Tough Losses, For Both Teams (12.30.05)

The best part of the game Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies is that the Trail Blazers could have rolled over, several times. Earlier in the season perhaps this young team does just that. But, that should tell you how much things have changed in the two months Nate McMillan has been coaching this team. Memphis grabbed a 15-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but the Trail Blazers managed to get back to within two, and missed a shot at the buzzer to tie it up. The final was 93-90.

It was a costly victory for the Grizzlies, who play again tonight in Seattle. Mike Miller, who had a monster second quarter, stepped on Zach Randolph's foot on his way to the basket and rolled his ankle. Remarkably, he came back to play in the second half, but it'll be sore at best tonight if he decides to go against the Sonics. The other injury was more serious, and it was a bad break for Damon Stoudamire, who's a great guy and didn''t deserve it. On his way to the hoop he started to jump and looked as though he was shot in the back. We had replays from every angle on TV and couldn't really tell what happened. Turns out he ruptured a ligiment in his right knee and is gone for the season. We reported this during the game, even though the official word from Memphis was that he had just sprained his knee. We had it on good authority that he blew a ligiment, and that is indeed what happened. He's been huge for this Memphis team, and they'll miss him. It's also a shame that it happened on this night, Damon's return to Portland.

The Blazers comeback effort was led by Ruben Patterson, who ended with 22 in the game. Had the Grizzlies not gotten the benefit of a couple of generous whistles, the comeback effort could have ended in a Blazers win. You hate to see officials decide the outcome of a game, but that's practically what happened in this one. There was a phantom foul called on Juan Dixon, after the Blazers had secured a rebound and would have had the ball trailing by two. Moments later, after a wild scramble for a loose ball, the ball was not only given to Memphis after an officials huddle, but they decided to call a foul on Dixon and put Eddie Jones on the free throw line. I've honestly never seen a play like that. Everyone could have lived with the officials awarding Memphis the ball, but to come together, discuss who's ball it should be, and then call a foul was pretty amazing.

Joel Przybilla sat out his second straight game, and didn't want to do it. I talked to him before the game, and he said his right knee was just too sore to give it a go. It doesn't appear to be too serious, and it just appears that he aggravated and old injury to his right knee. He is frustrated and wanted badly to play. Not having him really hurt the Trail Blazers in this one.

The homestand comes to a close Sunday night, when the Blazers host the Clippers. It's an important game, because of the way next week's schedule sets up. The Blazers play at Dallas Tuesday, at San Antonio Wednesday, and at Oklahoma City on Friday. Those will all be very tough games to win.

Chemistry (12.29.05)

Make it three straight wins for the Trail Blazers, and the quality of each win has been better than the one before it. That's not taking anything away from the win over the Timberwolves in Minnesota, or the win over the Kings in Sacramento. Tonight was just one of those games packed with emotion on both sides, and full of storylines. Some called the Minnesota win a surprise, and many summed up the Sacramento victory as just catching a struggling team at the right time. The win last night, however, showed this Trail Blazer streak is for real, and they are earning the wins. They beat the Sixers 95-91. The Sixers handed Portland nothing.

Chemistry is such an odd thing. It can be so elusive in team sports, and so tough to hang on to once you do get it. The Trail Blazers certainly have it now, and we all sit around wondering how in the world they've managed to pick this time for a three-game winning streak. They'll try and give you reasons why they are playing so much better, and we do the same thing during the broadcasts. I think it can be best summed up by simply saying this team is believing in itself now. Yes, Steve Blake and Juan Dixon have been terrific in the backcourt, Zach Randolph looks like the Zach of old, and Ruben Patterson is doing what Ruben does best. But, Nate McMillan deserves much of the credit. The players are truly buying into his philosophy, and they're seeing how it can work for them on the court.

It was nice once again to see Maurice Cheeks, and there is no doubt he is a great guy, but he was outcoached by McMillan in this game. The Trail Blazers scheme was better, the adjustments were better, and late the game management was better. In the past, under Cheeks, we often saw the Blazers short on timeouts when they needed them most. Last night, it was the Sixers who were out of time outs when they had to have one. Portland's play calling was also right on, and the team executed like good teams execute.

Who would have thought the Blazers would have picked this time to put together a three-game winning streak. And, don't forget, they've won four of six now, and were a bucket away from beating the Pistons in Detroit, and fell just short in Memphis. This could easily be a six-game winning streak. All of this without their leading scorer, Darius Miles, and their starting point guard, Sebastian Telfair. And, last night, they were without Joel Przybilla. Joel's right knee has been acting up and we don't know much more about it right now. He's scheduled to have an MRI on the knee today. We should know more after that. At this point I'd be surprised to see him playing against Memphis on Friday. Hopefully we get good news today and he'll return, but I doubt it.

The team has Memphis Friday, the Clippers on Sunday, and then we hit the road again. We travel to Dallas, San Antonio, and Oklahoma City. Nothing easy there. Then though, it's back home for an 8-game homestand. Is it possible the Trail Blazers could be at the .500 mark by the end of January? That's an optimistic goal, but one that can be achieved.

76ers In Town Tonight (12.28.05)

It's the first of three straight at home tonight for the Trail Blazers, and this beings a stretch that will have them playing 11 of their next 14 at the Rose Garden. Even though the back-to-back wins at Minnesota and Sacramento were nice, they are now in the past, and as you know, Nate McMillan doesn't live in the past. The team was back on the practice floor yesterday morning at 10:30. As we landed late Monday night following the win over the Kings, the announcement was made about what time practice was going to be on Tuesday, and no one was surprised.

Maurice Cheeks makes his return to the Rose Garden tonight. With Portland's very solid play as of late, the Cheeks' homecoming won't be the major storyline in the game. It'll be all about the Blazers, and everyone will be watching to see if they can follow up the two straight on the road with a big victory over Philadelphia. The Sixers are playing very well, and won at the wire in Denver last night. The Denver/Portland back-to-back is always a very tough one for Eastern teams. They play at altitude in Denver, and then lose an hour during the flight to the time change. The Sixers probably weren't into their hotel rooms until about 2 a.m. or so in Portland last night. And, the game was a close one, so they expended a lot of energy, which could work into the hands of Portland. Forget everything else, it's all about Allen Iverson anyway, right? He was the reason they beat the Nuggets last night. You can bet, however, they'll be out to win one for their coach, knowing what this game will mean emotionally to Cheeks.

We talked yesterday about Portland's great guard play as of late. Steve Blake and Juan Dixon have been terrific, and will start in the backcourt again tonight. Sebastian Telfair, who has watched Blake successfully make the transition to the starting lineup, says he'll sit out a few more games. He wants to go now, and says if it were up to him he'd make his return to the lineup tonight. But, the training staff says it wants him to consult with doctors again before returning and is cautious of rushing anything. When Sebastian does return, probably January 3rd, it'll create a tough situation for McMillan and the coaches. Telfair will be taking minutes away from either Blake, or Jarrett Jack, who has also been playing very well. Coaches are always faced with tough decisions when players come back from injury, especially players who are used to starting. The Blazers have been very good with Blake running the show, and McMillan tends to go with what's working. With that in mind, it'll likely be up to Blake to play his way out of the starting lineup, rather than Telfair to play his way back in. Whatever the case may be, it won't have to be worked out for a few more games, at least.

On another note, it looks like the Sacramento Kings were rattled by their loss to Portland at home last night, and gave Rick Adelman a strong effort tonight. They blew out the Clippers in L.A., and looked more like the team we expected to see when the season started. Adelman appears to be safe, for now.

We'll have tonight's Blazers/Sixers game on FSN, which is on channel 34 on Comcast, 650 on DirecTV, and 446 on Dish Network. Our coverage will start at 6:30 with FSN Live, the pre-game show. Our call of the game is also being picked up nationwide on NBA TV tonight. Of course, the game can also be heard on the Trail Blazers Radio Network, with Wheels and Antonio.

Don't Mess With a Winning Streak (12.27.05)

I'm back. I hope your Christmas was great, and I can tell you that winning the last game before Christmas and the first game after, made this tough schedule a whole lot more fun. Not to be too superstitious, but I was considering holding off on the blog because my last one was the day of the Minnesota win, and then we beat the Kings last night in Sacramento, and well... I didn't want to jinx us. As players always say, you never mess with a winning streak.

The flight home from Minnesota seemed a lot shorter, because of the great win there. We got home late on Friday night, and Nate gave the players Christmas Eve, and Christmas off. A few of the players flew to see their families, and then met us in Sacramento on Sunday night. I got a call on my cell phone late Sunday night from Joel Przybilla, who was at the Sacramento airport, and he asked me "what hotel are we at?" He was about to grab a cab and wanted to make sure he was headed for the correct hotel.

You get a feeling about certain games, and all day yesterday I felt the Trail Blazers would beat the Kings. This isn't always the case, of course. The team just felt like it turned the corner, confidence-wise, with the Minnesota win, and they seemed so sure of themselves on the flight to Sacramento on Christmas night. It wasn't cockiness, it was just confident. They seem to be hitting a groove, and the switch has been flipped on. It's all a testament to McMillan and his message.

Our esteemed radio play-by-play broadcaster, Brian Wheeler, was listening to a radio talk show yesterday on the way to the arena in Sacramento, and one of the Kings broadcasters was ripping into the Blazers. He said, "if the Kings lose to this pathetic team, they might as well put a closed sign on Arco and cancel the rest of the season." Wheeler made sure we all knew that, and even told Ruben Patterson about it. It sounds stupid, but little things like that are what they call "bulletin board material." I told Steve Blake as well before the game about how his team was getting trashed, and he told me "well, when we're up by 15 in the fourth quarter we'll see what they're saying then." He laughed as he said it, but I remembered it after the game and told him how correct his prediction was. He was only off by two points. The Blazers actually led by 17 in the fourth quarter.

It was nice hear what Zach Randolph had to say following the 105-92 win over the Kings. He said the reason for the excellent play on this road trip was the improved guard play. Blake and Juan Dixon have been fantastic, Zach is right. The ball movement on offense tonight was as good as I have seen it in years. How many times did you see the ball swung quickly from one side of the floor to the other? It always resulted in an open shot, and that's why the team shot 54 percent. Blake and Dixon have combined for 21 assists in the last two games. Blake has 11 assists and 1 turnover in the last two. When you're thinking about this, and watching these two on the floor, give some credit to general manager John Nash for signing these guys in the off season. It's easy to pick apart things when they're not going well, but give credit where credit is due. He got Joel Przybilla in the previous off-season, and then Blake and Dixon last summer. Let's take it a step further. Take a look at the guys who have had huge roles in these last two wins. Viktor Khryapa, Przybilla, Blake, and Dixon. All guys Nash either signed or drafted.

The Blazers have come through this difficult stretch of the schedule now get 11 of the next 14 at home. Their leading scorer is down with knee surgery, they've been without their starting point guard to an injury, and they are the second youngest team in the NBA. They are coming off a road trip that saw them fall in the final seconds at Detroit, lose a close one at Memphis, and win at Minnesota and Sacramento. I'll take that. How about you?

Maurice Cheeks and Philadelphia are next up, Wednesday night. The Sixers play tonight in Denver, and that's a tough back-to-back, Denver then Portland. They follow that up with Memphis and the Clippers at home.

It's Acutally Warm Here... Well, For Minnesota It Is. (12.23.05)

It climbed over the freezing mark today in Minneapolis, the first of hopefully two upsets in this town in the next two days. Last season we were here and it never got above -15, so this was take-your-shirt-off-and-stroll-on-the-sidewalk weather. I decided against that, but it's nice to know that it was an option for me. Tonight, the Trail Blazers take on the Timberwolves for the third time this season. We'll have the game on KGW-8 in the Portland area, and the Trail Blazers Television Network. The game will also be on the radio network with Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey. Harvey has spent the entire trip in his room playing some war game on his PS2 that he brought along. His room is right next to mine, so I have the pleasure of hearing machine-gun fire late into the night. He said he played until 5 am last night, and did his best to free the world of oppressive governments. He's all about the other guy.

The Trail Blazers practiced today at the Target Center. Jarrett Jack, Ruben Patterson, and Theo Ratliff sat it out. Jack, who strained his calf muscle in Memphis, probably won't play against the Timberwolves, and could be out for a few games after that. Calf injuries don't heal quickly, and time is the only real treatment. Patterson, who rolled his ankle in that game, will most likely play tonight, and Theo Ratliff was just resting his sore foot and also will play.

The trip to Minnesota is always a chance for Joel Przybilla to go home and see his parents and family. He's from nearby Monticello, and his father attended practice today. Joel got a home-cooked meal, and got himself ready to be booed tonight. Minnesota fans always give it to him because he left the University of Minnesota two years early. Utah's Kris Humphries, who did the same, also gets booed here.

The Blazers, as you recall, played here on opening night, and lost a close one 90 to 86. Richie Frahm hit 5 of 6 three pointers and was the only reason Portland didn't finish off the upset. He's 9 for 35 from behind the arc since that game, by the way. The teams met again on December 7th in Portland. The Blazers held a 14-point fourth-quarter lead, but couldn't hold it. The Timberwolves outscored the Blazers 33-13 in the 4th, and it was one of the more difficult losses of the season. That was the game I lost my voice, so it was painful to watch, and listen to, for you (I hope that isn't always the case).

We had a chance to get some Christmas shopping in yesterday, and went to the Mall of America, which was at one time the biggest mall in the world. A mall is really just a mall, and I was underwhelmed. I did just about finish off my shopping though, and was delighted to learn that the Minnesota state sales tax doesn't apply to shoes or clothes. I wasn't aware of that until I went to pay, and the long-haired dude at The Gap couldn't give me a good reason why that is (there are three different Gap stores in the mall, two Gap Kids, and two Baby Gap stores, by the way. They're taking over the world). One other thing I'm always reminded of when I'm in the Midwest is how many non-smokers we have in Oregon. Everyone seems to smoke back here- adults, kids, babies, dogs. I've got to go for a lung check when I get home just from the second-hand smoke. You get strange looks from people because you're not smoking. I felt so out of place I nearly picked up a pack of Luckies after breakfast just to fit in. I will say, however, they are extremely nice people. They talk kind of funny, but they're very friendly (this is what I heard after asking directions... "goo oot to the escalator, goo oot the door, and you betcha, you're abooot there").

