of great regret. He admitted that some of it was his doing, but most of it was just bad luck. It's scary to think about how many titles that young group could have won if the injury bug didn't bite so incredibly hard. So, even though they did bring us that one magical title, there's so much more that wasn't realized. That group was both an amazing story, and a cautionary tale about the fragility of all of this.

The one lesson Walton kept trying to preach was to enjoy all of this while we've got it, because you never know when it's going to be taken away. As much as we all want to squeeze this to death and control every possible scenario, a good bit of all of this is simply luck.

Anticipation is such an amazing thing. It's often times better than the memory, and better than the actual act. Right now, as far as this season goes, we're right at a fork in the road at least as far as getting some answers to these early questions. I, for one, can't sit still. We're not only about to start another season, but another era.

Comparisons have been drawn between the start of this season, and the start of the 1999-2000 season. I remember being at the practice facility at the end of training camp and looking at Pippen, Smith, Wallace, Sabonis, Stoudamire, Grant, O'Neal, Schrempf, and all the others. I had just joined the franchise and was thinking to myself what it would be like to get a ring in my first year with the team. It seemed so close. Turns out, it was.

As special as that time was, this is different. That team was, for the most part, purchased. This one has been grown. This core was drafted, and tuned, by us. That other team was also a very veteran team. They had been through many wars, and its leader already had rings. This team has been described as being almost too fresh faced to know what it has in front of it.

So many of the topics that have dominated our thoughts as of late are going to fade very soon. The opening-night starting lineup issue has been played over and over again. Not to say it hasn't been worthy of discussion, but is it really that crucial? We're about to play game one of 82. There will be adjustments along the way, and the depth of this team will be put to the test. As I've mentioned many times, there will be growing pains, especially out of the gate. There will be a time to judge a body of work, but it won't be for a while.

It's been talked to death, but chemistry is so vital. Coaches always say the most difficult thing to achieve is chemistry, and maintaining it is probably as challenging. If for no other reason that's why I'm absolutely in favor of the starting lineup we saw in the final preseason game. If you read often, you know I've been preaching about this lineup since August. In the early going at least, stick with what has worked and what is most comfortable. Most importantly, stick with what is most comfortable for your heavy hitters.

Even though many ingredients will be needed for ultimate success, this team knows what it is. What's good for Roy, Aldridge, and Oden, is good for the Blazers.

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Nate McMillan joined us on Trail Blazers Courtside last night. To listen to that interview, including his reaction to losing Nicolas Batum, click here.

A Very Positive End

2009-10-22T21:12:00.000-07:00

If it's true that you're only as good as your last game, then the Trail Blazers are fine after all. Of course, it isn't that easy. But, Thursday night went a long way toward answering a lot of questions and calming some nerves. Yes, it's only the preseason, but stuff like this matters.

This was about building confidence, and a 113-93 blowout win over the Phoenix Suns is exactly what this team needed. Actually, a blowout win over anybody would have been acceptable. The fact that it came against a team like the Suns, who were playing their regular rotation, made it even more impressive.

I think it's pretty clear that Nate McMillan has settled on a starting lineup. If he was needing to see this unit perform well together to put his mind at ease then this game certainly did that.

The starting group of Blake, Roy, Batum, Aldridge, and Oden was spectacular on this night, quickly getting Portland off to a 14-point lead. Even though the second unit gave that entire lead up in the second quarter, the starters were able to come back in the third quarter and build it right back.

I don't usually talk much about the plus/minus stat for individual players, but this column absolutely jumped off the page after the third quarter of this game. This stat simply shows how much your team outscored the opponent, or was outscored by the opponent while the player was in the game. After the third quarter, Blake was a +25, Roy a +23, Batum a +23, Aldridge a +23, and Oden a +21. That's extremely rare to see numbers like this for a group of five players after a third quarter, especially considering these guys only played the first and third quarters.

Brandon has been looking for a game like this in the preseason, and in this one he certainly looked like he's ready for the start of the regular season. Brandon had 17 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists in the first quarter. LaMarcus, fresh off signing the five-year extension, was equally as dominant. In fact, in the first quarter, Roy and Aldridge scored 21 of Portland's first 28 points. That's the way it should be. That's option-number one, and number two, clicking together.

Roy finished the game with 22 points in just 24 minutes. Aldridge ended with 17 points and 9 rebounds, and also played just 24 minutes. Steve Blake also put together his best game of the exhibition season, even if his numbers didn't fly off the box score. Still, 7 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, and 1 turnover, in just 19 minutes, is very solid.

This final game of the exhibition season was supposed to be one where the regulars didn't have much of an impact, and the goal would be just to get through the game without an injury. But, because of recent minor scrapes, and blows to their confidence, this one meant a lot more.

This helped restore a lost swagger, and answered questions about chemistry. I mean, seriously, how much better did this game make you feel about this team? That's one thing I really didn't think I'd be saying that during the exhibition season.

How odd is it that this game, which was supposed to be a throw away, turned into perhaps the only game of the preseason that actually mattered? Again, it's not quite that simple, but in this league you're supposed to have a short memory. That works for me.

Shorthanded Blazers Fall

2009-10-20T22:47:00.001-07:00

The frustration of a 108-97 blowout-loss to the Utah Jazz at the Rose Garden was somewhat tempered by the fact that this is just the pre-season. But, Nate McMillan showed signs of frustration after the game, saying, "we can't just flip a switch." Obviously, the Blazers need to get better, and the preparation time is running out.

While the exhibition time is now short, the injury list is growing for the Blazers, who started their 7th different starting lineup in 7 pre-season games. Greg Oden and Rudy Fernandez were ruled out of this game well in advance, but LaMarcus Aldridge was a late scratch as he recovers from a shin bruise. Just one minute into the game with the Jazz, Nicolas Batum left the game with a thigh injury and didn't return. Oden could return Thursday, but Rudy will likely be out until Tuesday's opener against Houston.

Even though he cited that the injuries were a factor, McMillan stopped well short of using them as an excuse after the loss to the Jazz, a game that saw Utah lead at one point by as many as 25. McMillan was frustrated by the effort, and the fact that many of his players appeared tentative, once again.

Portland's defense, the focus of training camp, is still leaving much to be desired as the Jazz were able to shoot 53 percent from the field, and also shot 43 free throws. Sloppy ball handling by the Blazers was also a concern again, as they recorded 22 turnovers against Utah.

One player who continues to be a bright spot for Portland is Jerryd Bayless, who is trying to show that he's worthy of cracking the rotation. Bayless led Portland with 16 points in 21 minutes against the Jazz. Another player who will also be in a fight to see the floor in the regular season is rookie Dante Cunningham. Following an impressive camp, Cunningham put together another solid effort on Tuesday night, scoring 14 points, and pulling down 6 rebounds in 21 minutes.

Brandon Roy, who has been struggling with his offensive game, had his best shooting night of the exhibition season going 5 for 9, and had 15 points. Travis Outlaw, who has struggled during the preseason, had 10 points in the first quarter, but was scoreless the rest of the way.

Clearly, things aren't clicking as well as we hoped they would be in this exhibition season, but it's difficult to tell what's truly a cause for concern, and what is just a sign of growing pains. McMillan is right on the money saying the team can't just flip a switch next Tuesday night and expect things to magically change. But, until we start seeing games that count, I have a hard time being overly troubled.

More than anything else it simply seems there is too much thinking going on during these games, and not enough reaction. This team continues to overpass the ball, and the result is players passing up shots we expect them to take. They fought the shot clock repeatedly again on Tuesday, and that's something that has to change. Several players have even admitted to me that they're too busy trying to share the ball and not playing enough off instinct.

It was nice to see Roy dial in his shooting touch a bit, but he needs to be taking more than nine shots. He should be the first option on offense, and instead always seems to finally get the ball when the shot clock is ticking down. For a guy who often needs time to create his shot by setting up a defense, this isn't normal. Maybe our idea of "normal" isn't normal anymore.

As I've stated for some time now, an adjustment period is the one thing that is normal, and so this maybe shouldn't be so unexpected. I expect this team to struggle to find its groove now and then early in the regular season, and panic certainly shouldn't set in if that happens. It's not a comfortable prediction, but it seems realistic.

