I did attend the pre-season opener last Wednesday, so here are some thoughts. First off, let me just say that the new scoreboard is AWESOME. Jason Quick and Dwight Jaynes were not exaggerating in the least. Even nosebleed seats aren't that bad anymore because you probably see the game clearer from the HD scoreboard than the front row fans see with their bare eyes.
After the first three pre-season games, the big hype is on Martell Webster. I'm not surprised, but I'm sure many fans are. In fact, I wish I would have revealed my expectation for Martell's breakout season sooner. Perhaps Martell read a post I wrote last season Martell "Future" Webster, I where I gave him a few pointers. Anyway, I reassert my claim that Martell can and will be a star in this league.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
It's That Time Again!
Trail Blazer training camp is underway, so it's time to start blogging again. Last time I left off, the Blazers had just gotten #1 pick. Well, as you all know, a few things have happened since then. Here are a just few comments on some of the notable off-season events.
Zach Randolph is traded to New York. This was a good move by the Blazers. While Zach was a 20/10 guy, he was stunting this team's growth. Even last year, the team played better without Zach. The fact is, Zach wasn't that guy to lead us to the promised land. Aldridge might be.
Blazers sign Steve Blake. This is also a great move by the Blazers. Steve Blake is one of the most underrated point guards in the league. Personally, I think Blake is exactly what the Blazers needed. He can push the ball, distribute the ball, and hit shots when he needs to. Plus he is a great defender. Steve's signing, and the logjam at point guard is an unfortunate situation for Sergio Rodriguez... but we'll see.
Oden is drafted, then has surgery. First off, Oden was the correct choice. Oden's surgery, and lost rookie season, is just horrible for everyone: the team, the fans, for Greg, the Blazers organization, the league, etc. Even the Blazers-Media-Machine, who hyped Oden so much and downplayed the surgery, seems to have been humbled since the news. Since the surgery the BMM have been much more honest and transparent... we'll keep an eye on this.
Blazers resign Travis Outlaw. I do not understand this move. Travis Outlaw is not “that guy”. Sure, he had some 18 point games late last season, but that's when we were playing our 3rd string and trying to lose. Some reason the Blazers really like him, and have been hyping him hard. I believe the Blazers' expectations for Travis are way too high, and as the rest of the team improves, he'll be pushed further and further out of the rotation.
Many people are saying that this season will be the same or worse as last year, citing Oden's injury and losing Randolph's points. On the contrary! The Blazers will be better than last year, quite a bit better. In fact, I'm not looking for just some improvement, I'm expecting break-out seasons by a couple of choice Blazers.
I will be at the Blazer's first pre-season game on Wednesday, and will report my observations here. Take care. Go Blazers!!!
Zach Randolph is traded to New York. This was a good move by the Blazers. While Zach was a 20/10 guy, he was stunting this team's growth. Even last year, the team played better without Zach. The fact is, Zach wasn't that guy to lead us to the promised land. Aldridge might be.
Blazers sign Steve Blake. This is also a great move by the Blazers. Steve Blake is one of the most underrated point guards in the league. Personally, I think Blake is exactly what the Blazers needed. He can push the ball, distribute the ball, and hit shots when he needs to. Plus he is a great defender. Steve's signing, and the logjam at point guard is an unfortunate situation for Sergio Rodriguez... but we'll see.
Oden is drafted, then has surgery. First off, Oden was the correct choice. Oden's surgery, and lost rookie season, is just horrible for everyone: the team, the fans, for Greg, the Blazers organization, the league, etc. Even the Blazers-Media-Machine, who hyped Oden so much and downplayed the surgery, seems to have been humbled since the news. Since the surgery the BMM have been much more honest and transparent... we'll keep an eye on this.
Blazers resign Travis Outlaw. I do not understand this move. Travis Outlaw is not “that guy”. Sure, he had some 18 point games late last season, but that's when we were playing our 3rd string and trying to lose. Some reason the Blazers really like him, and have been hyping him hard. I believe the Blazers' expectations for Travis are way too high, and as the rest of the team improves, he'll be pushed further and further out of the rotation.
Many people are saying that this season will be the same or worse as last year, citing Oden's injury and losing Randolph's points. On the contrary! The Blazers will be better than last year, quite a bit better. In fact, I'm not looking for just some improvement, I'm expecting break-out seasons by a couple of choice Blazers.