Anyway, this is the final blog until next week, so have yourself a merry little Christmas. Thanks for being a fan, and for checking in with me from time to time. And, thanks for watching tonight. The two losses so far on the trip have been difficult, but they've been good games, and the Trail Blazers' effort has been great. It's never easy when you're losing more than you're winning and I can tell you that the coaches are not sleeping at night. Even a first-year staff feels a ton of pressure and this has been a trying time for Nate. I can only hope they'll park the frustration, enjoy Christmas, and take a little stock. It's a great life, great job, and we're surrounded by great people, including you fans. Thanks, and I'll talk to you on Tuesday after the Sacramento game.

Mall of America, Here I Come! (12.22.05)

We're in Minneapolis now, another night another hotel. Such is life on the road in the NBA. We've just arrived following the flight from Memphis, and as usual, we got in at about 2 a.m. I'm going through my usual routine of getting into the hotel, unpacking, and then getting to work on the computer. It's always tough to go straight from the plane to bed, and your hours always get screwed up on a trip like this. You change time zones and cities so much you're never really sure what time it is. The one good thing is we usually stay in the same hotels year after year and you get pretty familiar with things. This hotel happens to have wireless high-speed Internet service, so it's easy to log on. At times it can be more difficult. There are a lot of little things you just get used to. You learn quickly, and familiar things, like where you normally eat, are comforting. We were just in Memphis for the second time this season, and this is our second trip to Minneapolis already this season, so it seems like we were just here. You even begin to recognize familiar faces in the hotels, and it's normally the same staff that greets you upon your arrival.

Thursday is a day off for us, which is rare, and the team will practice before taking on the Timberwolves on Friday night. I'll try and get some Christmas shopping in as well, and with as busy as we are, and traveling as much as we do, you try to get a little shopping done here and there. This time of year I always make sure to leave some room in my bags for gifts that I buy on the road. We don't have sales tax in Oregon, of course, so it's always inconvenient to pay it out of state, but you really have no choice sometimes. I'm going to try and finish up my shopping tomorrow, because we land back in Portland late Friday night, and then it'll be Christmas Eve. Because of our game in Sacramento on the 26th, we will have to jump back on the plane on the evening of Christmas. It stinks, but it is what it is and you deal with it.

This was one of the trips where you get used to seeing snow and cold weather. We saw plenty of snow and cold temperatures in Detroit, got a little warmer, like into the 30's, in Memphis, and it was 10 degrees when we landed in Minneapolis tonight. Fortunately, downtown Minneapolis is all connected by sky bridges, so you don't ever really have to go outside. You start feeling a bit like a hamster crawling around in a habitrail, but it's better than being out in the cold.

This has also been a tough trip because of what has happened on the court. The Trail Blazers came so close to upsetting the Pistons in Detroit on Tuesday night, and then lost another tough one in Memphis tonight. The team was in a good position again to get a victory tonight, but again just didn't get the big shots to fall down the stretch and ended up losing to the Grizzlies 89-79. It's nice that we've been in a position to win these two games, but they still go down as losses.

Zach Randolph, after getting a career-high 37 in Detroit, was doubled all night in Memphis. He ended with 15 points and 8 rebounds tonight. Juan Dixon led the team with 17, and Joel Przybilla had a very solid game with 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 blocked shots. The 17 turnovers were huge, and Portland turned it over 7 times in the fourth quarter alone. It's tough to win that way. And, injuries to Ruben Patterson and Jarrett Jack didn't help. Jack strained a calf muscle and hobbled on to the plane after the game. He's sore, and we'll know more tomorrow. Ruben rolled his ankle and I think that's a lot less serious. He returned to the game, and I'm sure will play on Friday night.

For the second straight night we faced a former Trail Blazer. Rasheed Wallace, who badly wanted to have a good game against his former team on Tuesday, didn't. He ended just 3 for 12 from the field. Tonight, Damon Stoudamire was just 2 for 10 and ended with 5 points. He came over before the game, and visited with us briefly. He's enjoying his new team, but says he misses Portland a lot. The Grizzlies are 15 and 9 now, and they've got a good chance to make the playoffs in the west. Pau Gasol will have to continue playing at a high level for that to happen. Tonight in our game he had 26 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 blocks. The Blazers have been struggling in the third quarter of games, but tonight the second quarter was the difference maker. The Grizzlies outscored Portland 25-15, and erased the Blazers 6-point first quarter lead rather quickly.

I'll blog again tomorrow night, and will talk more about the matchup with the Timberwolves. I'll also have a recap of an evening of shopping at the Mall of America from here in Minneapolis. I'm sure you're looking forward to that.

Zach Steps Up (12.21.05)

If you think Nate McMillan and the Trail Blazers coaching staff was happy following the close game in Detroit last night, you haven't been listening to his post-game comments. There are no moral victories, as we've said numerous times, and this again was a game the Trail Blazers feel they should have won. McMillan said as much following the game. The Pistons, the best team in the NBA, improved to 20 and 3 with a 93-89 victory over Portland. Like the earlier meeting back in November, the Blazers had a lead late in the game and just couldn't get any breaks down the stretch. Last night, they had a five-point lead midway through the fourth, but didn't close the deal.

The bright spot was Zach Randolph, as he scored a career-high 37 points, on 14 of 26 shooting, and also grabbed 11 rebounds. He was 8 for 8 from the foul line and only had 2 turnovers. This is the Zach we've become used to seeing, and his surgically repaired knee appears to be getting better. Randolph abused former teammate Rasheed Wallace, who guarded him most of the night and couldn't stop him. Wallace, who is a terrific post defender, just like he was in his Portland days, had to be seeing Zach in his sleep last night. He started the game woofing in Zach's face on the first several possessions, but had to be feeling humbled, when the Pistons moved Ben Wallace to Zach in the fourth quarter in an effort to slow him down. Ben did a decent job on Zach, but didn't exactly shut him down.

Zach wasn't the only one taking Sheed into the post, and having success. Ruben Patterson also punished Wallace in the post, and scored 5 of his 6 field goals with Sheed on him. All of this helped Portland win the battle of points in the paint, 44-24.

Following the game we flew to Memphis, and tonight take on the Grizzlies. As you recall, the Blazers beat Memphis on November 22 at the FedExForum. Damon Stoudamire said that they were given a tongue lashing following that game, and were made to watch the entire tape of that game. They've had tonight circled on the calendar since the upset on the 22nd. They're playing well right now to boot. They fell to this Detroit team in double overtime on Monday in Memphis. So, again, this will be a huge challenge for the Blazers.

Following tonight's game against the Grizzlies, we'll head for Minneapolis, and get set to take on the Timberwolves on Friday night.

Who's Man Enough To Admit They Cried at King Kong? (12.20.05)

Greetings from cold, snowy Michigan. The Trail Blazers have won four of the last five games played against the Pistons at the Palace. They have also won 8 of the last 11 here. That's an interesting number, and sometimes you can't explain exactly why a team tends to play well in a particular arena. As you know, however, if that trend is to continue tonight, it'll be considered a major upset. The Pistons are 19 and 3 and are the best team in the NBA, without a doubt.

Last season it was Darius Miles who clinched the game for Portland in Detroit, as he hit a free throw with .5 left, and they won it 75-74. The Blazers had led by as many as 15 points late in the third before the Pistons mounted a rally. It was a very strange game, in that Rip Hamilton and Chauncy Billups were horrible. That's not something that happens very much, and no doubt assisted Portland in its upset bid. Hamilton ended 3 of 22 from the field, and Billups was 5 of 15. That's 5 for 37 shooting from the Pistons starting backcourt. I can say this without looking it up… those two didn't combine for a hideous number like that again, and probably never will.

Okay, now to the present. I watched the Pistons game last night from my hotel room here in Birmingham, which is fairly near the Palace of Auburn Hills. (They call them the "Detroit" Pistons, but it would be like putting the Blazers in Woodburn and still calling them "Portland." I've been to The Palace about 10 times, and around the area, and still don't know where downtown Detroit is. I hear it's about 20 miles south of here. We actually fly into Pontiac, and not Detroit.) The Pistons should be a little tired, after playing double overtime in Memphis. Damon Stoudamire, who had 14 points last year when Portland won here, hit a 3-pointer for the Grizzlies in the closing seconds of the second overtime. But, Billups then won it for Detroit, 106-104.

As I mentioned earlier, the Pistons are now 19 and 3. They've won 10 of their last 11, and have just come through the toughest portion of their schedule. They now come home to play 9 of their next 10. That's a scary thought. Billups' numbers are actually better on the road, and nothing seems to rattle this team. Billups is the steady hand, and is the MVP of this team. He had to play 46 minutes last night. Hamilton played 48 minutes, and Ben Wallace played 56 minutes. They then had to fly back to Detroit, and get ready for the Blazers tonight.

With that in mind, do you think Nate McMillan will continue to try and push the tempo with his team and make the Pistons run? I'm not talking a change in philosophy, but Portland should have the edge in energy. And, normal teams usually let down in their first home game following a long road trip. But, as I've said, the Pistons aren't a normal team so you can probably throw most of that out the window.

I think you will see the Blazers looking to run a little more, and that's not just because of the situation with the Pistons being tired. Steve Blake continues to look great as the starting point guard, and he led the team to the win over Washington 97-92 on Sunday. They've scored 97 and 99 points in their last two with Blake at the controls, and had 26 team assists on Sunday, about 10 over their average. He'll also have his good friend and long-time teammate Juan Dixon starting at the shooting guard spot again. Dixon continues to show what great acquisition he was in the off season. He had 20 points against the Wizards, but will have his hands full with his matchup against Hamilton tonight. That goes for Blake as well, who will have to take Billups, and he's expecting to be taken into the post.

Joel Przybilla is recovering from his bout with the flu. He told me last night he's feeling better. He looked like death warmed over on the flight here late Sunday night. He borrowed my laptop to do a little Christmas shopping last evening. He was going to hit the mall with me and TV producer Scott Zachry, but opted instead for his hotel room and the computer. We did pick up some orange juice for him, and he looked better when I saw him last night. I'll take the credit if he has a good game. I wouldn't be surprised to see Theo Ratliff get the start though.

Tonight's game is on KGW-8 in the Portland area, and the Blazers television network, starting at 4 o'clock with the pre-game show. My partner Mike Rice will be fired up for the game. He grew up in Detroit, and was even an 8th round draft pick of the Pistons back in 1962. He'll say he was 2nd or 3rd round pick, but I looked it up and caught him in that lie. Still, he was drafted following a great career at Duquesne. General manager John Nash, who remembers watching Rice play in college, says he was a rough, hard-nosed forward, who was good at getting under the skin of his opponents. Gee, I just don't see that.

Also, the game is on the Trail Blazers radio network with Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey. Wheeler, Rice, Antonio, strength coach Bobby Medina, Martell Webster, and Darnell Valentine went and saw King Kong last night. I talked to Wheels this morning and he gives it a "thumbs up," and says he even shed a tear at the end. It takes a man to admit that, so here's a tip of the cap to Wheels. It was 3 hours and 12 minutes long, and he says that was a little too long. Rice liked it because there was a lot of death, destruction, and mayhem (remember where he's from). No word on whether or not he cried

Strange Night Last Night (12.19.05)

What a strange night. We were hit with an ice storm two seasons ago, and let me first say this storm was nothing compared to that one, thank goodness. After that storm, the Memphis Grizzlies, who were in Porltand, couldn't get out of town to Seattle, and it resulted in a cancellation of our game with them, and their next game. This, thankfully, wasn't as bad. But, it still caused us some major problems, and made for a very long night.

The fans who braved the ice and snow storm last night should be congratulated. There were only a few thousand at the Rose Garden last night, and during the second quarter they were all invited to move down to the lower level to watch the game. As it turns out, they saw one of the more entertaining games of the season. Steve Blake was starting for the inujred Sebastian Telfair again, Juan Dixon started in place of Martell Webster, and Theo Ratliff started in place of Joel Przybilla, who came down with a bad case of the flu prior to the game. For whatever reason, the team clicked, and defeated the Washington Wizards 97-92. They led by as many as 17 points in the second half, fought off a furious Washington rally, and won their seventh game of the season. Blake was tremendous once again, and led the team to 26 assists. Dixon led Portland with 20 points, and Viktor Khryapa continued his strong play scored 12 points, grabbing 8 rebounds, and also ended with 3 steals.

Okay, it got interesting following the game. We were scheduled to leave for Detroit and this 3-game road trip this morning, but in order to try and beat the bad weather out of town, changed our plans and decided to leave Portland right after the game last night. As you know, the snow and ice came earlier than expected, and it made getting to the airport. and even the arena very interesting for a lot of us.

Brian Wheeler got stuck on his way to the Rose Garden, and ended up getting a push from a Blazers season ticket holder, and ended up making it on time. TV producer Scott Zachry spend almost four hours trying to get from Oregon City to the airport, John Nash got help from four kids out on 102nd Avenue who pushed him up a hill, and I took a very interesting route from Tualatin to the airport and made it on time. These are just the stories that I heard about when I got to the airport. It was an adventure for us all.

The other worry was whether the plane would be able to land in Portland, and take us to Detroit. The plane we use is the same one the Seahawks use, and it had returned from taking them from Tennessee, where they had defeated the Titans earlier in the day. The plane was a little late, but we did up getting out of Portland sometime after midnight. The Wizards were sitting on their plane near us, and they took off for Seattle just before we did. All of the delays and travel changes, had us fly to Detroit during the night, obviously. We arrived this morning in Pontiac, Michigan, just as the sun was coming up and the morning commute was well underway. It was 12 degrees here when we landed, and there's a lot of snow on the ground. The ride to the hotel was not easy, and we ended up getting to bed at about 9 am ET. The good news is, we're here, and the team will start getting set to take on the Pistons tomorrow night.

The road trip will be difficult, to say the least. It's the Pistons tomorrow night, Memphis on Wednesday, and Minnesota on Friday. We'll return home very early on Christmas eve and then turn around and head for Sacramento at 7 o'clock on Christmas Day. A big thank you once again to the NBA's schedule makers. We spent Thanksgiving in Orlando (we were in Dallas last season), and I guess should feel lucky that we get a few hours home on Christmas.

I'll update the team's injury situation in tomorrow's blog, and will also find out how Przybilla is battling the flu. I'd love to say he looked bright and chipper on the flight, but I'd be lying. No word on whether or not he ate the French toast and omlette dinner we had on the plane. Again, we were originally scheduled to leave this morning, so breakfast was on the menu. I guess it was Monday morning by the time we left, so breakfast was probably in order.

The Injury Bug Bites Again (12.16.05)

We've talked so much early this season about how the success of this team will not, at least for now, be measured in wins and losses. That doesn't make the losses any easier to take, and Nate McMillan has preached over and over again about moral victories, and how his team will never be satisfied with just coming close. We've also talked about how vital it is that this team stay healthy to have a chance to win as many games as it thinks it should. Well, we're a month and a-half into the season, and the injury bug has already bitten hard.