The Blazers have just one exhibition game left, and that's Thursday night against the Phoenix Suns in Vancouver B.C. Then, it's a weekend of fine tuning prior to Tuesday's season-opening game against the Houston Rockets at the Rose Garden.

To listen to McMillan's comments after the Utah game, click here.

A Much-Needed Exhibition Win

2009-10-18T22:00:00.000-07:00

Considering all that is expected of the Trail Blazers this season, is it possible to say a pre-season win was a big victory? In this case, absolutely.

It wasn't just that the Blazers came from 12 down in the final eight minutes, it was how they came back that made this victory seem so vital to this team, and a very loud Rose Garden crowd.

Not only did Brandon Roy seem to gain some traction in this exhibition season, and shake off some summer rust, but Greg Oden played perhaps the most dominant stretch of basketball in his NBA career.

For the most part, Denver went with its regular-season rotation down the stretch of this game, and used its powerful front court lineup of Kenyon Martin, Nene, and Chris Anderson. Oden, who was saddled with foul trouble through most of the game, came alive during a five-minute stretch in the final quarter and literally carried his team to the victory.

During that stretch, Oden had 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocked shots. He powered through Martin and Nene, who were doubling him, several times. And, threw down a rim-rocking jam on Anderson, who had come from the weak side to attempt one his trademark blocked shots. Oden had a tip in, a three-point play where he reversed the ball up off the glass with his left hand, and went 6 for 6 from the free-throw line.

Most importantly, Oden was having fun. He wanted the ball, was moving Denver's big defenders around with relative ease, and was composed and in control. He ended the game with 16 points and 7 rebounds, in just under 16 minutes of playing time. In the end, this was another example of Oden's potential dominance, if he can stay on the floor. He fouled out of this game with two and a-half minutes left.

Andre Miller was also very good during the fourth-quarter run, and lead the team in scoring with 18 points. Brandon Roy had 12, and Juwan Howard, who continues to show that he's going to demand minutes, had 10 points and 5 rebounds. Howard got the start at the power-forward spot for LaMarcus Aldridge, who suited up, but didn't play.

The win snapped a three-game losing skid, and came against the team they'll likely be battling for the NW Division crown. It's just the pre season, but had just lost to another divisional rival in Utah, and didn't want to drop another one to a division foe.

They'll get another shot at the Jazz on Tuesday night at the Rose Garden in game 7 of 8 in the exhibition season.

To listen to Nate McMillan's post-game comments, click here.

Suns Can't Spoil MC Party

2009-10-14T22:05:00.000-07:00

Everything was perfectly nostalgic on this night- even the end result.

Playing inside Memorial Coliseum for the first time since 1995, the young Trail Blazers were blitzed by Steve Nash, the oldest player on the floor, which was very fitting during this throwback celebration.

Nash scored 23 points, dished out 15 assists, and led the Suns to a 110-104 win over the Blazers. Of course, the last time the Blazers played a game at the coliseum, it was also the Suns who came away with the victory. In that game, it was Charles Barkley who led the way with 47 points.

The Trail Blazers went with a starting lineup of Andre Miller, Brandon Roy, Martell Webster, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Greg Oden, and held the lead at halftime. Oden, who went 7 for 8 from the field in the first half, took just two shots in the second half, and didn't get enough help from his friends.

Miller led the Blazers with 25 points, while LaMarcus Aldridge had 20, and Oden ended with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Roy, who's shooting troubles during the exhibition season have been well documented, went just 4 for 13 in this game, and he ended with 11 points.

Nate McMillan experimented with different combinations in the second half, but nothing seemed to click. Not only did the Suns get 23 from Nash, but notorious Blazer-killer Leandro Barbosa hit for 25 off the bench.

Phoenix opened up its largest lead of the game in the final minutes of the contest, before the Blazers stormed back to make the final look like it was a closer game than it actually was (at least in the second half).

Clearly, being this was pre-season game number 4 of 8, this is hardly panic time. I realize some of you won't see it this way, and will likely start to worry a bit. I will just remind you that this is what the exhibition season is for- finding a rhythm, searching for combinations, getting rotations set. But, there are certainly some defensive concerns that will have the coaching staff scratching its head.

The Suns, who had hit only 12 three pointers in their first three pre-season games combined, hit for 12 in this game alone. Nash was able to penetrate through the lane at will in the second half, and started racking up the assists. We've seen him dissect defenses before, so this wasn't exactly shocking.

Sloppy play, and poor free-throw shooting again dogged the Blazers. They turned the ball over 18 times, and shot just 67 percent at the foul line.

Now, I was the first to say that this night wouldn't be about the x's and o's. There was too much other stuff to celebrate- new alternate jerseys, the coliseum, all the Blazer alums in the house, Bill Schonely, ect.- but I'm revising that a bit. Here goes with my own personal observations.

I'm not terribly concerned about Roy, even though I'm sure he isn't comfortable with his performances so far. Of all the adjusting that this new Blazer roster will require, it's absolutely Roy who will have to adjust the most. He's not playing with the ball in his hands nearly as much as he has in the past, and even though we've expected his numbers to drop a little, it's hard for me to think this is going to continue.

There are several reasons, in my opinion, Roy will face some challenges he hasn't had to face so far in his young career. Most obvious is the fact that it simply doesn't look like there is the room for him to operate like he's had in the past. That's because he's been playing a lot of his minutes with Oden inside, and Miller as the point guard. I'm not saying this isn't ultimately going to be good for him (because it will), but it will take some time for everyone to get comfortable.

In short, I simply want what's best for Roy, because what's best for him is what is best for this team. Hasn't that been established? Again, this is all new. Anything this new will take time. But, when things get blurry in my life, I go with the givens- things you know. Then, go from there.

Roy is used to having Blake in the backcourt with him. Blake's deep shooting ability always left Roy basically one on one, as Steve would slide out to the deep angle to willingly give Roy room. And, Steve would drill the three if his defender left him to help on Brandon. Also, Przybilla is probably the best screen setter in the NBA, and almost never looked to score. That's different now. Oden is on one block, and Aldridge is on the other. Both can score, and the team is looking to get both involved. It's how the offense is initiated now, and it's easy to understand why. It just hasn't left much room, or many shots for Roy. When he has tried to get his own, he's running into a wall of defenders, and a crowded middle.

Roy is best when he's creating his own shot. He's not used to getting his first touch when the shot clock is already down to five seconds, and he's got to look to score off the pass. That's just not his game.

If you've read between the lines at all, you know that I've been very wary of changing three-fifths of a starting lineup that won you 54 games last season. McMillan has said that same thing on many occasions, and I know he believes it. Others are very willing to discard what we know, for what we think. I get that the starting unit will change over time, and will have to, eventually. But, that starting lineup (Blake, Roy, Batum, L.A., Przybilla), knew what it was. Isn't that half the battle in this league? Roles were defined, and a comfort level had been established. That doesn't mean you don't change it, no matter what, but I'm talking about givens here.

This new starting group, the one that started the game against the Suns, on paper probably looks better. The question I have is, is this starting unit better for Roy? The guy who is your proven franchise player? Maybe it is, I don't know. And, maybe it will be over time. I've just been a bit surprised at the number of people who have acted like the staring lineup simply has to change.

If this is the lineup we're going to see (and I'm not convinced it is), it's going to take some time for these guys to adjust. It isn't as easy as just plugging in three new starters and seeing immediate comfort and results. The old lineup gave us Roy, Aldridge, and three role players, Batum, Blake, and Przybilla. Three players who would do anything to get the primaries in a position to be effective.

Now, you've got more weapons. Ultimately that'll be a good thing. I'm just saying that it's not going to happen overnight. Remember, NBA training camps are very short. Changing what you are is a tough thing to establish in two and a-half weeks.

The one thing I do know is that this team is in very capable hands. The coaches spend an obscene amount of time pouring over every detail, and they'll get it right. These games don't count, after all. And, don't expect it to be perfect when the games do start to count. As I've said many times, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see this team still searching, and struggling at times, early in the season. But, holy cow, there's a lot of talent on this team.

Other thoughts on the night, quickly.

