http://www.blazersedge.com/2009/9/23/1052363/what-i-learnd-from-blazers-media [rquoter] ... We should not be expecting any statement of substance regarding the referees to come from the Blazers organization. Asked three different ways about the league's recent lockout of its referees, Pritchard would only express full confidence in David Stern. Nothing more. Literally nothing at all. The gag order is in full effect. During Monday's Practice Facility Tour, Pritchard was full of praise for Rudy Fernandez and mentioned that he believes Rudy could start for a number of teams in the league. When asked about Jerryd Bayless today, Pritchard admitted that Rex was "anxious" to see some playing time but that he was handling the minutes crunch that accompanied the Andre Miller signing "like a pro." Asked if he thought Bayless was "frustrated" Pritchard said that was going too far. Asked if he thought there were situations around the league where Jerryd could possibly start, Pritchard didn't disagree. Pritchard called Andre Miller "the director" and has been impressed with the intensity of the competition of workouts that Miller has helped establish. Filling the 15th roster spot, Pritchard told the crowd that he would look for someone who is "high energy" but also someone "that can play." Later he pointed towards defense as an area that needed improvement and I asked him whether filling the last spot with a big man could help reach that goal. "They say you can never have too many big men in this league," Pritchard told me, "But I'm also a former point guard. And you can never have too many point guards." Wrap your head around that quote. When asked about his team's offensive efficiency, Pritchard smiled and pointed at ESPN's John Hollinger, stating that Hollinger was "the expert in the world" when it came to efficiency. In my opinion, not enough reporters chuckled knowingly in appreciation at this insider hat tip. Somewhere in a cubicle, Kevin Pelton glares while reading this bullet point. ... [/rquoter]
I'm pretty well acquainted with a Blazers assistant coach and he was pretty excited about Miller and said Aldridge has been working out like a madman all summer. Feels that this could be his true breakout year.
Other than Brandon Roy losing weight and Aldridge's lingering contact situation, recent Blazers news has been very sparse. It's weird because they are followed so closely under a microscope and there is usually something to talk about. When camp starts, the news will explode. If a player blows his nose during practice, every Blazers fan will know about it. The starting PG battle between Miller and Blake will get a lot of attention. Even though McMillan said Blake is still the starter, everyone will be shocked if Miller doesn't emerge as starter. He's the kind of guy that will allow Roy to play off the ball and conserve energy most of the game. Plus, Miller is very good at feeding post players, which will help Oden and Aldridge. IMO, T-Rex (Bayless) will be traded this season. There is also talk that Rudy Fernandez will get some burn at PG to increase his playing time because of the logjam at SF. Bayless needs to go unless he can beat out Blake for backup PG, which will not happen. At SG, 'nuff said. At SF, who will start between Batum or Martell Webster? If Webster is healthy and is stroking the ball like the rumors say he is, the guy is a perfect fit for them. But what will that do to Batum's development? If both guys were mature enough (doubtful), I would start them situationally based on the opponent. At PF, Aldridge's backup will be Travis Outlaw. I think the Blazers are very solid here. LA is a workout warrior, will be better and will take his game up another level. At C, there is debate who will start between Oden and Przybilla. If Oden doesn't stake his claim with authority, the Blazers will be severely disappointed. I think McMillan will do whatever is best to win games and won't defer to Oden just because he's supposed to be "the future". Starting with this season, the future is now with the Blazers. I see them anywhere from the 3rd to 5th best team in the West.
Pretty much. Oden is easily one of the biggest wildcards in the NBA right now. He could either continue to be a solid rotation player while Portland remains on that second tier of NBA contenders or he could bust out into a dominant presence underneath the basket that makes Portland a serious contender. Either way, that Portland team is very good but he will remain the missing link as long as they remain at status quo.
The Blazers team is full of wild cards, with Oden being the biggest one. If his athleticism is back, watch out. How much better will Rudy be? Will Martell return to form, be even better or get injured again? How much will LA raise his game? I'm a big believer in the guy and think he, not Oden, will be the story of their season. Will Batum be more consistent and eliminate the games where he is a complete stinker? Some think his injury was why his disappeared so often mid/late season. Also, how much does Andre Miller still have in the tank? Other than Roy (and maybe Rudy sometimes), he's the only guy on their squad that can take control of the offense and make other players better with his passing and driving. Miller will be pivotal to LA and Oden getting the ball in scoring position without always depending on Roy setting them up. People don't realize how good a passer he is.
Very true on all of that. I am just a believer in dominant post play being the key to winning championships and right now Portland doesn't really have that. Sure, Aldridge is a nice player but he's always going to be a finesse, second banana type. Not really much of a two-way player. What Oden brings them (in theory) could make them nearly unbeatable. It just remains to be seen if his body will allow him to get there. I love the addition of Andre Miller. PG was clearly their weakest position and Pritchard responded by adding a workhorse of a veteran that never gets hurt, is a good enough playmaker to take pressure off of Roy, gets to the line and doesn't make mistakes. He embodies consistency -- something Blake doesn't know much about.