Darius Miles is out, Theo Ratliff has been out (and is day-to-day), Zach Randolph's surgically-repaired knee is not 100 percent, and now Sebastian Telfair has an injury to his thumb that will keep him out of probably the next few games. As if McMillan needed any more challenges. But, he knows, injuries are something you have no control over, and you've got to go with the guys who are healthy.

It hasn't been announced officially, but I suspect we'll see Steve Blake starting at point guard tonight when the Blazers take on Seattle at the Rose Garden. Blake has been very good about taking advantage of the opportunity when he's had it, and this is a big chance for him. He's been as consistent as anyone on the team in the last couple of weeks, and the offense seems to run very well with him at the controls. I, for one, am not that worried about a major drop off at the point-guard position with Blake starting.

The main theme of tonight's game will obviously be that it's the first game between McMillan and his former team. They played once in the pre-season, and Portland won that game, but it was meaningless, and this should be considered the first meeting. The Blazers will be up for this one, and recognize what everyone will be focusing on. The Sonics have lost three straight and are now 9 and 12 on the season. Through 21 games last season, under McMillan, the Sonics were 17 and 4. You can't pin the major drop off totally on new coach Bob Weiss, but honestly, do you think the Sonics would be three games under .500 if McMillan hadn't left?

The Sonics will get better this season, but I don't have them as a playoff team in the west. The loss of Antonio Daniels, and Jerome James hurt some, but it was the loss of McMillan that should get most of the blame for the poor start. And, that's not the only thing that's troubling this franchise right now. The team has a horrible lease with the city on Key Arena, and it's starting to creep its way into the news again. Sonics CEO Wally Walker today, for the first time, said that if the team does not get some response from the city of Seattle and the state by the end of the 2006 legislative session, it will being to accept inquiries from other cities about the possibility of the Sonics moving. He said if nothing changes on the arena front, the Sonics, for the first time, will start answering the phone if other cities call exploring relocation opportunities. Kansas City, Oklahoma City, and Las Vegas were mentioned in an article in yesterday's Tacoma News Tribune. It's a mess, and the language is getting stronger from the Sonics, obviously. If you think Nate wakes up at night possibly regretting his decision to leave the Sonics organization, think again.

There's one more thing I want to bring up, and it's the topic of an article on the front page of Wednesday's Salt Lake Tribune. I was getting coffee Wednesday morning in Salt Lake City with TV producer Scott Zachry, and we were both shocked to read it. It basically said that NBA commissioner David Stern is contemplating, at least for one night, conducting an experiment. He said he would like to test turning off the loud music, sound effects, and wild in-arena shows you see and hear in NBA buildings on a nightly basis. It would be a "silent night" as he calls it, relying only on crowd noise, and nothing else. This has got to have game operation managers around the league scratching their heads. In the article, the Utah game operations staff was quoted as saying they'd be willing to try it if the commissioner gets serious about it. It was no surprise what 63-year-old Jerry Sloan thought about it. "When can we start," he said, when asked about it. He's never even liked the starting introductions and feels the team should just send five guys on the floor and begin the game. What do you think about this? Stern says he'd love to try it in one or two arenas. This was the first I've ever heard of something like this, and hadn't even really thought about such a thing. I do know, the commissioner isn't one to just kick around ideas in the press and let himself get quoted on such an idea if he isn't really ready to test it. I'll keep an eye on this one.

It's Tough in Utah (12.15.05)

This one was tough to take. Not just the loss, but also the fact that the team played so hard, and fought to the end, and fell just short. That’s always the way you feel when you really need a win, and have it in front of you, and don’t get it. And, this blog is being written as I fly home on the team plane from Salt Lake City, so everything is fresh in our minds. Tonight we had a distraction, and watched the 4th quarter and overtime of the Houston / Golden State game. That was probably good.

On the plane, I sit across the aisle from Mike Rice, Antonio Harvey sits in front of him, Brian Wheeler sits behind Rice, and TV producer Scott Zachry sits behind me. We usually spend the first hour of the flight talking about the game. General manager John Nash came back and joined in the discussion tonight. Then, of course, we’re served dinner and that’s usually when the discussion stops.

Tonight, as you can imagine, we spent a lot of time talking about the officiating job in this game. We don’t normally do this, but tonight it was unavoidable. I try not to spend a lot of time on the air during our broadcasts complaining and probably did too much of that tonight. I always feel that way after a game, and usually we aren’t that bad. I hope you agree. But tonight at least, we had video to back every strange situation we discussed on the air.

Utah’s final possession, when they got the game-clinching free throws was pretty unbelievable. Andre Kirilenko put up a shot, and it hit the backboard and flew over the rim. Kris Humphries tried to tip it in, but his attempt missed everything. The shot clock buzzer sounded and I thought we were headed the other way, with 10 seconds left and a chance to tie. It was clearly a turnover by the Jazz. The officials either never heard the buzzer, or thought the ball hit the rim, and play continued. The Blazers finally were forced to foul out top to stop the clock and that was that. Neither shot really was that close to hitting the rim, and we had about five replays to show it. It was frustrating, but what are you going to do?

There were several other big calls late in the game that went against Portland as well. Utah’s Devin Brown stole the tip on a huge jump ball late in the game, and Bennie Adams had the call correct and rule a violation on Utah. Portland was headed the other way when the call was changed and Scott Foster said he had made a bad toss. Our point was, the violation occurred before the ball had even reached it’s peak, and that’s when the violation occurred, and was correctly called. On the second jump, the teams got tied up again and there was a jump at midcourt. Utah won this tip and Kirilenko scored and ended up getting a three-point play. That was an enormous play in the game.

Anyway, the referees normally get most things right, and the game wasn’t won or lost on those calls. They just hurt, and we just haven’t gotten any breaks lately. It all just adds up at times when you’re struggling.

You can fairly say that Utah won the game with their hustle, and offensive rebounding. Then ended up with 26 offensive rebounds, and 27 defensive boards. Those numbers are almost never that equal. In the end the offensive boards gave them 21 more looks at the hoop than Portland. It’s just tough to win when you allow that.

We continue to see the emergence of Steve Blake for Portland. He got the bulk of the minutes in the second half, and ended up with 12 points on 5 of 7 shooting. He had a toe on the line on a long two pointer late. A three would have tied the game.

Zach Randolph had a strong game for the Trail Blazers as well. He ended with 18 points, on 6 of 13 shooting, and also had 9 rebounds. He stayed on the low block a lot better and his effort was very good. That’s all Nate McMillan has been asking for.

Incidentally, our TV broadcast was picked up by NBA International, and was shown in China and South Korea in this game. That’s always a strange feeling, and it’s pretty cool. I told Ha Seung-Jin we were on in Korea, and he told me to tell everyone hello. He’s a huge celebrity there.

Coming up Friday, and big game for a lot of reasons. The Trail Blazers take on Seattle at the Rose Garden. It’ll be Nate’s first time in the regular season against his former team.

It's Tough in Utah (12.14.05)

Greetings from Salt Lake City, where the low is supposed to be around 20 degrees tonight. At least we're not traveling the northeast this week where this will feel balmy. The team practiced this afternoon before we left Portland and tomorrow night, as you know, the Trail Blazers take on the Utah Jazz.

It's always a little difficult doing the game prep when we get set to play the Jazz at the Delta Center. History has not been kind to the Blazers in this town. I probably don't have to tell you that. Looking at the all-time numbers, the Jazz beat the Blazers 80 percent of the time in this city. Portland has only won 13 times, ever, in the regular season in Utah. I don't have the Delta Center numbers in front of me, but I think the Blazers have only won like 6 or 7 times ever in the regular season there. In short, it's usually not a whole lot of fun playing here. The Jazz have won 7 of the last 8 here, with Portland's last win coming in February of 2004. A couple of years ago I was doing some last minute work on my game notes, and my partner then, Steve Jones, laughed at me and said, "why are you doing all of that? We don't win in Utah." Gotta love honesty like that.

Okay, now for the good news. It's actually very strange news. The Jazz, who've always had a great home-court advantage, are just 4 and 8 at the Delta Center this season. Somehow, they've managed to keep the record above .500 on the road, at 5 and 4. But, the Blazers may be catching this team at a bad time. How many times have I said that in the past two weeks? It seems like everyone has been getting better at Portland's expense. That's the way things go when you're struggling. Utah, without five players in the lineup, beat the Detroit Pistons on Monday 92-78. Just about everyone's game stories described the Pistons as being "road weary," like that's some kind of excuse. No one says that when you lose a game you're supposed to lose. It only happens when you are upset. This certainly qualified as an upset.

Andrei Kirilenko, who has seemed like a shell of himself through most of this season, is getting healthy. He had his best game of the season against Detroit, scoring 22 points. I'm sure last night Kirilenko had dinner with Viktor Khryapa and Sergei Monia. They're all from Russia, and always spend time together when they can. Hopefully they took one for the team, and kept Kirilenko out extremely late. I doubt it, but that would be nice.

Utah's Deron Williams didn't play against Detroit, due to an ear infection, I think. At least that's what was reported. Williams, the rookie out of Illinois, was the third overall pick in the draft, and if you'll recall, ended up in Utah thanks to their trade with Portland on draft day. The Blazers gave the Jazz the third pick for the sixth pick, selected Martell, and then dealt Utah's other pick to move up to take Jarrett Jack. After watching Dee Brown take apart the Oregon Ducks last weekend, it reminded me just how good Illinois' backcourt was last season. Not only did they have Brown, but also had Williams, and Luther Head, who appears to be one of the steals at the draft. Houston took him at 24 and he's been fantastic so far.

The key to the game for the Trail Blazers will once again be Zach Randolph. He rested his knee yesterday and didn't practice. He's coming off a rough shooting night against Houston, where he went just 6 for 22. If that happens again tonight, it'll be business as usual in this series at the Delta Center. Zach simply has to anchor this team offensively for them to have a chance. Theo Ratliff is on the trip, and hopefully his sore foot will allow him to play tonight. As I mentioned yesterday, look for Steve Blake's increased role to continue, and don't be surprised if Jarrett Jack gets some minutes at the shooting guard position. Sebastian and Juan Dixon will still get their minutes, but this adjustment will likely mean fewer minutes for Martell Webster and Sergei Monia.

Tonight's game is on KGW-8 in the Portland area, beginning at 5:30 with the pre-game show. It will also, of course, also be on the Trail Blazers Radio Network.

Singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" in Russian (12.13.05)

If you can figure out what's going on early in this NBA season then you're better than me. The Atlanta Hawks, a team Portland has beaten twice, defeating the San Antonio Spurs? The Utah Jazz, already with eight home losses, defeating the Detroit Pistons in Salt Lake City? The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets, losers on Friday in Portland, beating the Suns in Phoenix? All of this in the last three days? How is this happening?

I guess the easiest answer is to simply say there is parity in the NBA. We always say things like "hey, on any given night..." That's never been a more appropriate cliché than right now. If you're a team like the Trail Blazers, who are going to be an underdog more often than not this season, this is good news. Upsets are to be used as motivation. It's actually all about what the matchups look like on a given night. Even using that excuse it's so tough to tell what is going to happen.

We head for Salt Lake City today, and take on the Jazz on Wednesday night. For about the 10th time already this season I'll say this- Portland is catching this opponent at the wrong time. I said this before the Blazers took on the Houston Rockets on Sunday. They were getting close to being at full strength with Tracy McGrady healthy. He went for 35 points at the Rose Garden and they got the win. Now Utah, with Andrei Kirilenko looking more and more like himself, is starting to click. Add to that the fact that historically the Delta Center has been a house of horrors for Portland, and you can see what a challenge this should be.

Monday, Nate McMillan did something he won't do on many occasions this season- he gave his team the day off. They needed it. It was just a day off from practice however, as the team did take part in the annual Holiday Express on the Rose Quarter Commons. We helped more than 300 Christmas trees find homes, free of charge. All the players braved the chilly weather and helped families pick out, pack, and load trees onto cars and into vans.

During the long afternoon, some of the players were getting very into the holiday mood, and even sang Christmas songs. Ruben Patterson and Martell Webster sang a bee-bop version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," complete with a dance routine. Webster didn't have a choice, being he's the rookie. Mike Rice and I talked Viktor Khryapa and Sergei Monia into singing that same tune in Russian. They helped us sing it in English, and then they handled the Russian version on their own. Ha Seung-Jin was nearby and offered up the song in Korean. I wish you all could see the players on days like this. We were having a ball, while the players were brightening the Christmas season for some less-fortunate families. It's been a rough couple of weeks for the team on the floor, and this was a chance to get away from it, if only for a few hours.

Following the event, me and Rice went to KXL to host "Courtside Monday Night." We had Steve Blake on the program with us, and he talked about his sudden increase in playing time. It's well deserved, and look for it to continue. Nate McMillan has certainly noticed the way the offense runs when Blake is at the controls. Jarrett Jack, who has been getting the back-up minutes at point guard, may start playing a little more at the off-guard position. Who's time will be cut slightly? I'm guessing Monia's and perhaps Webster's. But, as always, this could change game to game. McMillan is not afraid to search, and experiment, and go with unconventional lineups depending on who is hot and who is not- doesn't matter who you are, as Nate has said on numerous occasions.

Look for us on TV, tomorrow night, on KGW-8 at the Trail Blazers Television Network, beginning at 5:30 with the pre-game show. As always, Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey will have the game on radio, starting at 5 pm with Game Day, hosted by Jay Allen.

Last Night's Game vs. Houston (12.12.05)

If there was ever any mystery to why the Houston Rockets got off to a disappointing start this season, you haven't seen Tracy McGrady. When he doesn't play, the Rockets are 0 and 8. When he plays, they are now 7 and 4. It doesn't get much more basic than that. There aren't many players like McGrady in the NBA. Use all the scouts you want, and review as much game tape as you can. Superstars make superstar plays, and sometimes there's not a lot you can do about it.

The Trail Blazers' defensive game plan actually worked pretty well last night. McGrady is going to get his, and you just have to try and limit what everyone else gets. You can actually live with McGrady getting 35 points, when no one else gets more than 11. The shots just weren't going down for Portland, and they lost the game 100 to 86. If they shoot anywhere near what they shot on Friday against the Hornets, they win this game. It's just tough to shoot 38 percent in this league and live to tell about it.