The coliseum looked much better than I expected. It's not easy to just pop into a building like this and pull off a game. The building people should get a ton of credit for this. It was more fun than I imagined it would be.

Because I'm from here, and grew up going to Blazer games, the night brought back a rush of memories. Not just Blazer memories, but high school state tournaments, the Far West Classic, hockey, concerts (Van Halen in 1984 was my first concert at the MC), the circus, ice shows, ect.

About an hour before the game my dad called me on my cell. I told him where I was, and he laughed. He coached teams in the Oregon high school tournament, and we both shared a few memories. I reminded him that, as a kid, that was really my arena. I was the ballboy on the end of the bench, and really, grew up there. I underestimated that this night would have my mind spinning like it did.

The other fantastic moments at this game were spent sitting next to Bill Schonely as he called the second half of the game. He's the reason I got into broadcasting, and holds a very special place in my heart (like he does for many of you). His voice hasn't changed a bit. If I'm 80, and look and sound as good as he does, I'll feel very fortunate.

Hanging with Jerome Kersey and Terry Porter before the game, listening to The Schonz, walking the halls of the MC, watching Blazer basketball...

I told you this night wasn't about the x's and o's.

Live Stream Will Include Games

2009-10-12T22:11:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to give fans an alternative way to view games, while adding more content to this website, Trail Blazers president Larry Miller announced on our Courtside radio/tv show Monday night that the franchise will be the first NBA team to begin streaming games live online.

I will attempt to outline what Miller talked about, but the easiest way for you to get all the information is to hear the interview yourself. You can do that by clicking here.

The NBA has recently given teams the permission to explore this new world, and the Blazers are the one team, so far, looking to take full advantage of this new opportunity. Obviously, the fact that Comcast Sportsnet Northwest has yet to reach an agreement with the satellite providers, and some cable distributors, has many fans out in the cold when it comes to seeing many Blazer games.

I'm not going to sit here and try to say that is a cure to the ultimate problem for fans. It's not the solution we are hoping for in the grand scheme, and you know that. But, as Miller said, his goal by the start of the new year is to have every Blazer game streamed live on the website.

As it currently stands, the KGW games will be included in the live streaming from the start, while the team works out the logistics with Comcast to get all of them streamed. Again, Miller is hopeful that by the January, another alternative way to see all Blazer games will be available.

There are now two negotiations going on- one, between Comcast and the satellite providers, and one between the Blazers and Comcast, on the ability to stream online. They are exclusive of one another, and I view this as a positive, in that the odds are naturally better that something positive will happen to give us something better than we have now. Possibly one negotiation will help the other, or at the very least will kick start the process.

As stated, this simply will serve as a new distribution method that could potentially provide an alternative. Clearly, not everyone has access to the Internet, and watching a game on a 15-inch monitor isn't exactly like kicking back on the couch in front of a 50-inch plasma. But, it's at the very least, a step in the right direction.

Even though the original deal didn't happen on Miller's watch, it's certainly at the top of his priority list to do what he can to push this along. The battle between the cable companies and satellite providers wages on, and it's so unfortunate that fans, like ours, are the ones caught in the middle, many times with no alternative. Recently Versus, which has, among other things, Pac-10 football and the rights to the NHL, was taken off DirecTV's lineup, as the two sides go back and forth. In other words, there are a lot of people caught in the middle.

I'll do what I can to answer questions you have on this, but most of it is happening way, way above my head.

Oden Shines Again

2009-10-07T22:28:00.000-07:00

"This is going to be my time. Time to taste the fruits and let the juices drip down my chin. I proclaim this the preseason of Greg!"

Okay, the quote was lifted from George Costanza, as he was proclaiming the "summer of George," but work with me here (and, I'm sure this will turn out better than the "summer of George.").

And, yes, this is just the exhibition season, and both games have been against the Sacramento Kings, who aren't exactly big and talented in the middle. But, it's certainly okay to be a little excited with what we saw Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

After going for 18 points and 9 rebounds against the Kings on Tuesday at home, Oden scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Portland's 89-86 victory at Arco. It took him just 26 minutes to compile the numbers this time, and he did it in a starting role. He got 10 of his points from the foul line on Tuesday (going 10 for 12), and Wednesday he went 6 for 7 at the line.

Nate McMillan is clearly using this time, early in the exhibition schedule, to see exactly what he's got in this new-and-improved Oden. Perhaps no one player is more important to Portland's long-term plans. We know what we're going to get from Roy and Aldridge, and even newcomer Andre Miller will be his old steady self. It's Oden we've watched so closely since day one of camp.

I've tried to temper what exactly I've seen from Greg since camp opened, but now that you're seeing it as well, it's at least justifying the excitement I've been feeling for the last 9 days.

Blazer assistant Bill Bayno, who acted as Oden's shadow over the summer, has put it best on a number of occasions, saying simply "if you've put in the work, and you're ready, you come with a whole new level of confidence." We've seen the confidence, and we've seen a player who is comfortable, and decisive.

Time will tell just how dominant he'll be when the regular season rolls around, but this is clearly a big step in the right direction, and exactly what we needed to see in the first two games.

I spoke about Portland's depth following Tuesday night's game, and on Wednesday the Blazers played without Rudy Fernandez, Travis Outlaw, Nicolas Batum, and Joel Przybilla. This is not to take anything away from those guys, but you hardly missed them. That's the depth we're talking about.

Five Blazers scored in double figures in this game. Oden had his 20, and Juwan Howard had a very efficient 14 points, on 7 of 8 shooting. The 15-year vet came to camp in great shape, and knew he was signed for his leadership ability, and that he would basically be an insurance policy for the front line. Since day one, he's shown he can be more than that. Trouble is... how in the world will you find him minutes if everyone stays healthy?

Brandon Roy played 24 minutes on Wednesday, and ended with 13 points. Jerryd Bayless, who's looked good in these first two games, had 11 points, and Andre Miller had 10.

The one negative from Tuesday was that Portland was out rebounded by the Kings. In the second game, the Blazers bounced back from that, and out rebounded Sacramento 37-31. The only negative this time was 22 turnovers. But, that's what the preseason is for, and who is really worried about that?

It's on to Los Angeles now, as the exhibition schedule continues for the Blazers. They'll go through a light practice on Thursday, and Friday night take on the Clippers. This will be a much better test for Oden, who will go up against Chris Kaman, who's a better center than anyone the Kings have.

The 2 and 0 record is fairly meaningless at this point. It's clear though that there several reasons for Blazer fans to love what they've seen so far.

Oden Shines Again

2009-10-07T22:26:00.000-07:00

Advantage Second Unit

2009-10-06T22:29:00.000-07:00

In many ways this was a typical first exhibition game for two NBA teams. There were moments of impressive execution, mixed with a bit of sloppy play. There were also several signs of the players having heavy legs following training camps, individuals looking to regain their stroke and rhythm, and certainly there were encouraging things to build on, as the Blazers downed the Kings 98-86.

The one glaring difference between these two teams, on this night, was Portland's incredible depth. As we've talked about, it's not only that they've got a solid second unit, it's that the entire second five could easily be starting for this team (and many other teams). What that means is, you've got a second "starting" group to go against opponent's reserve units.

The result of this huge advantage, I believe, will be many outcomes like the one we saw on Tuesday night- competitive game for a while, but an easy Portland victory in the end. This Blazer team will simply wear opponents down.

Can you read a ton into an exhibition game- especially the first game? Probably not. But, Nate McMillan's many options were very evident. He went with a different starting five in the second half, and look for this to continue throughout the pre-season. He's going to toss different combinations out there to see how they play together.

To no one's surprise, LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers in scoring, with 20 points, on an efficient 8 for 11 shooting.

Greg Oden, who showed off some of his new offensive moves in this game, ended with 18 points and 9 rebounds in just over 25 minutes. He had dunks, he had jump hooks, he went to the left hand, and even hit an elbow jumper when he was left open. Mostly though, he showed that he's a very difficult match up, especially if he continues to play with the second unit. He'll be playing against backup centers in this league, and there won't be many who can hang with him.