I will be at the Blazer's first pre-season game on Wednesday, and will report my observations here. Take care. Go Blazers!!!
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Trail Blazers win the lottery!
Amazing! The Blazers defy the odds and get the #1 pick! Wow.
I am still in shock, as is most of Portland. In fact, Portland is in such shock that hundreds of residents suddenly decided they needed season tickets. It’s funny to me that on Tuesday morning, many of these new season ticket holders thought the Blazers would get 6th pick; investing in Blazer tickets was probably the last thing on their mind. Then all of a sudden, because of a ping-pong ball, they decide they need spend the thousands of dollars it takes to be a season ticket holder.
It doesn’t make much sense to me, but if it helps to fill the Rose Garden, I’m not going to question it!
In fact, on Tuesday night alone, after the lottery(5:30pm), the Blazers sold over $1,000,000 in season ticket sales. They then sold another million dollars in tickets today (Wednesday). This means that in just 2 days, the Blazers already made over half of our #1 pick’s rookie year salary ($3,885,000).
Who will and/or should that #1 pick be? We’ll leave that for a future post.
I am still in shock, as is most of Portland. In fact, Portland is in such shock that hundreds of residents suddenly decided they needed season tickets. It’s funny to me that on Tuesday morning, many of these new season ticket holders thought the Blazers would get 6th pick; investing in Blazer tickets was probably the last thing on their mind. Then all of a sudden, because of a ping-pong ball, they decide they need spend the thousands of dollars it takes to be a season ticket holder.
It doesn’t make much sense to me, but if it helps to fill the Rose Garden, I’m not going to question it!
In fact, on Tuesday night alone, after the lottery(5:30pm), the Blazers sold over $1,000,000 in season ticket sales. They then sold another million dollars in tickets today (Wednesday). This means that in just 2 days, the Blazers already made over half of our #1 pick’s rookie year salary ($3,885,000).
Who will and/or should that #1 pick be? We’ll leave that for a future post.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Carmelo Anthony vs George Karl
As forseen in my 2007 predictions post, some turmoil is brewing in Denver. It seems Nuggets coach George Karl is fed up with Carmelo Anthony competing with Allen Iverson and feels Carmelo should just "forget about scoring". Just as I predicted, having two 30+ point players on the same team will cause problems. Something has to give.
By the way, if you do look back at my 2007 predictions post, go ahead and ignore everything except the Iverson/Melo prediction.
Anyway, you can read about the Carmelo situation here at espn.com. Here are some great quotes from George Karl:
--"I've told Melo in the last two weeks, 'I don't think you're listening. I don't think you're listening as well as you need to listen.' For me, the next step is to change the democracy back to a dictatorship."
-- "And, right now, what you're saying is basically, 'When is Melo going to get it? Is it going to be next month?' As a coach, there's no one more frustrated, there's no one more angry than me, because I feel the pain."
By the way, if you do look back at my 2007 predictions post, go ahead and ignore everything except the Iverson/Melo prediction.
Anyway, you can read about the Carmelo situation here at espn.com. Here are some great quotes from George Karl:
--"I've told Melo in the last two weeks, 'I don't think you're listening. I don't think you're listening as well as you need to listen.' For me, the next step is to change the democracy back to a dictatorship."
-- "And, right now, what you're saying is basically, 'When is Melo going to get it? Is it going to be next month?' As a coach, there's no one more frustrated, there's no one more angry than me, because I feel the pain."
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
(Spurs Game) Ginobili
I think I speak for all Blazer fans when I say, I hate Manu Ginobili! Every time we play the Spurs, Ginobili picks us apart in the 4th quarter. He is just a big time player.
I know it's not very pretty, but I really like Martell Webster's recent effort to get to the rim more. Though he's not great at it yet, I still like him driving instead of only looking for three-pointers. Watching this game against the Spurs got me thinking that Martell Webster could model his game after Michael Finley (in his prime). Like Martell, Finley was athletic and could beat his man off the dribble, but when he needed to he could snipe you from the 3-point line.
Thats it for now. We just ended another block of 5 games and were 1-4. This means that while the Blazers still have a chance to make the playoffs, it's literally going to take a miracle. We have to win 16 of our next 21 games.