It was a rough night for Zach Randolph. As Nate McMillan said after the game, Zach was getting decent looks, but just couldn't get anything to fall. He's not going to go 6 for 22 very often. Take away that number, and the rest of the team shot 42 percent. The problem right now is, with Darius Miles out, Zach is going to face incredible defensive pressure. He's doubled every time he gets the ball in the post, and even though he's improving as a passer, the Blazers just didn't have anyone else step up with a big-time offensive game. Friday night Juan Dixon rescued the team with 28 points off the bench. They'll have to have a second scorer to do that on a regular basis to be successful.

Joel Przybilla continues to be a warrior in the post. Coming off a 19-rebound game on Friday, Joel had 8 points and 15 rebounds. He can't do much more than that. Ruben Patterson had 12 points off the bench, but only had 2 of those in the second half when they desperately needed an answer. Sebastian Telfair did most of his damage late, and had a solid offensive game with 17 points. He continues to shoot the long ball well, going 3 for 7 from behind the three-point line.

The three-game homestand is over, and now it's back on the road. We leave for Salt Lake City tomorrow afternoon, and Wednesday night take on the Utah Jazz. If you've studied your Blazers history, you know the Delta Center is never an easy place to get a win, no matter what the situation. So, the team will have to be much better to have a chance on Wednesday.

Searching for the Zach (Inside) Attack (12.9.05)

The Trail Blazers were back at practice yesterday, hard at work, getting set for the last two games of this three-game homestand. The loss to Minnesota on Wednesday night served as motivation, once again, and Nate McMillan ran the troops through a practice that went a little longer than usual. Following practice, there's usually a theme that develops with the questions asked of the coach, and there certainly was yesterday. Most of the questions centered on Zach Randolph, and his recent shot selection in Portland's offense.

Wednesday night Zach was again noticeably absent from the low block, where he normally receives the ball, and the bulk of his offensive looks came from about 15 feet out. McMillan, after practice, wanted to assure those covering the team that there has not been a change to Portland's offensive plays, and that he's not been thrilled about his power forward moving to the perimeter. On occasion, as you know, Zach will fall in love with the outside shot, will abandon the post, and will look to face up on his defender. Lately, this has been resulting in a lot of jump shots. Fortunately for Zach, and the team, he's a pretty good outside shooter. But, it's not what the coaching staff wants to see on a regular basis.

It's no coincidence that we've seen this more and more now since Darius Miles went to the sidelines with his injured right knee. Teams know that Zach is now the first option on offense and he almost always sees a quick double team when he gets the ball on the block. The easiest move for him to make is to try and dribble out of the double, and drag his man away from the hoop. But, the easiest move is not always the best move for the Blazers offense. The offense is based on motion, and ball movement, and when Zach gets locked on to playing a one-on-one game away from the paint, the rest of the offense bogs down. The other players on the floor tend to stand and watch, and the team usually ends up battling the shot clock to get up an attempt. This happened repeatedly against Phoenix, and again against Minnesota.

Not only has the offense been stagnant with its best offensive threat moving outside, but it's taken Zach away from one of the things he does best- rebound. Taking an outside shot usually has him away from the hoop, and the team's offensive rebounding has really suffered. Zach has only had one double-double during this 5-game losing streak. He has made a living, up to this point, by being a garbage man around the basket- grabbing missed shots and either putting them back in, or going to the foul line.

After practice yesterday, McMillan let it be known he has addressed this issue and is working with Zach to stay on the block, and if he doesn't have an immediate look, to pass out of it and swing the ball around the perimeter. Pay attention to this tonight against the Hornets. Some have been openly wondering if perhaps Zach's knee is bothering him and he's avoiding taking a physical pounding. McMillan said yesterday if that's a problem, he's not aware of it. In other words, no, that's not an acceptable excuse.

I'm looking forward to seeing the point-guard matchup tonight night as well. Sebastian Telfair will have his hands full against Chris Paul, who will most likely win Rookie of the Year honors. Paul came out of Wake Forest following his sophomore season, and went fourth in the draft. If the Trail Blazers hadn't taken Telfair the year before, you can bet they would have kept their third pick last summer and would have taken Paul. I know the Portland scouts were extremely high on him. As you know, Utah traded for Portland's pick and selected Deron Williams instead of Paul. I believe this is a decision they'll grow to regret. Paul is better than Williams. Telfair, as quick as he is, had better be ready for Paul. It should be an interesting battle.

By the way, Portland's opponent on Sunday, the Houston Rockets, pulled off a nice win at Sacramento last night. While watching the game on TNT, I couldn't help wondering how in the world these two teams, with all their veteran talent, have just 13 wins between them at this point of the season. This incredibly young, and inexperienced Portland team, injuries and all, had the same record as Houston before last night. That, to me, is remarkable, and makes me feel a little better about this 5-game skid Portland has going (in a backwards kind of way). And, what happened to the best home court advantage in the NBA? The Sacramento Kings, who have played more home games than road games, are just 6 and 7 at Arco Arena, and now sit 7 and 12 on the season, and are in dead last in the Pacific Division. Seven losses at home a little over a month into the season. It's a long, sometimes slow ride down the hill after the championship window closes. I love Rick Adelman, and always have, but how long will it be before the Maloofs pull the plug on this situation?

"We need to learn how to win..." (12.8.05)

I think Martell Webster summed it up best following last night's difficult loss to Minnesota at the Rose Garden. He said simply, "we need to learn how to win." Leave it to a guy who just turned 19 less than a week ago, to come up with the quote of the night. It's exactly what I was thinking late in the game as it became clear Portland wouldn't be able to hold off the Timberwolves, who by the way, finished their four-game road trip 4-0.

I'll say this again- there are no moral victories, but when you're in a situation like this you have to look for the positives. This team nearly beat this Minnesota team at the Target Center on opening night. In that game, they got 32 points from Darius Miles. He wasn't there tonight, and the Blazers were in a good position to beat them again. It was the second of a difficult back-to-back, as we got into Portland at about 1 am last night. The team showed some hustle and fight, and built a 14-point lead early in the fourth quarter. When the momentum turned midway through that quarter, they just couldn't get a bucket to fall and couldn't secure a rebound.

The Blazers still had 7-point lead after Jarrett Jack's three-play at around the 5 minute mark, and I thought that perhaps would push them over the top. But, credit Minnesota's Marco Jaric for stepping up and hitting a few huge three pointers. He also grabbed two huge offensive rebounds when it looked like Portland was headed the other way.

Webster, who was making his third consecutive start for the Trail Blazers, was solid, scoring 13 points on 5 of 11 shooting. Jack was very good off the bench. Joel Przybilla still hasn't gotten a call to go his way this season and his 5th foul was on a bad call. Kevin Garnett turned the corner at the foul line, slipped on a wet spot on the floor and went down. Joel was called for the foul, and moments later fouled out on what was a good call. He played a great game, and when the Blazers lost him, it really opened things up for Minnesota to finish off the comeback. Przybilla ended with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots.

This was just an example of a young team not being able to execute and put a team away. Again, they'll learn that, and will continue to learn how to win.

I want to publically thank my partner on TV, Mike Rice, for covering for me during the broadcast. I picked up a bad cold last weekend, and Monday, when we got into Phoenix, knew that with back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday, my voice would possibly be gone. It lasted through the Phoenix game fine, but tonight was horrible. I've struggled through broadcasts before with shaky vocal cords, but tonight had to be painful to listen to. If you sat through it, I'm sorry. We all go through it in this business, and thankfully, it doesn't happen very often. It's a helpless feeling, and there was nothing I could do about it. Rice was covering just about everything, as I was basically trying to hide under the table. It's very frustrating when this happens, and I couldn't wait to get home last night and get to bed.

As for the team, it's back to practice tomorrow to get set for New Orleans / Oklahoma City on Friday night, and then Houston on Sunday. They've got to be able to protect the home floor, as it'll be very tough to get many wins on the road. These next two are winnable games. That's what made last night's loss so tough to swallow. They'll be the first to say, it's a game they should have won.

On The Road Again... (12.6.05)

We're on the road once again, only this time it's a short one. We flew into Phoenix yesterday afternoon, following practice. Tonight, the Trail Blazers have yet another tough challenge. They take on the hottest team in the Western Conference, the Phoenix Suns. It certainly seems like the Blazers have been catching all of their opponents at the wrong time, and this is certainly the case again. The Suns, who have played 11 of their 15 games at home, are wrapping up a 5-game homestand, and have discovered that defense could very well be the key to them surviving life without Amare Stoudemire. The Suns can still score, and lead the NBA at 103 points per game, but in their last eight games are giving up only 90 points to their opponents.

Portland is coming off a disappointing loss at home to the Utah Jazz on Sunday night, and as you have no doubt heard by now, they'll be without their leading scorer, Darius Miles for a while. I wish I could be more specific about Miles, but no one really seems to know how long he'll be out. He's getting another opinion on his knee, and if it's decided he needs surgery, he could be out three months or more. So, a frustrating as it is, we move on.

In the loss to the Jazz, the Blazers' offensive struggles early in the game seemed to be simply due to trying to adjust to not having Miles on the floor. When you lose one of your first options in the offense, it can be tough to quickly adjust, especially for a young team. The challenge is more difficult here, because starting in Miles' place is 19-year-old Martell Webster. We know Martell has tremendous potential, but I know Nate McMillan wanted to avoid throwing him into the fire this quickly. Now, given the situation, Webster really has to learn on the fly and try and offer what he can to the offense.

One of the best things about Webster is his willingness to learn and take coaching. On the flight to Phoenix yesterday, Webster spent time watching video of the Utah game. Assistant coach Dean Demopoulos told Martell what to watch for, and what to take out of his first-career start. So, over a bowl of cereal, the education began once we hit the air.

Sergei Monia is another player who is going to have to come up big in a hurry. He is still in the starting lineup, but is now starting at small forward and not at shooting guard, where he's been. Since the "3" position is really Sergei's natural spot, this shouldn't be too big an adjustment for him. At 6'8" he is going to get an opportunity to play on the block, and that's what's really missing in his game right now. The coaches have been working with him on playing with his back to the basket, and he's already shown he can be a solid shooter from the perimeter.

Tonight's game is on KGW-8, in the Portland area, and on the Trail Blazers Television Network. The pre-game show starts at 5:30 tonight, and it'll include a visit with Suns CEO Jerry Colangelo, who is also now the president of USA Basketball. I'll be talking to him about the selection of Nate McMillan as an assistant coach for Team USA, among other things. We'll also visit with McMillan later in the pre-game show. As always, Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey will have the game on the Trail Blazers Radio Network, beginning at 5 pm with Game Day, hosted by Jay Allen.

I want to end by helping you with your Christmas shopping. The new Trail Blazers online store is up and running, and things have changed. The days of the $75 t-shirt are over, and you'll be happy with the new pricing and new selection of Blazers gear. Go to trailblazers.com and click on the "store" on the menu on the main page.

Changing on the Fly (12.5.05)

What did you do on your 19th birthday? Whatever it was, I can bet your answer isn't, "well, I started in my first NBA game against the Utah Jazz..." unless your name is Martell Webster, of course.

In one of my blogs last week, I told you about a comment Webster made following the game against the Orlando Magic. After getting a tap on the leg and some encouraging words about hanging tough in his first few NBA games, Webster said, "Oh, I"m fine.. I'll be in the starting lineup any day now." I talked about how I loved the confident attitude, and the fact that it was just that, and not arrogance. Youth maybe, but not arrogance. I'm not sure even he thought his bold prediction would come true this quickly.

It's good for Webster, and he'll do whatever he can to make the most of it, but it's certainly not what the Trail Blazers wanted at this point. It's because this new promotion has come due to the injury to Darius Miles. Miles' right knee has been a constant problem early this season, and has kept him out of several practices. He's had to have the knee drained on a couple of occasions, and now, he's going to get another opinion or two on just what exactly is going on with it. We don't if the knee will require surgery or not, and if it does, it could keep him out possibly as long as three months. Or, he could be back next week. We just don't know.

What we do know is, the incredibly young Portland starting lineup, just got a lot younger. Webster, in his first start last night, scored 10 points in the Trail Blazers 98-93 loss to Utah. He was 2 for 11 from the field, 1 for 6 from behind the three-point line, and was 5 for 5 at the free throw line. He'll have better night's shooting, that's for sure, an ironically, one of his two field goals came on an incredible twisting move to the hoop, that he ended with a soft finger roll. It drew oohs, and ahhs from the crowd. I remember some experts around draft time were questioning his athleticism. I don't think that's a problem. And, we know he's a better shooter than 2 for 11, so there isn't much to worry about there. He'll get his next start at Phoenix on Tuesday night. A great and physical defender, Raja Bell, will have the job of shutting him down. We'll see how he handles that.

The loss last night was disappointing to be sure, but the Martell news wasn't the only positive. Ruben Patterson returned to the team, and to the lineup. Ruben was being Ruben on the floor. You can certainly question his composure, and perhaps his professionalism in the heat of the moment at times, but you can't question his hunger. His desire and hustle is contagious, and Portland was a better team with him on the floor last night. He was a little out of control at times, and his five turnovers I can't defend, but when he gets 19 points on 8 of 10 shooting, and provides the spark he always does at the defensive end, he's an asset. The team will need him, particularly if Miles is out for any significant length of time.

Coach Nate McMillan talked before the season about protecting his young team, as it relates to not getting any respect from officials. Last night Nate earned his first technical foul of the season, on this occasion, going to bat for Viktor Khryapa, who felt he was fouled on a baseline drive in crunch time. Don't expect many of these, but when necessary, it's nice to see the coach take one for the team. What's amazing to me is how Joel Przybilla keeps his composure. The next time Joel is given the benefit of the doubt in a situation on the court it'll be the first time. He's started to become a little more vocal about it, but usually just shakes his head and smiles. I'm not sure I'd handle it as well as he does.

After two quick home games, following the 7-game road trip, it's back on the road today. We head for Phoenix this afternoon, and play the Suns on Tuesday night. That game will be on KGW-8, and the Trail Blazers Television Network, and will also, of course, be on the Blazers Radio Network. I'll talk to you tomorrow from Phoenix, and hopefully will have an update on Darius' situation.

They Must Protect this House (12.2.05)

Now that the longest road trip in franchise history is behind us, we can start looking ahead, and will see if this young Trail Blazers team can continue to protect the home court the way they did on their first five-game homestand of the season. They went 3 and 2 on that stand, and had a chance to make it 4 and 1, but fell in the final seconds to Detroit. The 2 and 5 record on this long road trip will be easier to swallow if the team can play well at the Rose Garden.