A great sign was the fact that Oden was 10 for 12 from the free-throw line. He gets fouled a lot, as you probably know. This will continue. Among centers, only Shaq was fouled more times per minute played last season than Oden. If Greg shoots even 65 percent at the line he'll easily score in double figures every night. He's already a defensive game-changer, and given the attention he'll draw on offense, it's scary how big an impact he could have on a nightly basis.

Among the other double-figure scorers the Blazers had on this night were Andre Miller (16 points, 5 assists), who played very well, and is the most vocal player on the court that the Blazers have had in years. Travis Outlaw had 10 points in 21 minutes.

Nicolas Batum started, and played just 9 minutes. That's by design, and look for that to continue. McMillan realizes Batum and Rudy Fernandez played all summer, and their minutes will be watched closely during the exhibition season. Rudy played just 17 minutes, and probably won't get more than that in the next few.

Brandon Roy is using this exhibition season to just get his feet under him, and will certainly pace himself. He played 27 minutes, and even though he wants to play about that many minutes a game during the pre season, will probably get a game off all together within the next two weeks. No one is worried about his progress.

Dante Cunningham, Juwan Howard, and Jarron Collins didn't play, but that'll likely change Wednesday night, when the Blazers play the Kings again, in Sacramento this time.

The Blazers will ramp things up as the exhibition season continues, but I expect McMillan to spread the minutes around for the next few games. He'll be doing some experimenting, but he'll also keep and eye on minutes and will involve everyone.

To listen to McMillan's post-game comments, click here.

Not everything was positive in this game for the Blazers, and rebounding is the one area McMillan specifically talked about after the game, as something they need to improve upon. The Kings, who weren't a good rebounding team last season, out boarded the Blazers 44-34, and were allowed to grab 16 offensive rebounds.

It was just one of eight exhibition games, and a chance for the Blazers to get on the court and beat on someone else. All things considered, it was business as usual, and game two is Wednesday.

Hungry Blazer Fans Pack the House

2009-10-05T09:25:00.000-07:00

This has been said repeatedly since last night's event- there are a lot of NBA teams who would love to get close 16,500 fans to a regular-season game. Blazer fans, showing how starving they are to get a look at this team, bypassed a beautiful Sunday evening outside to flood the Rose Garden for the Wells Fargo Fan Fest.

This was a scrimmage, and a free event, but as we were getting set to go it felt very much like a regular-season game. There was a buzz in the air, and everything the players did during the warm-up time was cheered.

Because this is a general admission event, not everything runs like clockwork. There was a mad rush for seats when the doors opened at 5 o'clock, as expected. For the most part, things were orderly. But, when you're dealing with a crowd this large- unprecedented in terms of crowds for this event in previous years- it's going to get crazy.

A lot of fans told me this would be the only time this season they'd get to see the players in person, and that's what it's all about. There were an amazing amount of Blazer jerseys in the stands as well, and that's great to see.

The players were terrific in the pre-game interview period, as I fired questions to them. It's not terribly easy to speak into a microphone in front of nearly 17,000 fans, and it's certainly out of the comfort zone for some of the guys. But, I thought they did very well.

As for the scrimmage, Steve Blake was terrific and claimed the MVP honors. Andre Miller was very solid as well. Nicolas Batum is in mid-season form, and dropped in an easy 18 points. Greg Oden had a double-double in about 12 minutes (and that was with a running clock). Martell Webster missed a few opportunities, but looked very healthy, and that's the important thing. Rudy was Rudy, Brandon was Brandon. Juwon Howard probably surprised some people, but he's a 15-year vet, and rookie Dante Cunningham showed glimpses of what I've been talking about during training camp. LaMarcus Aldridge revealed his new sculptured pipes to the fans, and did his thing.

There wasn't a complete box score handed out after the game, but here are the rough stats. Pay attention to the assists, and keep in mind this was a scrimmage.

Black defeated White 79-70

Black Team-

Nicolas Batum (18 points, 3 assists)

LaMarcus Aldridge (13 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists)

Joel Przybilla (4 points, 7 rebounds)

Brandon Roy (5 points, 1 assist)

Steve Blake (17 points, 11 assists)

Jerryd Bayless (12 points, 3 steals)

Dante Cunningham (10 points, 4 rebounds)

White Team-

Martell Webster (9 points, 1 rebound)

Travis Outlaw (15 points, 7 rebounds)

Greg Oden (12 points, 12 rebounds)

Rudy Fernandez (4 points, 9 assists)

Andre Miller (12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists)

Ime Udoka (11 points, 2 rebounds)

Juwan Howard (4 points, 4 assists)

Jarron Collins (3 points, 1 assist)

We return to the Blazers Radio Network, Comcast Sportsnet, and trailblazers.com tonight with another edition of Trail Blazers Courtside. The show starts at 6pm. Guests tonight include Nate McMillan, and Terry Porter and Brian Grant will appear in studio. There will likely be other guests as well, as we're always adding one or two right up to air time.

Talk to you then.

Comfortably Strung

2009-10-03T21:30:00.000-07:00

This has been the most intense, most competitive training camp I have seen since I started covering these things back in 1992. But, as everyone has mentioned during the last five days or so, this camp has had its share of light moments too. In short, this team looks hungry, mature, professional, and on an even keel- exactly the way Nate McMillan likes it.

The last few years McMillan has talked of "getting his program in place." It's clear this thing is practically on auto pilot now. The players self police, take over when things get sloppy, and have the confidence to have a little fun as well. There have still been moments when McMillan has had to bark, but they've been much fewer, and shorter, than in the past.

It's clear that accomplishing an environment like this is much easier when you build leadership from within. Last Monday, when I talked to each player (who isn't in his first McMillan camp), the common theme was "I know what to expect. There won't be any surprises."

Greg Oden, who was one of the first players I talked to Monday, was the first to bring this theme. He said, "it's so much easier having a year under my belt. Nothing is new anymore, and I don't expect to have any moment where I wonder where I should be, or what I should be doing." And, as hoped, Oden has had a very, very good camp. More on him in a moment.

As for the guys who are experiencing their first camp as a Blazer, the strongest comment came Saturday from Andre Miller. "I've never been around a team this organized and this determined. Chemistry wins in this league, and this team absolutely has that." Miller has continued to look better, and more comfortable as camp has gone on.

As all the practices have, Saturday's had a few very entertaining moments. One in particular stood out. You've heard that Oden has been absolutely dominant at times during training camp, and is quicker, more confident, and just plain better than we've seen him before.

Toward the end of practice Saturday morning, during a drill which involves a three-on-two situation at one end, that turns into a two-on-one at the other, Dante Cunningham decided to challenge Oden at the rim. Oden cuffed the shot attempt in his right hand, and then took off with the ball. Cunningham, in a full sprint (and isn't a slow guy), couldn't catch Oden, who dribbled coast to coast and slammed the ball down with two hands. While maintaining professionalism, the players erupted. Oden, who hung on to the rim and swung completely under, landed, and while laughing, flew up into the air and did a full body bump with Martell Webster. Even the coaches were smiling, as the drill continued, with the next group of players, without missing a beat.

This wasn't a moment that even approached the line of clowning around, and again, the drill continued to be very sharp. And, moments like this are even difficult to describe, because they happen a lot, without anyone losing focus. Being around camp it's easy to spot these signs of chemistry, while being in awe of the execution at the same time (because bad teams can have good chemistry too).

Sunday is the Wells Fargo Fan Fest at the Rose Garden, and the doors open at 5pm. If you haven't been to one of these in the past, I highly recommend it. It's a chance to see the team up close out on the concourse, and then watch them go through a bit of a practice, followed by a full scrimmage.

It's sure to be part fun, all hard work, and mostly just entertaining- just like training camp.

Individual Battles Begin

2009-09-30T14:53:00.000-07:00

Any training camp on Nate McMillan's watch is always going to be intense. We all know that, and we've seen it in past years in Portland. Even if it's true that he has lightened up on the gas pedal, at least a bit, in the last two camps, this year things are off to a torrid start. And really, this isn't the case because of something McMillan has reverted back to, in terms of designing practices to be physically demanding (which he will do on occasion, hoping to provoke spirited battles). This one has come organically.