I know it's not very pretty, but I really like Martell Webster's recent effort to get to the rim more. Though he's not great at it yet, I still like him driving instead of only looking for three-pointers. Watching this game against the Spurs got me thinking that Martell Webster could model his game after Michael Finley (in his prime). Like Martell, Finley was athletic and could beat his man off the dribble, but when he needed to he could snipe you from the 3-point line.
Thats it for now. We just ended another block of 5 games and were 1-4. This means that while the Blazers still have a chance to make the playoffs, it's literally going to take a miracle. We have to win 16 of our next 21 games.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Comments on Steve Patterson's Resignation
I know. It’s been a while since my last post. And there have been some notable events that need commenting on.
Today we’ll focus on Blazer President Steve Patterson’s resignation last Thursday. I have refrained from commenting on this matter as I didn’t think it was that big of an event. I mean, what percentage of Trail Blazer fans even knew this Blazer President’s name? Or even knew that the Blazers had a President? But due to reader demand, here are a few remarks.
As you all know, Steve Patterson resigned because Paul Allen decided not to renew his contract. Steve Patterson obviously saw this coming as he made some last ditch efforts to get a renewal. The obvious one was the Fred Jones for Juan Dixon trade. Steve Patterson knew his contract extension was on the line, so he had to do something. So, when the trading deadline came and none of his other deals went through, he had to pull the trigger on this lackluster lateral move. Seriously, this trade was basically a wash. Both are 4th year undersized shooting-guards. One can shoot but is a liability on defense, and the other is big enough to play D but can’t shoot.
The other last-ditch effort is evident in the timing of the Season Ticket renewal effort. Normal protocol is for the Blazers to begin this effort in April. But this year, for some reason, they began the renewal effort in February, two months early. The Blazers acknowledge this by saying “(the renewal effort is) earlier than previous years, but we wanted to offer as many flexible payment options from which to choose.” But the truth is, the payment plans are the same as they were last year. Obviously, Steve Patterson needed to get some early renewal numbers to bring to the negotiation table.
Both the trade and the early renewal effort show that Steve Patterson was a desperate man, and saw his contract extension slipping away. But it’s not like Steve Patterson didn’t have it coming. Remember his selfish act of firing John Nash only to name himself General Manager? Or when he fired upwards of 40 Blazer employees (including Darnell Valentine) only weeks before Christmas?
Will Steve Patterson be missed? Probably not. History may give him credit for the 2006 draft class of LaMarcus Aldridge, Sergio Rodriguez, and Brandon Roy. And also give him credit for signing of Nate McMillan. But the truth is that for most Blazer fans, Steve Patterson’s resignation is a non-event.
Anyway, tomorrow the Blazers play the Spurs, who are on a 9 game winning streak. This is a big game in that if we lose, we will probably be out of the playoff race. Go Blazers!!!
Today we’ll focus on Blazer President Steve Patterson’s resignation last Thursday. I have refrained from commenting on this matter as I didn’t think it was that big of an event. I mean, what percentage of Trail Blazer fans even knew this Blazer President’s name? Or even knew that the Blazers had a President? But due to reader demand, here are a few remarks.
As you all know, Steve Patterson resigned because Paul Allen decided not to renew his contract. Steve Patterson obviously saw this coming as he made some last ditch efforts to get a renewal. The obvious one was the Fred Jones for Juan Dixon trade. Steve Patterson knew his contract extension was on the line, so he had to do something. So, when the trading deadline came and none of his other deals went through, he had to pull the trigger on this lackluster lateral move. Seriously, this trade was basically a wash. Both are 4th year undersized shooting-guards. One can shoot but is a liability on defense, and the other is big enough to play D but can’t shoot.
The other last-ditch effort is evident in the timing of the Season Ticket renewal effort. Normal protocol is for the Blazers to begin this effort in April. But this year, for some reason, they began the renewal effort in February, two months early. The Blazers acknowledge this by saying “(the renewal effort is) earlier than previous years, but we wanted to offer as many flexible payment options from which to choose.” But the truth is, the payment plans are the same as they were last year. Obviously, Steve Patterson needed to get some early renewal numbers to bring to the negotiation table.
Both the trade and the early renewal effort show that Steve Patterson was a desperate man, and saw his contract extension slipping away. But it’s not like Steve Patterson didn’t have it coming. Remember his selfish act of firing John Nash only to name himself General Manager? Or when he fired upwards of 40 Blazer employees (including Darnell Valentine) only weeks before Christmas?