Just taking this pattern, and stretching it out, let's make an extremely hypothetical forecast. If the team continues to win three out of every five at home, and can manage to win two out of every seven on the road this season, we should be looking at about 34, or 35 wins on the season. That's not even taking into account growth, and development, this improving team is almost guaranteed to achieve. If Nate McMillan can coach the team into making fewer turnovers, and get them to rebound a little better, I would think perhaps 38 or 40 wins isn't out of the question. All things considered, that would have to be looked at as a very successful season.

I know that's putting the cart way ahead of the horse, and, if you're on your game this morning, which I know you are, you should be thinking "in the 14 games the Blazers have played so far, 10 of them have been against Eastern Conference teams." Also, all three home wins so far have come against the East. So, this model obviously has its flaws. Still, this team has shown it'll battle at home, can play with just about anyone on the road, and will pull the occasional solid upset on the road (see the Memphis game). By the way, we're going to learn a lot about this poorly designed measuring stick very soon. The Trail Blazers play 7 of their next 9 at the Rose Garden, starting tonight against Indiana, another eastern team.

Speaking of the Memphis game, I would have to say that even though Portland beat the Grizzlies at the FedExForum on the long road trip, the Grizzlies are the most talented, and potentially, the best team the Blazers faced on the trip (not coincidentally they are the only Western Conference team the Blazers faced on the trip). Keep in mind, Miami was playing without Shaq, and when he comes back that will change things. The Grizzlies had won four of five before we played them, and since the loss, have won three straight, including an impressive 20-point win at Dallas. It's only 19 days until the Blazers play in Memphis again, and you can bet they won't be looking past the young Blazers again.

I've been talking about Portland's unusual schedule a lot lately. How strange is it that we're only 14 games into the season and already they've completed the season series' against New York and Atlanta? By the end of this month, Portland will have completed the season's two-game sets with Washington, Detroit, Philly, the 3-game set against Memphis, and will have played 3 of the 4 with Minnesota.

It also seems like the Trail Blazers have been catching teams at the wrong time as of late. This happens again tonight. Indiana was just spanked in Phoenix on Wednesday night, and rested most of their starters down the stretch. You have no control over stuff like that, but be assured the Pacers will be out to improve their record on this 5-game western swing to 3 and 1, and make it 4 straight wins overall over Portland. Indiana has only won 7 times in their history at Portland, by the way, and the Blazers lead the all-time series 40 to 23.

On a final note, we always refer to Portland as the "young Blazers." They'll get a little older, literally, this weekend. Their youngest player, 18-year old Martell Webster, turns 19 on Sunday. Speaking of youngsters, my son, Jack, turns 6-months old a week from today. He was contemplating bypassing pre-school and heading straight into the draft, before the new collective bargaining agreement changed the rules (he's still working on going to his right... well, that's assuming he's left handed like his dad). We'll be discussing his future options on Saturday while we cut down a Christmas tree for the living room. He hasn't yet secured representation, and I'll be bringing that up, among other things.

HOME! (12.1.05)

To say, "it's nice to be home," is an understatement for all parties involved. We fought head winds all the way home from Washington, D.C. late last night, and ended up getting into Portland a little after 2 a.m. But, keep in mind, we've been on the East Coast, so 2 a.m. is 5 a.m. to us right now. After we watched the end of the Sacramento / Golden State game on the plane, during dinner, most everyone went to sleep.

Thirteen days on the road is a long time, especially being it was over Thanksgiving. You can also tell people are worn down because it seems like everyone has a cold, or sore throat, or something. That always happens toward the end of a long trip. Everyone's bags aren't as neatly packed as they once were, and the battle to find something clean to wear becomes more intense after two weeks.

All of this being said, the Trail Blazers battled extremely hard last night in Washington D.C. They again showed they are capable of winning on the road, and took the Wizards to the wire. The three things that need improvement, still need improvement. Taking care of the ball, not allowing so many offensive rebounds, and free throw shooting. The Blazers gave up 30 points off 21 turnovers, and lost the game 96-89. They had a 6-point lead in the third quarter, and then were beaten in the end by a great shot by Gilbert Arenas. Forget the final margin of victory, Arenas' shot with 34 seconds left put Washington up 4, and put the Blazers away.

It was another solid shooting night for Portland, as they shot 46 percent. But, they gave up 22 offensive rebounds, and were outscored by 10 at the free throw line. It was another game where the Blazers ended up with more made field goals than their opponent (38 to 36), but still lost the game.

Joel Przybilla ended up two points short of his career high. He scored 17 points, on 8 or 12 shooting, grabbed 15 rebounds, and blocked 6 shots. Because of Theo Ratliff's foot injury, Joel had to play 41 minutes. There's no timetable for Theo's return, so Przybilla will likely be logging heavy minutes for at least the next few games. Darius Miles scored 21 points, on 9 of 14 shooting, and Zach Randolph ended up one rebound short of a double-double for the second straight game (16 and 9). The biggest disappointment was 21 turnovers and only 17 assists. You're not going to win most nights when you have more miscues than assists.

It would be great for the players to be able to get a day off, but that's just not the way the schedule works out for the Trail Blazers. Following the longest road trip in franchise history, it's back on the practice floor this afternoon, because the Indiana Pacers actually beat us to town last night, and the teams will meet tomorrow night at the Garden. That game is followed by a game against Utah on Sunday, and we go right back on the road Monday. It's the Suns in Phoenix Tuesday night, and the very next night return home to face Minnesota. You get no rest, and no one feels sorry for you.

Last Game of the Roadtrip (11.30.05)

Greetings from Washington, D.C. as this long seven-game road trip is about to come to a close. We have logged thousands of miles in the last two weeks, traveling from Portland to New York, to Memphis, to Miami, to Orlando, to Atlanta, to Philadelphia, to Washington D.C., and back home to Portland tonight. And, for me, as I told you yesterday, the trip included a flight from Orlando to Phoenix for Thanksgiving, and then back to Philly. NBA players always talk about taking road trips "one game at a time" and not looking ahead. That's really the case for all of us when you get out here on one of these long ones. We were talking on the flight last night about how it seems like forever ago that we were in New York. At the beginning of a trip, if you starting thinking about all the travel you have yet to do, and how many days you'll be away from home, it can be discouraging. So, you just take them one by one. That being said, everyone is looking forward to getting home.

It was very windy, and very rainy in Philadelphia when we left last night following the loss to the Sixers. You get used to taking off in almost anything during the season, but last night's flight was one of the rougher I've experienced. I started thinking about Maurice Cheeks and his fear of flying, and how every time we used to hit a bump in the air he'd put his head in his hands. It was nice to see him last night, and if you watched the game on TV, you saw Cheeks come over and stick his head between me and Rice during the opening segment, and say hello on camera. That's Maurice. He downplayed the win, and the importance of beating his former team, but you know it made him feel good.

Speaking of TV, this morning I got an email from Pete Pranica, who does play-by-play for the Grizzlies (and used to be in Portland, as you know). Pete said they arrived in Toronto last night, and he flipped on the television and our feed of the game was being carried live throughout Canada. With league pass, and satellite TV you never know where the game is being shown, and I sometimes think about that while I'm doing a game. I wouldn't have even known we were nationwide in Canada if Pete hadn't told me about it. Interesting business.

One of my first thoughts when I learned we had such major exposure last night was, too bad it wasn't a better game. The Trail Blazers played hard, and stayed close in the first half, but Allen Iverson and the Sixers went into halftime with momentum, and then rolled down the stretch. Iverson scored 38, but padded the numbers greatly when Portland had put in the entire bench. It was a little disappointing to see that. Iverson was taking three pointers, and nearly every other shot available, when the game was well out of reach and the Blazers had waived the white flag. It kind of makes you realize that numbers and personal stats are much more important to some guys than others. Some reputations are well deserved.

Tonight's game against the Wizards won't be any easier. If you got tired of seeing the Trail Blazers deal with Iverson, get ready for the Gilbert Arenas show. Arenas is playing tremendous ball, and has the Wiz thinking big this year. They had a very nice win in Detroit this week, and it'll be difficult for the Blazers to find the legs to get up and down with Washington in this one. Nate McMillan will be on his guys to finish off this road trip with a good effort. It's been a good trip, and as I've said before, to get two wins on this trip was a realistic number we placed on the team before leaving. It would be nice to get three though. It'll be a homecoming for Juan Dixon and Steve Blake, who both played for the Wizards. Both guys also played their college ball at nearby Maryland, and won a national title. This is Dixon's home, and he'll have plenty of family and friends in the stands.

I'd like to say the schedule gets easier for Portland after tonight, but it doesn't. Not only did the schedule makers send the team on a coast-to-coast journey at the beginning of the trip only to have them play a game the day after at 9 am Pacific time, but after wrapping up the seven-game journey and flying coast-to-coast home, we get just one day off before hosting the Indiana Pacers on Friday at the Rose Garden. Brutal.

It's a beautiful morning here in D.C., and I always try to get in a quick sightseeing walk. Our hotel is only a few blocks from the White House and I always walk over there. I keep waiting for G.W. to see me outside and invite me in for coffee, but it hasn't happened yet. The new World War II memorial is fantastic, by the way, and I'll probably walk over there as well.

The Trail Blazers and Wizards tonight at 7 o'clock on the Blazers Radio Network, beginning at 6 p.m. with Game Day, hosted by Jay Allen. I'm happy to say tomorrow's blog will be from home, in the best part of the country, the Pacific Northwest. We're all longing for it right now.

Shaking Things Up (11.29.05)

We're in Philadelphia now, as this long road trip continues. We've got two games left before we get to come back home. As I've mentioned before, this is the longest road trip we've ever been on, and Nate McMillan says he's never been on a trip like this, as a player or a coach. After tonight's game against the Sixers, it's on to Washington, for a game against the Wizards on Wednesday night- another back-to-back situation.

I want to thank my good buddy Brian Wheeler, the ultimate conversationalist, and best radio play-by-play man in the NBA, for filling in for a couple of days on the blog for me. This trip was strange, in that it had us not televising the games in Orlando and Atlanta in the middle of this trip. I've got a baby boy at home, who's almost six months now, and this gave me the opportunity to be with he and my wife on Thanksgiving. She's originally from Arizona, and flew there to be with her family for the long weekend. I grabbed a flight from Orlando, and surprised them on Thanksgiving day. It was kind of a last-minute thing. I re-joined the team here in Philadelphia. I've never left the team on a road trip before, and that felt a little strange, but it was something I really wanted to do. It was very worth the long couple of days of crossing the country an additional time, and I'm glad I did it. What a blessing, not only have a son, but to get to be with them unexpectedly. As you know, we travel on one of Mr. Allen's private planes, and oh, how I was reminded the last couple of days how nice that is. It's hard to imagine how teams used to keep this kind of brutal schedule flying commercial. I'll never take it for granted. A flight or two around Thanksgiving is a good reality check for that. My bag looks like it was dragged cross-country behind a truck (it'll be a challenge to be my neatly-pressed self tonight on TV). I want to thank my cab driver as well, who drove me from Philadelphia International to the hotel. Ever seen the final chase scene in The Bourne Supremacy? I've now experienced it. We set a world record, on three cylinders and bald tires no less. I leaned forward to pay the fare and my seat belt popped open. I went to sleep thinking about that. And, I still have the smell of the cab in my pores, post shower.

Okay, on to more important things (more important to you, anyway). What a great win for the Trail Blazers on Sunday in Atlanta. I noticed today that USA Today had the Atlanta Hawks as their "NBA Team of the Week." This followed their impressive wins over Indiana and Boston. They put 120 points on the Celtics. Portland held them to 75 points, at home, on Sunday, and swept the season series.

A couple of interesting things came out of the game as well. If you recall last season, McMillan always made opposing teams adjust to what he was doing, and what lineups he was playing. He'd go unconventional with the Sonics a lot. He'd play Ridnour, Allen, Daniels, Radmonovic, and Reggie Evans together. Small ball. It caused a lot of teams trouble, obviously. Against the Hawks, we may have seen the birth of this in Portland. The fourth-quarter lineup that brought the Blazers back, was Jarrett Jack, Martell Webster, Sergei Monia at the 3, Travis Outlaw at 4, and Zach at the 5. Jack and Webster went the entire fourth quarter. Who could have predicted that crunch-time backcourt a week ago? It just proves Nate is still feeling things out, and isn't afraid to experiment on the fly. That lineup won't work against every team, but it's great to have to keep teams off balance and keep scouting reports on the Blazers interesting.

It's strange how things work out on occasion. Proof that you have to look for positives even on long nights. If Portland doesn't get blown out in the second half in Miami, Martell probably doesn't get the opportunity to show he is deserving of more time. He scored 13 points in just 7 minutes, and showed his versatility. He hit three of four three pointers, and had an impressive dunk in traffic. Nate always talks about players making the most of their opportunities, and this was certainly a good example of that. Following the Orlando game, TV producer Scott Zachry tapped Martell on the knee and said, "hang in there." Martell looked up smiling and said, "you bet. It won't be long before I'm starting." That's an 18-year old saying that, but I love the confidence. That's what you want in a young player. He's not trying to be a politician, he just really believes in himself.

I asked my partner Mike Rice, on the air, before this trip, what kind of record would make for a successful 7-game road trip. All things considered, he said 2 and 5. I agreed. The team feels it let one slip away in New York, but then pulled the upset in Memphis, and now, following Sunday's game, has the two wins already. They'd love to add another one or two, but it'll be a big challenge against the Sixers and Wizards, who are both playing well.

Let's make a quick comparison. Last season, the Trail Blazers had a very favorable schedule to open the season, and we knew it was a great opportunity to get off to a great start. Expectations were different as well. The team averaged 26.4 years of age, and the payroll was 83 million. The team went 6 and 6 through its first 12. This year, the schedule has been extremely tough, the average age is 24.6, and the payroll is 59 million. The team is 5 and 7 through its first 12. I don't think many people, other than McMillan, expected this.

The team had a great practice today in Philadelphia and is set to face former coach Maurice Cheeks. It probably won't have the meaning to a lot of our players that it will to Cheeks, just because of all the new players on Portland's roster. Still, everyone will play up the first meeting between Cheeks and his former employer.

I'll leave you with one more stat. Zach Randolph has scored 20 or more points and grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 6 games. The Blazers are 5 and 1 in those games. The games he hasn't reached 20 and 10? The team is 0 and 6. Take that for what it's worth.

We'll see you on TV tonight, FSN at 4 o'clock Pacific Time. Wheels and Antonio will have the call on the Trail Blazers Radio Network, starting at 3 o'clock with Game Day, hosted by Jay Allen.

Guest Blogger: Brian Wheeler #2 (11.28.05)

Hey, it's Wheels again subbing for MB as he wings his way from coast to coast to rejoin us here in Philly. He'll be back with all of you in this space tomorrow before the Sixers' game.