It's been said a lot lately that this will be McMillan's most challenging season as an NBA coach. You don't need me to explain why. You've done the math, and so have the players. An obscene amount of depth has created epic competitions for spots and minutes. Even though we're in the early stages of this camp, these battles are already being waged, and sparks (the good kind) are flying.

It's a very healthy competition, and Nate has already repeated something we've heard him say many times in the past- "it's up to the players to make my decisions for me." In other words, he's not going to decide how the minutes are divided up. The players will control that.

As expected, nothing has changed with the "black unit" so far. On Tuesday, when the media was allowed into the gym in Tualatin, no one was surprised at how the units were divided up. The black unit consisted of Steve Blake, Brandon Roy, Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Joel Przybilla (the starting lineup that went 27-11 last season). It's clear, already, these guys are going to have to lose these jobs if the starting lineup is going to change. McMillan always says nothing is given to anyone, and obviously, these spots were earned.

The "white unit" at the end of practice on Tuesday consisted of Andre Miller, Rudy Fernandez, Martell Webster, Travis Outlaw, and Greg Oden. Just writing out that group as a "second unit" makes me shake my head. I'd go to war with that as my starting group too (so would a lot of NBA teams).

Yes, that's an amazing luxury. It's also what has likely kept McMillan up late at night wondering how in the world he's going to find minutes for everyone. That's a 10-man "regular" rotation right there, and those are rare in the NBA. You could easily argue that everyone on that second unit deserves significant minutes. If your head is already spinning then keep in mind that I haven't even mentioned Jerryd Bayless, tested NBA vets Ime Udoka, Jerron Collins, Juwon Howard, and talented rookie Dante Cunningham, who's been very, very solid.

The three individual battles getting the most attention are the only three that seemingly could possibly change the starting lineup at some point. The Blake/Miller tilt promises to continue, even though it's clear that it's "advantage incumbent" at this point. Webster is fighting to get back what he had won at this time a year ago- the starting nod at the three. Like Blake, Batum won't go without a fight, and his improvement is very evident. And, Przybilla/Oden (maybe also the biggest asset, positionally speaking) is a prime-time showdown.

Again, you want players who want to start, and who are willing to fight to get, or keep, what they think they deserve. This atmosphere exists here because it was designed that way. The chemistry on this team is healthy enough that I don't realistically see someone going rogue and causing issues no matter what happens. Plus, when you're winning, even if you happen to have squeaky wheels, they don't get much of an audience with anyone, and this team will win.

The biggest benefit these battles are likely to produce will be a team that's sharp, hungry, and battle-tested going into the regular season. The success of McMillan-coached teams has often been their readiness out of the gate. That shouldn't be an issue this season.

As we were watching a full-speed possession at the very end of practice on Tuesday, Oden attempted a left-handed jump hook, something he's become very good at. It came up short, and we almost immediately said out loud, "yeah, but he had Przybilla (a long, great defender) right in his face." The next possession Przybilla rolled through the middle with his shoulder down and missed a shot off to the right. Our comment was something like "yeah, but Oden was right there. That's just good defense.."

You get the point. This is quality against quality. Przybilla isn't going to see many better defenders on a nightly basis during the season than Oden, and vice-versa. You can say this about all of these match ups. I'm not suggesting that practices will serve up better competition for these guys than games, because that's just arrogant.

What this situation will produce is players who are ready to roll against the best this league has to offer on any given night. After all, they see it everyday. You can't always say that about practice.

Off and Running

2009-09-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

Monday was a long day for the players. Not because they were asked to do an incredible amount of stuff, but because they were all suited up and couldn't play. After all, training camp didn't begin until Tuesday morning. This was just Media Day.

Everything was supposed to begin at about 1 o'clock on Monday, but a couple of guys perhaps showing early to get things started. I arrived at 10:30 and immediately saw Dante Cunningham cruising the hall. Then, I bumped into Brandon Roy, then Greg Oden, and I realized that this thing would be starting earlier than expected.

It shouldn't have surprised me. One trademark of this team, perhaps because of its youth and eagerness, has been punctuality. Four or five years ago if one of our flights was supposed to leave at 1 o'clock, the odds were very good that someone would straggle in at 1:15 or 1:20, and maybe we'd get off the ground by 1:30. Not with this group. If our flight says 1 o'clock now, we're usually wheels up by 12:50 or so. On time is now considered late. Part of that is Nate, but most of that is just the attitude of the guys we've got.

I'm not going to get carried away with media day stuff, because it's probably not that interesting. But, I've been coming to Blazer media days since 1992 (that's actually scary to think about), and I will say that things had a different feel this year.

The subject wasn't youth, or inexperience, or potential, or what's perhaps missing from this team. There was a quiet confidence. Not as much fun was had. I always feel the really young players are kind of entertained by media day, and normally there's a lot of ribbing, and some horseplay. There were certainly smiles on Monday, but everything had a more serious tone.

Because we had our Courtside show on Monday night, I was able to set up in one of the stations and interview most of the players in a one-on-one setting. We ran some of the interviews last night on the show, and here are the links to the interviews if you want to hear them. These guys are always good interviews, but I thought Brandon's was probably the best interview I've ever had with him. LaMarcus was very good, and I thought Joel, who's normally a little reserved, was also in fine form.

Click on the player's name to hear the interviews from yesterday.

Brandon Roy.

LaMarcus Aldridge.

Greg Oden.

Joel Przybilla.

Rudy Fernandez.

Jerryd Bayless.

We'll have more interviews throughout the week, as training camp is now underway. The team will be going twice a day for the first few days of camp, and the first pre-season game is next Tuesday, if you can believe that.

Media Day Kicks Off Week

2009-09-27T22:15:00.000-07:00

To me, this is always an odd way to kick off the first official week of the NBA season. Every team does it, and it's very necessary, but it's still a bit of a strange day. But, then again, I always thought it was weird that we had picture day during the first week of school. My son has picture day tomorrow in pre-school, by the way, and the odds are very good that he'll shine the whole thing and run for the art room (this happened last year- you could practically see two hands in the photo holding him to the table).

There are some NBA players who would love to take a page from my son's playbook and run like hell when the cameras come out on Monday. But, they're usually pretty good about it. They change into full game uniform, and then go station to station through the event level at the Rose Garden, stopping to take photos, record radio liners, meet with the media, and take part in several different videos that will be used on the big screen during games. This is the day all of that is gathered.

Some of the guys kind of go through the motions on some of this stuff, and others really get into it. Several times in the past (distant past) we'd be wondering if all the guys would show, and if they did, how we'd ever get them to read the radio stuff with enthusiasm, or have fun in the video shoots.

The MVPs of Media Day last season (at least in the stuff that didn't involve the regular media) were Travis Outlaw, Martell Webster, Rudy Fernandez, and Greg Oden. Outlaw is a ham, and has absolutely no ego. He always acts somewhat embarrassed. Martell loves this day perhaps a little too much, and is born for reality TV. Rudy is funny, but it's mostly unintentional humor, as he always gasps when he's handed two paragraphs in English that he has to try and read naturally. Oden last year, while in the radio sound booth, loving that he could hear his own voice in headphones, started to rap, almost like he couldn't help it.

I keep wondering if we'll once again see this happy-go-lucky squad bounce through this day, or if maturity and total professionalism will have set in. It sounds strange, but that's really what I'm curious to see. Is it possible to see the first sign of the pressure of expectations start to take hold, even on Media Day? Probably not. But, I'm anxious to see all the guys in their game uniforms.

I'll be grabbing a few interviews, and will be running them on Trail Blazers Courtside Monday night. The show is from 6-8pm, and can be seen on Comcast SportsNet, and trailblazers.com, and can be heard on the Blazers Radio Network, including, yes, 95.5 The Game. This show has been off that station for about a month, but returns Monday night. I've taken so many complaints for us being off local radio I've lost track (okay, about 10).

Even though I will be behind the scenes at Media Day, and will be behind the desk for Courtside, I'd really love to be a fly on the wall at the first team dinner, Monday night. That's when Nate McMillan addresses the team for the first time, and gives a speech that he doesn't take lightly. He looks at this as setting the tone for camp, the pre-season, and the regular season.

Tuesday morning McMillan will strap on the whistle, and we'll be officially underway- on the court.