I wouldn't give Pritchard too much credit. Miller, fortunately for him, fell into his lap. His first priority was Turkoglu, then Odom or Ariza (I believe) and then he settled for Miller. I know for sure Miller wasn't even their first or second option. Not only that, but Miller doesn't help offensively in regard to shooting. Teams can slack off the PG now, something they couldn't do against Blake, even for all his faults.
Pritchard wanted Turkeyglue then got lucky (IMO) when he shafted them for Toronto. After that, it was all about Millsap. During all this time I was scratching my head because PG was clearly their biggest weakness and there was mutual interest from both sides -- signing Miller almost seemed to make too much sense. Well, they got him and they are much better for it. Whether he was technically option #1, 2 or 3 matters not in my book. You can't make spacing the only thing you see when you picture him in this offense. It's not like Miller doesn't bring anything else to the table here. We're talking about a mid-range assassin that gets to the line a lot. Perfect for all the PnR'ing Portland likes to do. He's one of the best post-up guards in the league, very strong, gets into the lane fairly easily and knows how to finish after contact. P.S. Good to see you posting again
FYI, word around Portland is that Turk was a Paul Allen choice (the Blazers owner), not a Pritchard choice. BRoy and Larry Miller (the President of Basketball Operations) had a conversation immediately after our loss to you guys, before they even left the locker room, where Roy told him he wanted Miller. Pritchard is a good employee, so I think he went after Turk hard, because hey, that could have been pretty good too. But in the end I'm pretty sure Miller was who the basketball people in the org actually wanted. (I'm almost 100% certain that the Milsap offer was a high-risk ploy to make Utah uncomfortable and force them to move Boozer, them being division rivals.) Regardless of whether or not Pritchard wanted Miller, Andre was unquestionably Brandon Roy's first choice.
MILLSAP!! That's who it was. Their No. 2 option escaped me, but I forgot they even signed him as a restricted FA. Duh, me! You're right in that Miller brings a lot else. I was just saying the spacing issue to play devil's advocate. And I agree, PG should have clearly been their priority, and I too was baffled when they were looking elsewhere. Pritchard got lucky. Turkoglu or Millsap would not have the same effect Miller will. If Miller can be dangerous from 18-20 feet, they will be extremely scary. And thanks for the kind words. I need to get on AIM again soon so we can talk more Rockets bball with the season right around the corner!
The reputed 'fear' in River City is that Outlaw is going to try to pour #s on when he's in game (at 3 or 4) to enhance his FA status. I believe, that if/when Pritchard deals Outlaw will be outed.
This actually sort of has the parallel of a 2003 Rockets on steroids, with the biggest distinction of course being that the Blazers are already good and trying to become great. Both teams completely stacked with young talent - Mo Taylor, Kenny Thomas/James Posey, Kelvin Cato, Nachbar, Moochie Norris; Bayless, Outlaw, Batum, Webster, Fernandez. You had Yao playing the role of Aldridge - the real deal but will he take that next step and become truly dominant? Roy is much better than Francis, but the latter was still very highly regarded at that point as a franchise player. Mobley as Andre Miller. And the most interesting parallel is Eddie Griffin with Greg Oden. These are the two guys that at each respective point, control the fate of their teams. They each have/had the potential to truly break out and be the factor that pushes their team to the next level (the Blazers into the elite, the Rockets into the 2nd tier). It is still sometimes depressing to think of where we thought we were headed at that point before everything started going downhill.
Miller, like all cerebral, unathletic PG's (see Steve Nash), has aged like a fine wine. His outside shooting hasn't gotten any better but the success of the teams he's played for has increased exponentially. Not to mention his amazing track record of averaging 1 missed game per season for his ENTIRE career. In retrospect Pritchard was very lucky to have Miller fall into his lap after failing to get Hedo. Pritchard is a hit or miss GM who's had more opportunity than anyone else in the league to make an impact over the past 3 years, so I don't agree with how much the media inflates his value. I don't see a legit connection... the Blazers were drafted higher, have more potential, have a credible superstar, and have already put it together to an extent like you mentioned. Every team in the NBA can make a case for an "on steroids" parallel with the Blazers... don't be so hard on the '03 Rockets, they never had a chance outside of Bill Worrell's gushing praise for his baby Rockets.
Miller isn't a dangerous mid-range shooter. But he will go straight to the rim when his defender slacks off too much. He can also pass the ball very well if he's left alone. He will not be an offensive liability in Portland any more than he was in Philly. I'll say this again and, so far, nobody has agreed with me: I think the Blazers signed Millsap as an insurance policy for Aldridge leaving. If the Jazz didn't match, the contract talks with Aldridge would be dead because the Blazers would be in a position of strength. They could have likely kept him until the summer of 2011 without signing him long-term. Just my 2 cents.