Wanted to relive some of the excitement of yesterday's come from behind win in Atlanta. Wish all of you could have seen it, especially when the rally began in the 3rd quarter with as young a group of Blazers on the floor together as I've ever witnessed. It was rookies Jarrett Jack, Martell Webster, and Sergei Monia, along with Travis Outlaw and the "old-timer," Zach Randolph. Average age of this quintet...just over 21! Experienced...no, but energetic...yes, and they started the Blazers' comeback. Come the 4th quarter the Hawks had their hands full and that's when we saw Martell's coming out party...8 of his 10 points in the game were in that period, and he also played some more than respectable defense against Atlanta's sharpshooter, Joe Johnson. Once the young guys got the Blazers back in the game, a few of the vets returned to seal the deal...Darius Miles hitting the game-winning shot with just under 2 seconds to play.

Nice to see Zach Randolph look a lot more like himself than he did at Orlando. Z-Bo posted his 8th double-double of the season. Hope you got a chance to hear Martell's post-game interview with Antonio Harvey and me on radio. He was polished and mature as usual. Not many 18-year olds quoting the late Arthur Ashe as inspiration for his performance. Tells you a lot about the young man.

The win was made all the more impressive by the fact the club was playing short-handed. Juan Dixon was bothered by stomach virus and Theo Ratliff returned, but his sore left foot was still bothering him, though he was brilliant while he was in the game...8 points, 5 rebounds, 5 blocked shots, and 3 charges taken in just under 15 minutes of play.

Now today the team will practice here in Philadelphia. Be interesting to see how many healthy bodies Nate McMillan has at his disposal for the workout. Darius' knee has still been swelling up on him between games, so he hasn't practiced of late. And you'd have to think Juan and Theo might still need some time off. However many are on hand I'm sure Nate will get the most out of them.

General Manager John Nash will rejoin us here in Philly. We'll see if there's anything new going on with respect to Ruben Patterson's future with the team. Stay tuned here for all the details first as they happen, if they happen.

Jay Allen and Bob Akamian will co-host "Courtside Monday Night" this evening from 6:05-8:00 PM on our flagship radio station, KXL-AM. Among their guests will be Darnell Valentine, the team's Director of Player Programs. You'll be interested to hear all he does on a long road trip like the one we're on. Keeping the fellas pointed in the right direction in whatever manner that entails is just one of the many things Darnell does for the organization.

Here's hoping Messrs. Barrett and Rice are ready for business. After the weekend off to see their families, they'll be back with us today and back with you all tomorrow on Fox Sports Net. Of course, Antonio and I will have the game on the radio per usual. Tip-off is set for around 4:10 Pacific Time.

Well, I hope in MB's stead I was able to give you a good feel for how everyone's handling this longest road trip of the season. At least we can see the end right in front of us. Nate's task will be to make sure his young team understands that while we'll all be back home late Wednesday night there's still a couple of games to try to win tomorrow and Wednesday. Yes, the Sixers and Wizards will be waiting...I think the young Trail Blazers are ready for another challenge!

That's it guys. MB will be back with you as per usual starting again with Tuesday's entry. Take care for now.

Guest Blogger: Brian Wheeler (11.25.05)

Well, my good friend, the Master Blogger, Mike Barrett, has turned things over to me for the next entry or two. M.B., along with his partner, Mike Rice, are taking advantage of a rare situation where two consecutive road games for the team are not being televised. M.B. is in Arizona spending time with his son Jack, his lovely wife Shelly, and her family. The "Wild One" is in Pennsylvania enjoying the holiday weekend with his son, Mike Jr. and his family. Mike Sr. will even get a chance to see his son's St. Joseph's team play live in person while he's in town.

On to Thanksgiving Day and Nate McMillan decided not to practice, which was probably a good thing since his team was pretty worn out after the rough back-to-back in Memphis and Miami. You could see in the second half of the Heat game that fatigue was becoming a factor. The Blazers hung with the Heat for the first half, but things slowly, but surely, slipped away in the second. Remember the Heat hadn't played since Sunday and clearly was the more well-rested club as the game went on. No excuse, just a fact. A few of the players did work out with strength and conditioning coach, Bobby Medina. Don't know how many fans realize that the players do put in extra time in the workout rooms on the road in addition to all the practices and games. Then we all enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving meal at our team hotel in Orlando. Nate had his wife fly in for the affair, as did Juan Dixon's. And both Sebastian Telfair and Zach Randolph were joined by their girlfriends and their babies so it was definitely a family affair. It was another good chance to bond together and I think everyone appreciated the opportunity for a relatively carefree day before getting back to work on Friday.

After our dinner, Coach Medina and I headed out to a movie, something we do often on the road. We saw, "Walk the Line", a tremendous portrayal of Johnny Cash's life. Come Oscar time, I've got to believe both Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter Cash will get serious consideration. And they both sang all the songs of Johnny and June in the movie too. I'm amazed by how many talented artists have to battle heavy demons in their lives, and this movie certainly illustrated that. But it was very well done, and both Bobby and I would give it a hearty thumbs up!

Hope you all had a safe and sound Thanksgiving. I'm just getting over a pretty bad bout of stomach flu. I came as close as ever to not calling the game in Miami as any in my 8 years with the Blazers. Somehow I got through and am feeling much better. So I'm thankful for improved health among many things I've been blessed with. Hope you too are counting your blessings during this holiday weekend.

Friday afternoon the Blazers head back to the court to face the Magic here in Orlando. The Magic have struggled out of the gate thus far, but had a very satisfying win over Washington on Wednesday night so they'll be feeling good about themselves. As I mentioned earlier, no local TV for this one. Antonio and I will have the radio broadcast beginning at 3:05 PM Pacific time with "Trail Blazers' GameDay". Tipoff scheduled for shortly after 4:00. Then on Sunday we'll join you next from Atlanta. Another radio only affair beginning bright and early at 10:05 AM with "GameDay", and the tipoff right after 11:00.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving leftovers. MB, I hope I upheld the high standards of your blog! Talk to you all on the radio.

The Bench Steps It Up In Memphis (11.23.05)

As you can imagine, back-to-back games in the NBA are very difficult. They are especially tough when you travel east after the first game and lose hours in the air getting to the next destination. Also, depending on the particular situation, a seemingly short trip can turn long. For example... last night following the great win in Memphis (more on that in a moment) it took us a while to leave the arena. It's a pretty substantial drive to the airport from the arena in Memphis, and we flew into head winds on the way to Miami, plus we went from Central time to Eastern, losing an hour. The drive from the airfield we use to the hotel in Coconut Grove is very long, and to make matters worse, a freeway was closed and we had to take an alternate route. What I'm getting at is we didn't get into our hotel rooms last night until about 3:45 a.m., Eastern Time. These are the little things you never really think about when you're at home, flip on a game, and see us in a new town and new arena. Sleep is sacrificed, and you try and catch up where you can.

All this being said, the mood on the plane was of course very light on the flight and no one was really worrying too much about what time it was. There was no celebrating, but they team obviously felt very good about the 95-87 win at Memphis. The team played very well offensively, turned the ball over only 15 times, and played tremendous defense on the Grizzlies, who had won 4 of their last 5 games before last night. The Portland bench, which didn't play particularly well at New York on Sunday, was key to the victory. Juan Dixon and Travis Outlaw were tremendous. Dixon had 20 points off the bench, including 16 in the second half, and Outlaw, in 20 minutes, had 10 points on 4 of 6 shooting, grabbed 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and didn't turn the ball over.

We've focused a lot lately on the second half of games. The Trail Blazers have been struggling down the stretch, mostly because Zach Randolph and Darius Miles haven't finished games strongly. They did last night. Zach had 8 points in the second half and 20 for the game. Miles had 22 in the game, and 12 in the second half. Miles, Randolph, and Dixon accounted for 36 of the team's 44 in the second half. The Grizzlies, who led for the final time in the game when it was 16-15 in the first quarter, cut the Portland lead to 1 in the third quarter, but never got over the hump.

Sebastian Telfair, coming off games of 20 and 27 points, struggling shooting the ball, but the rest of his game was solid. Telfair, playing against former teammate Damon Stoudamire, had 6 assists and only 2 turnovers. His defense on Damon and Bobby Jackson was very good, and the Grizzlies guards, Damon, Bobby Jackson, and Eddie Jones, were a combined 5 for 27 from the field.

A lot was made of Ruben Patterson not being with the team for the rest of the road trip, but, as I said yesterday in the blog, the team wasn't sitting around worrying about it. This was proof. They handled a minor distraction and came up with a very solid road victory in what had been a tough place for them to play in the past.

Things don't get any easier tonight, obviously. The Miami Heat, even without Shaquille O'Neal, will really challenge the young Blazers tonight. Telfair's string of tough matchups continues tonight with an assignment on Gary Payton. We're not sure who will take Dwyane Wade, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Darius Miles spend some time on him. Energy, obviously, will be a factor. I don't mention the long night of travel to offer up an excuse, but just to give you an idea of what teams go through from time to time. Nate McMillan has shown he always has the team ready to play, and expect the same tonight.

Familiar Faces in Memphis Tonight (11.22.05)

The emotional, and difficult matchups for Sebastian Telfair will continue tonight when the Trail Blazers take on the Memphis Grizzlies, here in Memphis. In the past five games, Telfair has taken on his cousin, Stephon Marbury (twice), Baron Davis, Chauncey Billups, and Kirk Hinrich. Tonight, the very interesting point-guard matchup has Telfair going up against Damon Stoudamire, his teacher last season.

It should make for an interesting head-to-head battle, and Stoudamire will undoubtedly be trying show his former team it made a mistake by not making an attempt to re-sign him in the off-season. That's fine. The more shots Stoudamire takes, the fewer Pau Gasol will have. That's a good thing for Portland.

Stoudamire, and the Grizzlies had their four-game winning streak snapped in Denver on Sunday night. Still, they're playing very well and will be a tough challenge for the young Blazers tonight. Gone are Bonzi Wells, Jason Williams, Stromile Swift, James Posey, and Earl Watson. They've gone from a very young team, to the ninth oldest in the NBA. Stoudamire and Eddie Jones, in their 11th and 12th seasons, respectively, are a big reason the team's average shot up this season.

The Trail Blazers practiced today at the Grizzlies practice facility at the FedExForum. I know the Ruben Patterson situation made for a big story back in Portland, but I can tell you the team didn't appear to be thinking much about it at practice today. It was a good session, and the team did a lot of preparing for the Grizzlies. They spent about an hour watching video of the New York game, and then hit the floor for the practice.

It certainly sounds like most fans are happy with the fact that Nate McMillan is walking his talk about demanding excellence and making the players accountable for their actions and words. If you're not on board with what the coach is trying to accomplish, you won't play. In certain circumstances, you'll be removed from the situation entirely. In this case, Ruben's emotions got the best of him during the New York game, and the situation was dealt with. Some coaches would probably ignore it. Not Nate. Despite what you might think, it certainly doesn't feel like this has taken its toll on the team emotionally, or anything like that. The mood and energy at practice today was very good. Nate's actions send a message certainly, and that's a good thing. But, we move on. The focus is on Memphis tonight.

Nothing's been decided as far as I know, but I expect the team will activate Viktor Khryapa before tonight's game, and he could see some action backing up Darius Miles at the small-forward spot. Khryapa perhaps has the team's highest basketball I.Q., and I love his length and athleticism. He's been wanting to contribute to the team and this is his chance. Viktor has been battling a problem with his foot, and hopefully that won't keep him from being able to play. Late last season he showed his ability to defend, and did a tremendous job frustrating Kobe Bryant in that final game of last season. I hope he gets an opportunity and plays well, mostly because I like him so much.

If you didn't know, Khryapa and Sergei Monia played together on the Russian National team last summer. Viktor is from Kiev, Ukraine, and Monia is from Saratov, Russia. Khryapa had a much bigger role on that national team, and it's a little strange that Monia has had more immediate success in the NBA this season. They are very close friends, and Viktor has been a big help to Sergei in helping him learn the language. I don't know Sergei that well, basically because he doesn't speak English that well yet. But, he's learning. I sat by him on the team bus on the way to Madison Square Garden in New York, and the conversation went something like this. I asked, "Have you ever been to New York before?" Monia, while gazing at the Empire State Building, said "Once, for draft." I often wonder how strange it would be to be so far from home, hopping around a new and strange country. I'm sure it's nice for these guys to have each other. Viktor and his wife, by the way, are expecting a baby very soon.

Last night was an off night for the team, and one of the rare nights we weren't traveling or playing a game. I saw Martell Webster in the lobby after we returned from dinner. He was heading off to see the new Harry Potter movie with Darnell Valentine. I sometimes forget he's only 18.

We'll have tonight's game against the Grizzlies on FSN, at five o'clock, Pacific. After the game we'll head to the airport, fly to Miami, and get set to take on the Heat tomorrow night.

New York City (11.20.05)

Identifying the problem is easy, fixing it is a bigger challenge. You want to know why the Trail Blazers have dropped their last two games after winning three of four before that? Turnovers. They had 24 turnovers on Friday against Golden State, and yesterday morning, and I mean the morning (Pacific Time), Portland turned it over 23 times and fell to the Knicks 103-92. What hurt in the loss to New York was, other than the turnovers, Portland played well enough to win. They shot 55 percent from the field, including going 8 for 13 from beyond the three-point line, and recorded 20 assists. Turnovers, however, simply give the other team more opportunities. Friday, Golden State had 19 more shot attempts than Portland. Yesterday, due to Blazer miscues, had 11 more looks at the hoop. You can't, and won't, win like that.

Now for the good news. Sebastian Telfair had 20 points against Golden State, and yesterday, in an emotional homecoming, and battle against his cousin Stephon Marbury, had 27 points on 8 of 12 shooting, and also dished out 7 assists, grabbed 6 rebounds, and had 3 steals. The scouting reports say Telfair isn't a good long-range shooter, so give him the shot. Well, the scouts are adjusting those reports as we speak. In his last two games, Telfair is 6 for 13 from behind the arc. You hate to rely on that if you're Portland, but at the very least it'll make defenses play him tighter allowing him to use his quickness to blow by defenders. It'll also open things up for his teammates, and keep teams from playing as much zone defense on Portland.