The Lighter Side of Roy

2009-09-16T17:07:00.000-07:00

It's never a surprise to see Brandon Roy stroll into the Trail Blazers' practice facility well ahead of the start of training camp. It's also always very safe to predict that he'll be in a solid position, in terms of his physical condition.

What is a little different this September is Brandon's physical appearance. It's not just the new hairstyle, which is a cross between a faux hawk and a high and tight (sorry, no photo of the new look yet), it's that Roy looks noticeably slimmer. Is it just the haircut? Is that why even his face looks more chiseled?

"Nah, I've dropped some pounds," Roy laughs, and admits many people have noticed the new look. "The odd thing is, I didn't play much basketball during the summer months. In fact, it's pretty safe to say I hardly touched a ball."

So, what was the key, and why the change? After all, Roy had never been someone who was considered to be too heavy.

"After taking a little time off after the season ended, I just started swimming, like every single day. And, I really got into bike riding. After doing this for a while I stepped on the scale and I was at about 203 pounds. I played last season at about 216. I was like 'whoa,' and figured that was enough."

Roy claims the weight loss, for the most part, was unintentional, but that he did have a desire to come into camp lighter than he had been in the past. He hired a chef and got dedicated to eating healthier. That, combined with the workouts, made it easy to hit this new shape.

"I got to 205 so quickly, and then decided that was about time to head back the other way a bit. But, even now, I'm only at about 206. That's where I want to stay.

"Last season I came to camp at about 215, and that was intentional. I thought being a little bigger and bulkier would be better for me. But, I didn't like the way it felt. I feel so great physically right now, and I'm in great shape. I feel a little quicker, and I'm definitely lighter on my feet. I can feel it at the end of the day."

Roy has also found another way to get a little lighter on his feet- new footwear. Obviously, shoes are so vital to an NBA player's comfort and success. Brandon is a Nike guy, and last year searched to find the perfect shoe. He switched shoes a couple of times during the season and now has found the ideal wheels heading into this season.

The new Air Max Rise, is "it" for Brandon, he says. Thanks to many meetings with the basketball guys at Nike, and through work in the Sport Research Lab at Nike in Beaverton, they've hit on a winner.

"Lightweight is the new currency in basketball shoes," says Dan DeHaven, who's among those who have assisted Brandon in finding the right shoe. "Speed kills, and that's where Brandon's head is at right now. Take weight out of the product, and that's less weight to move around."

DeHaven says Roy's new shoe, which is a custom design of a shoe anyone can get off the shelf, is about 3 ounces lighter, per shoe, than what he was in last season.

"It's all about efficiency, and players will go in and out of shoes searching for the right weight and right stability," says DeHaven. "We've really concentrated on lightweight containment for him. Get the weight out of Brandon's shoe, and still make it extremely stable. Lateral movement, of course, is a huge part of his game, and the less the foot slides around in the shoe, the better.

"When he switched shoes last season we all learned from it," continues DeHaven. "Now, I can nail Brandon's fit. I know what works with his feet. Through constant communication we've tried to get him exactly what he's looking for. It's been a joy, because he's so great to work with."

Roy couldn't be happier with the work Nike has done for him, in searching for ways to hit on his theme of the off season- lighter is better.

"The new, lighter shoes have been a perfect compliment to what I've tried to achieve heading into this season," says Roy. "I told them I was getting lighter, and wanted something that would help me get there. A few ounces doesn't sound like a lot, but I can tell the difference."

So, coming off another all-star season, and his first trip to the playoffs, Roy has never felt more comfortable heading into an NBA training camp. New contract, new house, new chef, new shoes, new weight, and a couple of new teammates. But, as he says, "same old crossover."

That's the best news.

Time to Ramp Up Yet?

2009-09-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

What did I do for the holiday weekend? Yes, of course, I played with my kids, spent time with the family, watched college football, and a bit of the U.S. Open (looking for Mike Rice in the crowd). But, of my TV time, which is usually very limited but greatly expanded in the last few days because of college football, I spent a lot more time watching something else- Blazer basketball.

I've been doing this lately, especially at night, when the kids are in bed and things slow down. Being there are only so many NBA websites you can visit and only so much you can read about the league, especially here during the dog days, my release has been a stack of DVDs of random games from last season. I'll just pop them in and start watching. Believe me, it is possible to get sick of hearing your own voice (ever hit the mute button to shut yourself up?)

In the last few days I've watched a game from January 12th against Chicago. I watched a great win over New Jersey on March 13th, and really enjoyed watching our win in San Antonio from April 8th. This past weekend I watched games 2, 5, and 6, from the playoff series with Houston.

I started out doing this thinking it would give me a chance to critique the broadcasts, and really watch what we do, what we say, and how we present the games to the fans. But, I usually find that I get so into the game, so into our offense, so into the action, that I'm doing this just because I miss basketball.

I guess I have accomplished a little bit of my original goal of learning what I like and don't like about our broadcasts. But, more than that, I end up basically re-living moments. Some of them good, and some of them bad. I find myself hanging on the edge of my seat watching games that were played months ago. I guess I'm just a junkie in need of a quick fix.

I know I haven't posted for a couple of weeks, and really, that was kind of by design. The plan was to force myself to take a step back (which is very difficult), and, as I said in my last blog, take a deep breath before things get going again. But, I've come to realize that my efforts are fruitless. It's not like I've been on the computer any less. I guess I just always feel like I want thoughts to flow naturally, and not be forced, or artificially attempt to polarize just to fill space. Which brings my to my next thought: This is truly a new day, isn't it?

I started this blog about five years ago as basically a way to keep the Blazers on your minds during the off-season (that wasn't always as easy as it sounds- especially back then). It started during summer league. At that time there weren't many people doing this. The team was all about change, and progress, and the thought of what might be- what could be. It wasn't risky because when you win 21 games you don't have much to lose. And, as it turns out, we had some interesting relationships with many "transitional" players (yes, very much like the transitional girlfriend between break-ups- pretty good, and fun, but really just a place holder until the right one comes along- never really considering a walk to the altar).

The daily topics could be something like, "Is Ha Seung-Jin the answer?" "Telfair's tremendous upside" and "Sergei Monia: The future at the two." It was easy. It's always easier being bad than being good.

Some of this still applies, when talking about the Trail Blazers, and what we've now got in front of us. But, it's different. We're married now. Married to this team, and to this core group of players. We're in it for the long haul.

I said something right after game 6 of the playoffs, as the season had just ended. It was simply that there would never be another time like right now. By "right now" I meant right then- the season that was. The innocence is now gone. Flying along without facing big-time expectations is over. Time to be good. Maybe even scary good.

Another time I remember saying this was during the 13-game winning streak during December of 2007. It was shocking and magical. With each game during the streak things got more amazing. We constantly shook our heads and said "can you believe we're doing this?" Maybe more often was the though of "how are we doing this?" I don't think I'll be saying that anymore.

Late last season we found ourselves in one of those are-you-ready-to-be-good situations. Really, it wasn't until the win over Phoenix on March 26th that we started feeling comfortable with the fact that this team would make the playoffs. You can say what you want, things could have gone either way before that game. It was that tight at that time. Of course, as it turned out, the Blazers had an incredible close to the regular season, got their 50th win in that game I watched recently, at San Antonio on April 8th, and went on to win 54 games. That win total surpassed everything that was predicted of that team.

So, here's my question, and, I guess, my point. In this current era, are we ever going to be able to say that again? Will we feel that same thrill of surprise that comes with an over achievement? I know many have fired back at me when I've suggested that last year's team overachieved by winning 54. They did. The youth, the inexperience, the difficulty of the schedule, strength of the west, losing Martell for the season, Oden's injuries and adjustments, yadda, yadda, yadda.. I think they did.

Now then... as we've said, the page is turned. This next chapter is going to be decidedly different. It'll be more challenging than the first few, and maybe even a little scary at times. But, it's why we hopped on this train in the first place. Not to use one of the more overused phrases when discussing such things, but, is the window now open? Are you in wait-and-see mode, or are you one of those who will be disappointed with anything but a Western Conference title? Have you set your immediate goals for this team?