Will Steve Patterson be missed? Probably not. History may give him credit for the 2006 draft class of LaMarcus Aldridge, Sergio Rodriguez, and Brandon Roy. And also give him credit for signing of Nate McMillan. But the truth is that for most Blazer fans, Steve Patterson’s resignation is a non-event.
Anyway, tomorrow the Blazers play the Spurs, who are on a 9 game winning streak. This is a big game in that if we lose, we will probably be out of the playoff race. Go Blazers!!!
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Goodbye Juan Dixon
Last nights game against the Lakers was another awesome performance by the Trail Blazers. I am still in shock after these last 2 games, the Blazers look like a totally different team. They are moving the ball to the right spots, shooting good shots… it’s just good basketball.
The Playoff Race
It’s funny… the Blazers win two games in a row, and now everyone’s talking about the playoffs again. Well, we might have a chance if the Blazers continue to play the way they played the last 2 games, but they still have their work cut out for them. According to the standings, it may look like we’re just 2 games back from a playoff spot, but in the end I still think we’re going to have to have a .500 record to even get a chance.
So, since the halfway point I’ve been taking it 5 games at a time. We need to win 3 out of every 5 games and we’ve just finished the 3rd round. The records have been: 3-2, 2-3, and 3-2. This means we are down only 1 game… but it also means that we need to get at least one five game record of 4-1. The point is that hope is still alive for my playoff prophecy to come true!
Goodbye Juan
As I’m sure you all know, Juan Dixon has been traded to Toronto. Blazers, in return, got the 6-2 Portland native, Fred Jones. I’ll talk more about Fred Jones later. Now I’d just like to reminisce about Juan Dixon.
I must say that I will miss Juan. Last year when the Blazers were struggling, Juan emerged as one of our best players. He could actually put the ball in the basket! I started calling him “Big Shot Juan” because he wasn’t afraid to take (and make) big shot’s at the end of games.
But as the team around him got better, Juan had to realize that he wasn’t the best player anymore. But many nights this year, Juan Dixon was the bright spot when the rest of our team was forgettable. He got a bad rap for being inconsistent, but Sergio helped show us that Juan is actually pretty consistent if you deliver the ball to him in rhythm. And being an undersized shooting guard, Juan always had to work harder, and play smarter than most which is very respectable. I’m sure this rubbed off onto our young guys and they are better players and better people for it.
I never blogged much about Juan Dixon, but I’ve always liked him and I liked his game. So on behalf of myself, and all the BlazersTruth readers, I’d just like to say:
--Thank You Juan, we'll miss you!
The Playoff Race
It’s funny… the Blazers win two games in a row, and now everyone’s talking about the playoffs again. Well, we might have a chance if the Blazers continue to play the way they played the last 2 games, but they still have their work cut out for them. According to the standings, it may look like we’re just 2 games back from a playoff spot, but in the end I still think we’re going to have to have a .500 record to even get a chance.
So, since the halfway point I’ve been taking it 5 games at a time. We need to win 3 out of every 5 games and we’ve just finished the 3rd round. The records have been: 3-2, 2-3, and 3-2. This means we are down only 1 game… but it also means that we need to get at least one five game record of 4-1. The point is that hope is still alive for my playoff prophecy to come true!
Goodbye Juan
As I’m sure you all know, Juan Dixon has been traded to Toronto. Blazers, in return, got the 6-2 Portland native, Fred Jones. I’ll talk more about Fred Jones later. Now I’d just like to reminisce about Juan Dixon.
I must say that I will miss Juan. Last year when the Blazers were struggling, Juan emerged as one of our best players. He could actually put the ball in the basket! I started calling him “Big Shot Juan” because he wasn’t afraid to take (and make) big shot’s at the end of games.
But as the team around him got better, Juan had to realize that he wasn’t the best player anymore. But many nights this year, Juan Dixon was the bright spot when the rest of our team was forgettable. He got a bad rap for being inconsistent, but Sergio helped show us that Juan is actually pretty consistent if you deliver the ball to him in rhythm. And being an undersized shooting guard, Juan always had to work harder, and play smarter than most which is very respectable. I’m sure this rubbed off onto our young guys and they are better players and better people for it.
I never blogged much about Juan Dixon, but I’ve always liked him and I liked his game. So on behalf of myself, and all the BlazersTruth readers, I’d just like to say:
--Thank You Juan, we'll miss you!
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