Now Sunday's game was unusual. Not the actual game, but when it was scheduled, and why the NBA made Portland play a game at 9 o'clock Pacific on the first game of a 7-game road trip. You almost never see the league do that to a team. What's worse, we played Friday, left Portland at 8:30 am on Saturday, and losing three hours on the long flight east, barely had time for a short practice before it was getting late, and then had to get up at about 4:30 am Pacific to get to Madison Square Garden. This was nuts. Bouncing all over the country, as we do all season, isn't new, and everyone does that, but this was just a strange situation.

By the way, I had to laugh two seasons ago when I heard the Oregon Ducks football players talking about being "jet lagged" following a flight to El Paso for the Sun Bowl. That would be considered an extremely short flight in the NBA, and only changing one time zone is always a rare treat. We get exausted and we're simply the broadcasters. I can't imagine the energy it takes to actually play the games.

Speaking of football, once we got to our hotel in Manhattan on Saturday night, the first thing I wanted to do was find the Civil War game on TV. It wasn't on at the hotel, so me, Mike Rice, and TV producer Scott Zachry, walked to Times Square to try and find somewhere to watch the game. We ended up at a hole in the wall bar that was jam-packed with Penn State fans, watching their game against Michigan State. We somehow talked a Kirsten Dunst look-a-like server (seriously), into putting the Duck and Beavs on one of the TVs. She was wearing a Notre Dame jersey, about 8 sizes too small I might add, so I figured at least she didn't have Penn State ties. By the time all of that happened the rout was on in Eugene, so we watched for about 30 minutes and walked back to the hotel. I was offered a Rolex on the way back to the hotel, about 6 times, but politely declined the tremendous deals. Who knew?

Following the game in New York we rode with the team to Newark, and flew out of there to Memphis. We got into the hotel in time to catch Desperate Housewives (at least I'm man enough to admit it), and called it a day. The Trail Blazers will practice today, and then get set to take on the red-hot Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night. Following that game, we'll fly to Miami and get set for a back-to-back on Wednesday against the Heat. Then, it's just games at Orlando, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Washington before we get to come home. From cold weather, to Florida, and back to cold. Try packing for that in just one bag, along with 3 suits for TV broadcasts. I couldn't. Good thing we fly charter.

The "P" Word (11.18.05)

You knew this would happen following this surprising start by the Trail Blazers. Yes, the P-word came up at practice today- that would be "playoffs." It came up in an interview with coach Nate McMillan following practice (the only p-word he wants to think about right now). Nate was asked exactly how big he is dreaming early in this season. His answer was basically, "anything can happen," but even that was prefaced with a lot of "ifs." If Zach and Darius continue to play to their potential, if Sebastian continues to grow, if the team continues to develop chemistry, if they stay healthy, and, of course, if they keep buying into his system. I added that last one, and so far that's happened.

There weren't any questions about Portland being in first place in the Northwest Division, which, by the way, they're not anymore due to Minnesota's win last night. Just so you know, thanks to Wednesday night's win the Blazers did occupy sole possession of first for the first time since holding a brief half-game lead over the Lakers in the Pacific Division back in the 2000-01 season. I did bring it up to assistant coach Maurice Lucas after he plopped down beside me at the end of practice. He laughed and said, "we're 3 and 3, that's not first place. I don't care what it says in the standings." That was the expected reaction, and the correct one at this point. Everyone knows this is really, really early, and no one has started planning a parade down Broadway just yet. It's fun, don't get me wrong, but let's not forget about this theme of "rebuilding" that's been talked about so much since training camp.

The excitement of the win over Chicago, and the 3 and 1 homestand to this point, certainly has moral up considerably compared to what it was on the team plane following the 107-68 loss to Denver in the second game of the season, which seems like a lifetime ago. Practice yesterday went just 90 minutes, and there wasn't a lot of live action, or contact. McMillan said he kept it that way because he's got "a lot of players bumped and bruised" following the physical game against the Bulls.

To update Sebastian Telfair's ankle injury, which looked really scary in our replay on TV on Wednesday, he's fine, and participated in all the drills yesterday (there's no update on Chicago's Chris Duhon, who had his ankles repeatedly broken by Telfair on Wednesday). Sebastian has already faced some great point guards this season in Andre Miller, Stephon Marbury, Chauncey Billups, and Kirk Hinrich, and it gets tougher tonight. Baron Davis will be a very tough cover for Telfair, and Sebastian will have to do his best once again to stay out of foul trouble. Early fouls have really hurt Telfair on this homestand. Look for Davis to get physical right off the bat. Jarrett Jack, who's been terrific so far, will get plenty of time on Davis tonight.

A couple of other key matchups to keep and eye on. Troy Murphy always seems to play well against Portland, and will try and drag Zach Randolph out to the perimeter, where he's so deadly. It'll be up to Zach's teammates to rebound well, because he won't be inside as much at the defensive end. And, Sergei Monia, despite playing just five minutes in each of the last two games, will start again, and will get the assignment on Jason Richardson. Joel Przybilla and Theo Ratliff will get the opportunity to block some shots, because Richardson will get to the rim.

Bright and early tomorrow morning we head out on a seven-game road trip. McMillan said today he's never been on a road trip of that length. Not as a coach, and not as a player. A special thanks goes out to the NBA's schedule makers.

Finally, Wednesday night's game was on FSN, and we broke a cable ratings record in that game, so word is getting around about this exciting team. We always win our time slot when we're on KGW in Portland, but to score the number we did on FSN on Wednesday was great news. Rice is taking credit for that, for some reason. Tonight, by the way, the game is on KGW-8 (NBC) in the Portland area. It all starts at 6:30, with the pre-game show. Wheels and Tone will have it on radio. Looking ahead to Sunday, the game against the Knicks is radio-only for us. It's a 9 a.m. Pacific Time start. So, not only does the team face the long flight on Saturday, but has to tip off against New York 90 minutes earlier than they usually start practice in Portland. TV is back for Tuesday's game at Memphis, and Wednesday's at Miami, both on FSN.

The Sebastian Factor (11.17.05)

Okay, I got lucky in yesterday's prediction. I said in the last paragraph of yesterday's blog that the Trail Blazers needed to score more than 95 points to beat the Chicago Bulls. That was the magic number. They did it, and won the game 96-93. I make so many predictions that don't come true, I just thought I'd mention this off the top because I don't know when this will happen again.

One thing no one could have predicted, and no one did predict, to my knowledge, the Trail Blazers would be in first place six games into the season. Yes, it's extremely early. Yes, the wins have all come at home. Yes, they happen to be in a division where right now 3 and 3 is good enough for first. But still, it's okay to enjoy this for whatever it's worth right now.

The exciting thing to think about is how close Portland is to being 5 and 1. They fell by four points on opening night in Minnesota, and lost a late lead and fell to Detroit by three. As always, you could go the other way, and say that the wins over Atlanta and Chicago could have easily gone the other way. It's just nice that we don't have to dwell on that right now.

I will also give you some good news. I talked to Sebastian Telfair after the locker room had cleared out following the game. He wasn't walking with a noticeable limp, and he told me the right ankle he rolled in the fourth quarter felt okay and that he didn't think it was serious. I won't be surprised if he doesn't practice today, but I would be surprised if he's not in the starting lineup on Friday when Golden State comes to town. That's a huge relief, because he is so very vital to this team right now. You want a couple of examples?

Sebastian got into early foul trouble again last night, and sat until the 10:14 mark of the second quarter. When he came in the team was down 35-32. Upon his return, the team exploded, took a nine-point lead, and had 33-point second quarter. When he went out with the injured ankle, the Blazers led 88-83. The team didn't score until after he had gone into the locker room, had the ankle re-wrapped, and checked back in. Chicago had taken the lead. And, on the key play with 12 seconds left, Telfair's drive drew three Chicago players, including Michael Sweetney, who tried to block the shot. Sweetney's momentum carried him out of the play, and that left Theo Ratliff open for the game-winning tip dunk. How many times did Sebastian blow past Chris Duhon and Jannero Pargo? It's called creating. When he's not creating his own offense, he's drawing so much attention that it opens up his teammates.

The Trail Blazers had multiple opportunities to put this game away in the fourth quarter. That's what Nate McMillan will be focusing on at practice today. He's happy with the win, but as I told you yesterday, he's far from satisfied. His team has still yet to play a complete game.

Here's the stat of the night, given to me by TV executive producer Scott Zachry after the game. Zach Randolph scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the game. It's the fourth straight game in which Randolph has had at least 20 points and at least 10 rebounds. That's the second longest such streak for a Portland player in the last 25 years. Arvydas Sabonis did it five straight games for the Blazers in March of 1998.

If they've done nothing else, the Trail Blazers have shown that they're going to be tough at home. They are now 3 and 1 on this homestand, with one to play. With a 7-game road trip looming on the horizon, they'll be going like mad to get Friday's game. The competition is tougher. The Golden State Warriors, who beat this Chicago team by 18 on Monday. Telfair's reward for getting back on the court Friday night? Baron Davis, who will undoubtedly try and get Sebastian into early foul trouble. Friday's game will take four complete quarters to win. Enjoy this one, because it's gone. Nate will have the team hard at work today, and they won't be thinking about last night's win.

Getting Ready For Chicago (11.16.05)

The one thing you hear coaches talk about a lot, especially at this time of year, is the fact that they play so many games they don't get much practice time with their teams. With training camp so short in the NBA, you really have the hit the ground running when the season starts and don't have a lot of time to work on the little things once games roll around. That's why this homestand has been so valuable so far for the Trail Blazers. With four games spread out over 14 days, it's given the team a good opportunity to put in long hours at the practice facility. Great for the coaches, and maybe not so great for the players.

If you're happy the team has played well, and feel the 2 and 3 record so far is acceptable, you're not on the same page with Nate McMillan. For the past two days he has grilled the Trail Blazers and the message he's been trying to send has been clear-don't be satisfied with just playing well. At practice yesterday, McMillan told the team they should be 4 and 1, and if they had executed, they would be. He's referring to the games at Minnesota, and Friday night's game against the Detroit Pistons. You may have been feeling a three-point loss to the heavily favored Pistons was a moral victory, but Nate doesn't believe in such things.

All of this is incredibly refreshing, and is very necessary. McMillan's demand for intensity at all times, and never being satisfied with just coming close is what builds a winner. You wanted a no-nonsense approach, and you certainly got one. You wanted accountability for the players, and you've got a coach who lives it every day. What does Tiger Woods say in the credit card commercial? "There are no rainy days. My life is about never settling." Nate subscribes to this point of view.

Tonight's game against the Chicago Bulls will be another big challenge for Portland. The Bulls come into the game 3 and 3. But, one of those losses was in overtime to San Antonio, and another was by one point at New Jersey. They're coming off their worst effort of the season, an 18-point loss Monday at Golden State. Scott Skiles, another demanding coach, probably also did a little cage rattling at practice yesterday. Don't expect the Bulls to play two bad games in a row. Good teams rarely do.

In an effort to build consistency, I do expect Sergei Monia to start again at the two-guard spot tonight. He only played five minutes against Detroit on Friday, but I think Nate has found his starting lineup for now. Chicago's starting backcourt is small (Kirk Hinrich 6-3, Chris Duhon 6-1), and if you wanted to get away with starting, for instance, Juan Dixon at shooting guard against them, you probably could. I still think it'll be Monia. One of the big things they've been working on with Monia is his back-to-the-basket offense. He's big enough, and enjoys enough mismatches he should be able to take advantage of a smaller defender. But, posting up is not something he's very good at right now. Tonight he'll have his opportunity on the block again. Also, expect Darius Miles to get some post-up looks early against Chicago's Andres Nocioni. Nocioni is a good offensive player, but he can't guard Darius down low. Also, one of the matchups we're focusing on in the TV pre-game show, is Sebastian Telfair vs. Hinrich. Both players are lightning-quick, and Hinrich shoots the deep ball very, very well. Telfair will have his hands full.

The scary part of this game, in my mind, is when the second units get into the action. Skiles plays a lot of people, and has a lot of depth. Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, and Michael Sweetney all come off the bench, but play big minutes. Gordon is extremely explosive, and Sweetney could cause Portland trouble down low. Want another x-factor for Chicago off the bench? Jannero Pargo. He can get red hot from behind the arc and runs the team very well.

Chicago is not a good defensive team. Portland's highest point total to this point has been the 95 points they scored in the win over New York. To win this game tonight, they'll need to surpass that total, because the Bulls will. If the Blazers break the 100-point mark, they'll have a good shot to win this game. I usually say defense wins. Tonight, it's all about the offense. I'll revisit this prediction tomorrow. Tonight, Rice and I will have the game on FSN starting with the pre-game show at 6:30. And, of course, Brian Wheeler, the best in the business, will have the game on radio with his partner, Antonio Harvey.

Serving Rolls Between Zach and Sebastian at Harvest Dinner (11.15.05)

If you were one of those people unimpressed by Portland's victory over the New York Knicks last Wednesday, have you paid attention to the scores the last two days? After falling to the Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden last week by 12, the Knicks lost a nail-biter at Golden State by two points. They then went into Sacramento on Sunday and beat the Kings by 10, and last night rolled over the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City by 12. It's difficult to judge a whole lot from night to night early in the season, but clearly the Knicks aren't that bad. To me, this makes Portland's fairly easy victory over the Knicks a little more significant. At a time when we're trying so hard to figure out what exactly we have here, I go to recent results and judge from there. It's probably not the most accurate measuring stick, but it's all we have right now.

Wednesday's opponent for the Trail Blazers, the Chicago Bulls, didn't look very impressive after last night's blowout loss at Golden State, and it wasn't the way they wanted to begin a 6-game road trip. All this means to me is, they'll be out for blood at the Rose Garden against Portland. That was smoke coming out of the ears of Scott Skiles during the second half in Oakland. Chicago's starting backcourt, Kirk Hinrich and Chris Duhon, were a combined 3-for-21. That won't happen again, which is troubling if you're a Trail Blazers fan.

Last night Rice and I hosted Courtside Monday Night. One of our guests was former Trail Blazer and current TNT analyst Steve Kerr, who joins us about every month. He's also a columnist on Yahoo Sports. Yesterday he released his NBA rankings, and we had him on to talk about it. It wasn't surprising that he had Detroit ranked number one, or that he had Washington number two, ahead of San Antonio. The shocker was whom he had ranked behind Portland. He has the Trail Blazers at 23, Sacramento at 24, and Seattle at 25. He also had Houston, picked by some to challenge the Spurs in the Southwest Division, just one spot ahead of Portland at 22. These things don't mean much, but just that a respected NBA analyst had Portland ranked ahead of two teams expected to make the playoffs is surprising, just five games into the season. That tells you how strange things have been in the first couple of weeks of the season.