I ask this because I have to admit that I really haven't. I've got ideas, but I haven't hit on anything yet. Really, how good? I've got questions that will need answers before I throw out a win total, or a playoff goal.

The good news is, Labor Day has come and gone. As TV executive producer Scott Zachry put it, as we were going through our daily texting about all these topics, Labor Day is the official line in the sand- time to get serious. Most of the players have arrived. Workouts are intensifying. The countdown to training camp is on.

A Deep Breath in August

2009-08-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

I'm sure many of you are crossing the days off the calendar until the start of the new NBA season. When August rolls around, it's true, the news slows down, and for some it's the only time to actually get a break.

After the playoffs, the draft comes pretty quickly. Right on the heels of the draft is the free agent signing period and summer league. That leads us up to where we are now. It's the small lull between the flurry of free-agent news, and the start of training camp.

For the coaches, and front-office staff, if there is a time to take a vacation, it's right now. For the veteran players the time to get away is usually right after the season, and they've already begun the process of ramping up to training camp. None of the NBA players I know actually sit still for very long, and most never really let themselves fall out of shape. So, the process of getting ready for the full-court runs in September isn't really a big adjustment.

What this period leaves is a chance to obsess on whatever news we have. As of late the talk has been about the schedule. Like I do every year, I continue to pour over every home stand and every road trip, looking for advantages and disadvantages. I also search for key dates in the season, and how they will effect my personal life. When you travel with a team, and have a family, the day the schedule comes out is basically like having a day planner immediately filled for seven months of your year.

I look to see if I'll be home for the holidays, for school programs, for birthdays, and for anniversaries. We're gone for Halloween, gone for my daughter's birthday, home for my wife's birthday, gone on our anniversary, gone for my son's school Christmas program, and even though we'll be working on Christmas, at least it's a home game. This is not to complain about any of this, as many people sacrifice stuff like this for work, I'm just explaining where my thoughts immediately turn when the schedule comes out.

After all of the personal stuff is checked, I dive into the games, the trips, the huge home games, and start cross checking our schedule with that of our opponents, looking for opportunities.

As I've already stated, at first glance this schedule appears to be easier than last year's. But, as I've gone deeper into it, I'm not sure that's the case. Catching teams on the second of a back to back 27 times was a key for the Blazers last season. They'll only get that opportunity 14 times this coming season.

I also usually look at the opponents we get at home, to see where we fall on their road-trip schedule. It makes a big difference whether you catch an Eastern Conference team at the start or end of a trip.

One other thing that stands out to me about this schedule is the fact that the league has obviously tried to help teams with their travel budgets. That means, simply, fewer nights in hotels by scheduling shorter road trips.

During just the regular season last year, we spent 56 nights in hotels. This season, we'll spend just 47 nights in strange beds (I'm married, so save the obvious jokes). Nine fewer nights in hotels probably doesn't seem like a lot, but when you add it up, it is. Again, this is just considering the regular season, and not the playoffs.

Of course, our geographical location means we travel more miles than any other NBA team. A whole lot more, in most cases. Our closest NW Division opponent is in Utah. Minnesota, and Oklahoma City aren't short trips, and they are in our division. I think there's an argument for realignment at some point, but that's probably not going to happen. After all, most of the schedule makers probably need a map and a good 10 minutes to find where Portland sits- not that they'd take the time anyway. We're not that important.

We'll continue to watch the LaMarcus Aldridge situation closely, as he's certainly the next, and perhaps final big item on the "to do" list, at least for now. I wasn't worried about the Roy extension, and I'm not worried about getting LaMarcus done.

I was out of town over the weekend, and had a chance to think back to the Roy press conference last week. Any bad PR that came from not getting him immediately extended was completely put to bed, not by the Blazers, but by Roy himself. How amazing was that? Brandon could have gone in a different direction, but he put the entire situation on himself.

He viewed the entire experience as a positive, and talked about how it changed him, and how he matured because of it.

"Before I talked to (UW coach Lorenzo Romar) I was discouraged," Roy said. "Once I talked to him, I realized ... I had to mature a little bit and say, 'Hey, I can't take everything so personally. The organization is trying. My agent is trying.' The biggest thing for me is I've never been in a situation where I had to worry about myself. I've always been more worried about ... how's this team improving or how can I help people? I've never been a Me guy. So I was a little frustrated because I didn't want people to think I was being selfish or that I was holding out for myself. And that's why I wanted it to end faster than it did. I was handling things like a teenager; taking everything personal and every day personal. (Romar) said to relax."

I'm not trying to make way too much of a press conference exchange, but that says so much about who Brandon is as a person. That's a leader, and that's a man stepping up. That's also money well spent.

As Roy went on and on, and continued to impress with his honest, thoughtful dialogue, I kept thinking to myself, "this was a prop 48 guy in college?" Not to get off on an entirely different subject, but if this is the case, something is seriously wrong with that system. I know many people, a lot smarter than me, have argued that point.

Lastly, I appreciate all of your comments and debates during the time between blog postings. I read everything, and enjoy the conversation. I've been posting less frequently, just to try and get some time away here during the calm before the storm, but that'll change soon.

A Rematch to Open Season

2009-08-04T10:23:00.000-07:00

The NBA schedule for the 2009-10 season has now officially been released, and the Trail Blazers will open the season against the same team that closed out their playoff run last year.

The Houston Rockets will be in Portland for the Trail Blazers' opener on October 27th at the Rose Garden. Then, following a home game against Denver on the 29th, the Blazers will fly to Houston where the Rockets will host their home opener against Portland on Halloween night.

The two games against Houston will have a decidedly different feel, and different look than when these teams last played. The Rockets will not have Yao Ming in the lineup, and of course, won't have Ron Artest, who signed a free-agent contract with the Lakers last month.

Unlike last year's brutal start, the Blazers this season will play five of their first seven games at the Rose Garden, before heading out on their first extended road trip of the season, that will take them to Memphis, Minnesota, New Orleans, Charlotte, and Atlanta, November 10th through the 16th. After that trip, it's home for five of their next six games, before closing out November with a game against Utah on November 28th.

December starts with home games against Miami, and Houston, again, before heading east for New York, Indiana, Cleveland, and Milwaukee.

Leading up to Christmas, the Blazers have a four-game trip against Orlando and Miami (back to back) December 19th and 20th. They finish that trip at Dallas and San Antonio. We'll arrive back home in the wee hours on Christmas eve, and then will once again play a Christmas-Day home game, this year against the Denver Nuggets.

That game against Denver starts a stretch of 9 of 10 games at the Rose Garden for the Blazers, which will include a stretch from January 8th through the 15th, where they'll play the Lakers, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Orlando, in that order. After that, we'll head east again for games against Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, and Detroit.

In February, the Blazers will start by playing 7 of their first 9 games of the month at home, which will include another home game against the Lakers, San Antonio, Boston, and Utah. The team will close February with its longest trip of the season, a five-game jaunt, that will take us to New Jersey, Toronto, Chicago, Minnesota, and Memphis.

March is a pretty favorable month of the schedule for the Blazers, as they'll have home games against Indiana, Sacramento, Toronto, Washington, Dallas, and New York.

April starts with a three-game trip to Denver, Sacramento, and L.A. to play the Clippers, and then the team will play three of its final four games of the regular season at the Rose Garden. They've got Dallas, then are at the Lakers, and then finish with Oklahoma City and Golden State in Portland.

Even though this schedule, at first glance, as a whole, seems much better than last year's, there is one major difference. And, it's a big-time disadvantage for the Blazers.

Last season you probably heard us talk so often about Portland constantly catching teams on the second of back-to-back sets. This happened 27 times, and the Blazers were a staggering 23-4 in these games. Needless to say, it's a huge plus to catch a team that is tired. This season, the Blazers will only meet teams playing the second of a back to back 14 times. That's a huge difference.

Also, the Blazers played 16 sets of back to backs last season, and in this new schedule that number is up to 19. Of those sets, 12 are road-road back to backs. So, that's three more the Blazers will face, and 13 fewer times they'll catch opponents on the backside of back to backs.

The Blazers do catch a bit of a break with their Western Conference misses. Every season there are four teams (outside your division) you play only three times. This season those teams are the Lakers, Phoenix, San Antonio, and New Orleans. The Blazers will play the Lakers just one time in L.A., and that will be on April 11th. They'll play the Spurs only once in San Antonio. Phoenix and New Orleans each make just one trip to Portland.

On the national TV front, the Blazers will play on ESPN 10 times, TNT six times, and have one game on ABC, that April 11th game in L.A. That's 17 games on national television. One oddity here, is that all four games against Denver this season will be on national TV.

The Blazers longest road trip of the season will be five games, and that happens twice. The longest home stand of the season is five games, that happens once. And, if it seems like the Blazers are starting earlier this season, they are. They have three games in the month of October, the most since the 85-86 season.

The toughest road trip of the season? Without a doubt, the four-game swing right before Christmas, that will have the Blazers playing at Orlando, Miami, Dallas, and San Antonio. That trip includes two back to backs. The toughest home stand of the season? It's the five-game set that has Portland hosting Memphis, the Lakers, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Orlando, in mid-January.

What are your thoughts?

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Click here to view the entire schedule. The TV schedule, other than the national TV games, will be released soon.

McMillan's Options

2009-07-27T22:46:00.000-07:00

Let me preface this by saying that it's probably way too early to get into a heated debate about who will start, what the rotation will be, and how exactly minutes will be handed out on this Trail Blazers' team next season. But, it certainly is natural to already be speculating about such things.

Now that the smoke has cleared from the free-agent signing over the weekend, most fans have moved the next logical issue to the front of their minds- even if it isn't crucial that we have an answer for a few months.

On our show, Trail Blazers Courtside, Mike Rice asked our guest, Andre Miller, an interesting question- "have you ever been on a team where you weren't a starter?" It didn't take Miller long to simply say "no." As a follow-up question, Brian Wheeler said, "have you ever been on a team where you weren't on the court at the end of a game?" Miller again said, "no."

Miller, however, backed up both answers by saying that he's a guy who will do anything necessary to win, and said it's all about the team.

Concerning a starting role, Miller said "I always want to go in with the mindset of wanting the starting job. If a player isn't think that, he's not a competitor." He also said he's been in many situations, with his different teams, where he's not necessarily the focus of the team's offense late in games. So, at least for now, this doesn't seem to be an issue for the newest Blazer.

It's not like anyone is trying to start a controversy here in July, but they are legitimate questions. So, it was convenient that we had a chance to talk to Nate McMillan about 45 minutes after the interview with Miller.

Nate has wanted Miller for a long time, and perhaps no one was happier about Miller's signing than McMillan. But, McMillan is also a big fan of the starting unit that helped his team overachieve last season, and he's made it very clear that he thinks Steve Blake and Brandon Roy are very effective together.

This is the reason the team never seriously entertained deals that would have sent Blake packing. As I mentioned, while in Las Vegas, I had a former NBA general manager tell me that he considers Blake "the most underrated point guard in the NBA," and claimed to have the numbers to prove it.

Most people have assumed, since the Miller signing, that he'll walk into training camp with the starting job in his back pocket. So, I asked McMillan if those people are correct. He also gave the popular answer of the evening- "no." And, he actually took it a step further.

"I've talked to Andre about that," said McMillan, and clearly this was addressed at the team's meeting with Miller in Las Vegas. "I think starting is overrated. You try to get a starting unit that works, and a bench unit that works.

"Our starting unit last year won 54 games. We're not going to mess with that starting unit," McMillan continued. "I anticipate that we'll start out the same way, with Brandon and Steve as our guards, and then bring Andre and Rudy as the guards off our bench. Bringing them in with Martell or Travis in that second unit, as more of a running unit, would be a good combination."

Clearly, the coach has already put a lot of thought into this, as have all of us. Perhaps some will be surprised that he's already speaking in pretty bold terms about what he plans to take to opening night of the regular season. It would be the first time for Miller coming off the bench, but as McMillan said, "I don't think it makes a difference whether he's starting or coming off the bench. The bottom line? This is about winning games. By adding Andre, we've added to the depth of our team."

Bringing in a career starter, and veteran presence, may have added exactly what this team needs. But, one of the goals was maintain exactly what this team is, and what made it so successful last season. That's why Pritchard and his staff were so adamant about not giving anyone up to add perhaps a big missing piece to the puzzle.

Once again, this is July. A lot can change between now and opening night. But, McMillan has never been one to toss out hollow remarks to appease a player. For now, clearly, the job is Blake's.

To listen to the McMillan interview, click here.

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One note- Miller will fly into Portland on Tuesday, and will be introduced to the media at the practice facility in Tualatin at 4 o'clock. He will wear number 24 for the Blazers, the number he wore while playing for the Cavaliers, Clippers, and Nuggets. He wore number 7 in Philadelphia, because Bobby Jones' number 24, is hanging in the rafters. The last Blazer to wear 24 was Von Wafer.

Miller Time

2009-07-24T16:20:00.000-07:00

The Trail Blazers have officially announced the signing of free agent Andre Miller, ending nearly a week of speculation after it was reported that the two sides met in Las Vegas.

Of course, the first talk of Miller joining the Trail Blazers came last season as the trade deadline approached. Reportedly, Portland and Philadelphia were discussing a deal that would have sent Miller, who at that point had just an expiring contract, to the Blazers. Now, nearly five months later, Miller has finally become a member of the Blazers.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but several media outlets, including ESPN, have reported the deal is a three-year contract, with the third year being a team option (Miller himself has since reported this same thing). And, if the numbers, as reported, are anywhere near correct, it was very much in Portland's favor that they were forced to wait as Miller's price came down.

This is just speculation, but it's doubtful, if Miller would have been traded to Portland in February, that this new contract would have been tipped this much in the Blazers' favor. Not that Miller is unhappy, but he and his agent came into this free agent period openly seeking about 10 million per season, and were hoping for a fully-guaranteed three-year contract.

Over the weekend in Las Vegas, Miller was spotted in the hotel lobby where the Blazers, and staff, were staying. Sunday morning we just happened to be in the lobby heading for the airport at the same time Miller was waiting for his car to the airport. Imagine our surprise. He spotted the Blazer logos on our bags and approached my television partner Mike Rice with his arm extended.

Rice asked Miller if he was hoping to become a Blazer. "Oh man, you've got to help me out if you can (not knowing who we were, obviously, and the fact that we have absolutely zero juice). I really want this. This is the perfect fit for me, and things are looking very good. I can help this team."

Our chance meeting with Miller was by accident, obviously, but Andre was eager to share that he had just met with the Trail Blazers' executive staff, and that things clearly must have gone very well (for the record, I didn't utter a single word in this conversation- I know what I am and what I'm not). Because of the way this happened, I simply had to sit on the tale of this incident until something happened. Now, it's happened.

The bigger upset, concerning our lack of timing in the lobby, is that Rice sat on this as well. If he had been co-hosting Courtside with me on Monday this would have surely slipped out. At times we're put in these awkward situations, and here's another example of tight lips not sinking ships. Hooray for us.

Hearing Kevin Pritchard talk now, it's clear that the dinner with Miller was instrumental in getting this deal done. Miller had this one opportunity to sell himself, and basically knocked it out of the park.

What Miller had told us in the lobby of the hotel he apparently had said to Pritchard, McMillan, and staff, repeatedly at the dinner. Basically, that he can help this team, and badly wanted the chance to prove it.

"He was so very impressive at that dinner," said Pritchard. "He knew absolutely everything about our team, our guys, our offense, and got very specific. He told us he could make everyone better, and told us specific ways he could help. You can only get this kind of thing in a face-to-face meeting."

We knew last season, at the trade deadline, that Miller was a guy McMillan coveted and wanted. Pritchard admitted on Friday that Nate was fully on board with this signing.

"They developed a chemistry at that dinner," said Pritchard. "Andre seemed like a coach. He and Nate took over the conversation and I just kind of backed off a let them go. They were talking about different players, and different plays we run. I've never had this happen in a meeting like this.

"We have had many opportunities during this this period," said Pritchard. "But, in discussing the trades, everything involved sending a player out. We didn't want to send anyone away. We like this team. We just wanted to add to it. We've added a player who's a winning kid, and certainly part of our culture."