Last season the Sonics set the tone for the entire season with their opening month. They won 9 of their first 10 under Nate McMillan, and ended November 13 and 3. After six games this season they are 2 and 4. They started their current road trip with losses by 25, 27, and 41 points. They play no defense, and gave up 137 to Washington. You think coaches don't make a difference in this league? I keep thinking back to training camp when Seattle players were quoted saying how much more laid back and easy things are now that Nate is gone. New coach Bob Weiss even discussed the differences between his style and McMillan's when he was hired. He talked about how Nate is all business all the time, and can't really turn it off. How he likes to have a little more fun. How fun has this road trip been?

Finally, yesterday the Trail Blazers held their annual Harvest Dinner at the Rose Garden, feeding more than 6,000 less fortunate folks a Thanksgiving dinner. What a tremendous event this is. I handed out rolls in between Zach Randolph, who was on green beans, and Sebastian Telfair, who was giving people plates and napkins. Zach, in particular, engaged every person who spoke to him, and was genuinely happy to be serving. He laughed when a homeless man gave him a hard time about taking the final shot in the Detroit game. Zach said to the man, "who would you have rather seen take the shot?" The man smiled and pointed at Telfair. They all laughed, and Sebastian agreed and signed an autograph. All the players were there, and it was a huge success, as usual.

Time to Re-evaluate? (11.14.05)

You always hear coaches in sports talking about goals- immediate goals, and long-term goals. The interesting thing about this season for the Trail Blazers, as we've talked a lot about, is no one really knew what to expect. And, just five games into the regular season I'm not sure that has changed. But, it's been a 2 and 1 homestand so far, and the team was very close to getting through the weekend with a 3 and 0 homestand, and a 3-2 record overall. As it is, the Trail Blazers sit 2 and 3, and I'm sure even that has surprised some people.

On national TV Friday night, the Trail Blazers took the defending Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons to the wire, before falling by three points. The Pistons finished their 3-game road trip with a 14-point win over the Kings in Sacramento, a 7-point win over the Suns in Phoenix, and a 3-point win over the Blazers. To some this won't make much sense, comparing the strength of our team by margins of defeat. In this case though, it's appropriate.

My question today is, have you adjusted your expectations for this team based on five games? A loss is a loss, just like they always say a win is a win. But, in this particular situation a loss to the Pistons, in a game that saw Portland in control for three and a-half quarters, isn't just a loss. You'd never get the Trail Blazers coaches to admit there's any such thing as a moral victory, but if you can ever be pleasantly surprised, while losing, it probably came Friday night. The wins over Atlanta and New York to begin the homestand were great, but I'm sure the coaches were curious to see how the young Blazers would deal with the hottest, and maybe the best, team in the league. Did they look intimidated to you?

Portland didn't just happen to catch Detroit on an off night either. Sure, they played the night before in Phoenix, but the last time I checked the Trail Blazers have 13 sets of back-to-back games on the horizon and they won't ever use that as an excuse. The stats in no way suggest the Pistons were flat, or tired, or looking past the Trail Blazers either. Detroit shot 49 percent in the first half, while the Blazers shot 56 percent. In the second half things tightened up, got more defensive, and Portland ended up at 49 percent shooting, while Detroit shot 43 percent. The Pistons shot 44 percent from behind the three-point line, recorded 20 assists, and turned the ball over only 7 times. This was not a bad game for the Pistons, and Flip Saunders said as much after the game. The credit went to the hustling, executing Blazers. If not bailed out by two Rasheed Wallace three pointers, and a very questionable foul on a Ruben Patterson steal with just over 10 seconds left, Portland wins this game.

The final play of the game had the Trail Blazers needing a three to tie. The play was designed to get the ball into the hands of the red-hot Juan Dixon. Option number two was Zach Randolph, who's very capable of hitting from deep. When Zach received the ball he hesitated, and pump faked, giving Ben Wallace enough time to partially tip the shot, causing it to fall short.

In the locker room after the game, Darius Miles said to Zach, "why did you hesitate?" Zach replied, "did I?" Darius then said, "come here, and I'll show you." So, the two players, wearing towels, leaned into a monitor and watched the final play. Zach, upon seeing his shot said "you're right. Why didn't I just let it fly? Man, that's my fault." They re-winded the tape and watched it another couple of times. I just loved the attitude, passion, and communication between the two.

Dixon, who has struggled from the field so far this season, was just one of the bright spots for Portland. There's no better way to come off an 0-for-6 night shooting, than to go 6-for-6. Dixon had 19 points in 18 minutes and showed that perhaps he belongs in the starting line up at shooting guard for the Blazers.

Two games left on this homestand. Chicago Wednesday, and Golden State on Friday. Following the Detroit loss on Friday, Nate McMillan did something unusual and necessary. He gave the team Saturday off. They got back to work yesterday, and now are feeling like they should win the next two. They know it's on the road for 7 straight after that.

When You Win, The Practices Get Easier, Right? Think Again. (11.11.05)

If you thought perhaps Nate McMillan would be so happy with the win over New York, and the fact that his young Trail Blazers have won their first two home games of the regular season, he would give them a relatively easy time in practice on Thursday, you aren't up to speed on what this guy is all about. Morale has certainly been raised a click, but if anything the practices have been more difficult since the homestand began. Nothing about the win over New York changed that. As I've talked about recently, head coaches are never satisfied and can always find plenty to work on.

The Trail Blazers were thrilled to get the wins over the Hawks and Knicks, but with Detroit, Chicago, and Golden State still to come on this homestand, and a 7-game road trip on the horizon, there is no time to rest. Clearly, the Trail Blazers biggest challenge so far will come tonight. The Pistons destroyed the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night, and last night beat the Suns in Phoenix thanks to a fantastic 4th quarter. The only thing the Blazers have going for them is that the Pistons played a game last night that came down to the wire, played their starters heavy minutes, and then had to fly over two hours to Portland to get ready to play a back-to--back. For the first time in 17 years Detroit is 5 and 0, and it'll take a very, very strong performance by the Trail Blazers to keep the Pistons from getting to 6 and 0.

Okay, stick with me, as I'm shifting gears. As you know, former Trail Blazer Antonio Harvey is the new radio analyst. As you may not know, he's been criticized by some members of the local media for using the term "we" in his first few games of work when describing the Trail Blazers. As you can imagine, it's come naturally to him to use "we." Antonio says he hasn't heard from any radio listeners who object to this, but is aware that he's evidently hit on a hot button issue with some local journalists who feel he's breaking an unwritten rule by showing a bias. I think the fact that it's even come up has surprised him.

Following the New York game, Antonio caught wind, again, that some who cover the team were really getting bothered by his using "we" during games. He then sat down and wrote an e-mail note to his boss expressing his feelings on the subject. It wasn't written for this blog, or even to fans. But, in a broadcast meeting on Thursday this note was read to us, before he arrived, and I said I'd love to run his point of view in my blog, and let him directly respond to the issue. He was reluctant at first, and said he didn't intend for this note to go public. I called him on my way home from the Rose Garden last night and asked that he forward the message to me, and I'd put it in the blog. After some convincing he agreed, and here it is. The debate will continue among a few, but at least I thought you'd like to hear his side, first hand.

I have had several conversations with my colleagues on the radio staff and several of the local writers in our market, about my use of the word "we" when I refer to the Blazers. I'd like to explain how I look at the situation. I played 8 years in the NBA, I am "we." I played here, for the Portland Trail Blazers, again, I am "we." I am a fan of this game, this team, and this city- I am "we." Who said that it’s wrong for an announcer to be a fan of the game, and a fan of the team for which he works? Probably it's someone who would rather find all the wrong things in a team, than all the right.

When I travel around the city, and talk to fans of the Trail Blazers, the truest fans, the ones who will listen to the games on the radio, the ones that will come to the arena and listen with a radio as they watch the games in the stands, they use the term "we.” Well, I am a fan of this game, and a fan of this team, so why is it so wrong for me to use the term "we." Is it simply because I am an announcer? Again, who said it is so wrong for an announcer to be a fan of the team he/she works for?

Some have told me that it makes me sound less creditable when I use the term "we" because I can’t be impartial. That is the most illogical thinking I have ever heard. That’s like saying a coach can’t be impartial, or a teammate can’t be honest about a situation. Wrong is wrong, and I think that the fans will feel even better connected to the team when the critique is coming from a person who is passionate about the team. If I am nothing else, I am passionate about this game and this team.

As a point of clarity, first and foremost, I am a fan of the game. I have been all my life. Then, I am a fan of this team. As a fan of the game, I am compelled to point out when this team, or a player on this team, is doing something wrong. As a fan of this team, I am compelled to point it out, and then move on to the next point.

It is amusing to me that the first advice I got about this job was to talk as if I were in a room with a group of my friends. When I talk to my friends about the Trail Blazers, I use the term "we." In fact, when I talk about the NBA as a whole with my wife and my closest friends, I use the term "we." It's not because I want to relive my glory years, but because it is a fraternity, and once you are in, you are in for life. Maybe that's the problem. Maybe there are not enough young ex-players doing this job. Because when I listen to other broadcasts on television, I hear all the young announcers using the term "we" all the time. With that in mind, I started thinking that perhaps I am not the only person who feels this way. Maybe there are a group of young ex-players who take pride in working for a team they were a part of as a player, and are willing to express that pride, and don't worry about what people outside the team have to say. Thank you reading this.

Antonio Harvey

1999-2001 Portland Trailblazers #34

Coaching (11.10.05)

What makes a head coach a very good head coach in the NBA? Adjustments. Adjustments on the fly, during timeouts and at halftime. Yes, preparation and strategy are there too, but just four games into the season, clearly, the moves a coach makes during a game are key. If we've seen anything in this first 10 days of the season, we've seen that parity is the rule of the day. How else can you explain all that has happened in the last few days around the NBA? When you have balanced talent, at least somewhat, then coaching becomes extremely vital.

With this in mind, I give you Wednesday night's win over the New York Knicks at the Rose Garden. It was all about coaching, and was a total chess match. I'm not going to sit here and say that Larry Brown will get out-coached on many nights, but on this night Nate McMillan was brilliant, and his young, inexperienced team, beat the desperate and hungry New York Knicks 95-83, outscoring them 56-34 in the second half.

McMillan coaches by feel, obviously. He once again went with Sergei Monia in the starting lineup, and that was a good move to combat New York's size. But things started horribly for Portland. Both Joel Przybilla and Sebastian Telfair got into immediate foul trouble. So much for the pre-game plan. This is when Nate starting rolling the dice and searching for answers.

Jarrett Jack played 33 minutes, Theo Ratliff 35 minutes, and Ruben Patterson 24 minutes. Martell Webster was used sparingly, but did hit a big three pointer to keep Portland close in the first half. Charles Smith, who was out of the lineup completely in the Atlanta game, was used briefly in the second half, but came up with a huge blocked shot, and two solid defensive efforts in his two minutes in the game. Telfair, who played only 4:48 in the first half, had a huge second half and ended up with 10 points, on 4 of 5 shooting before fouling out. Nate left him in the game with five fouls late, and Telfair showed leadership and his trademark passing ability on the fast break in the clutch. McMillan went with the big lineup that confused the Knicks, and left Jamal Crawford trying to guard Darius Miles. Zach Randolph was encouraged to go outside to score, dragging Channing Frye and Antonio Davis away from the middle. Zach ended up shooting 11 for 19 from the field with six of those coming from 20-feet plus.

Miles, who's heart has been questioned in the past, was a warrior in this game. Miles didn't practice on Monday or Tuesday, and had his right knee drained twice. His wrist was sore, and he landed flat on his back in the first half, bruising it to the point where he could hardly jump in the second half. McMillan showed trust in Miles by leaving him in the game, and Darius ended with 26 points on 10 of 20 shooting.

Everyone has talked about how it's all going to be about Miles and Randolph. On this night they were a combined 21 for 39, for 55 points, and 20 rebounds. If Miles didn't have such an off night at the foul line, he would have been over 30 points for the second time this season. Zach says his surgically-repaired knee is about 70 percent of where it needs to be. I'll take 29 points and 12 rebounds on a healing knee. And, what more can be said about Ruben Patterson? He was the only reason the Blazers were within striking distance at halftime. When nothing else worked in the first half, Patterson bulled his way to the hoop time after time, and was the lone bright spot. Ruben ended with 17 points, 5 rebounds, and no turnovers in 23 minutes. His energy kept the team alive in the first 24 minutes, and turned out New York's lights down the stretch.

McMillan is a hard guy to please. That's a compliment for a head coach, and he had to drive home proud of his team last night. The first half was disastrous, as they shot just 33 percent. But, with his halftime talk and adjustments, they shot 60 percent in the second half, and even put up 31 points in the fourth quarter. A little confidence and belief goes a long way.

The matchup of the Coney Island Cousins I talked so much about in yesterday's blog? Marbury was 3 for 8 with 5 turnovers and 13 points. Telfair, after going scoreless in the first half, had 10 points, on 4 of 5 shooting, with 2 assists and 2 turnovers. All things considered, I'll take that.

Nate's probably enjoyed this win for about 5 minutes, and then began thinking of some way to slow down the powerful Detroit Pistons who thrashed the Kings in Sacramento on Tuesday night. They come to town tomorrow night. Clearly, another first half like last night's and Portland won't be able to live to tell about it against Detroit.

By the way, if you want to read more about Martell Webster, pick up this week's Sports Illustrated. Martell is featured in a story by L. Jon Wartheim. I've already read it, and it gives you great insight into what this kid has had to overcome to get to this point, and what kind of a person he is.

Coney Island Express (11.9.05)

Tonight marks the third meeting between Sebastian Telfair and Stephon Marbury, and the New York media will no doubt pay close attention to the head-to-head matchup. Sebastian is a long way from home, but we got a good idea of the potential of this budding rivalry last season when the Trail Blazers played the Knicks, in New York, on January 9th. The marquee in front of Madison Square Garden had in lights "The Matchup of the Coney Island Cousins." They got top billing even though, at that time, Telfair wasn't getting much playing time. I remember asking Telfair upon entering MSG if he was nervous. "Nah," he told me. "I've played here before." It wasn't cocky, it was just confidence.

The Knicks won that first game last season, and Marbury, playing just briefly against Sebastian, had 20 points and 12 assists, outpacing Telfair's 2 points and 7 assists. By the time the teams met again, later in the season, Telfair's role had increased, but he only slightly increased his production against the Knicks, scoring 6 points, and recording 6 assists. Marbury put up 21 points and 11 assists, but New York lost the game in Portland.

It'll be interesting to watch the third meeting between the two tonight. Telfair is now the undisputed starter on this team, and Marbury is trying to dig the Knicks out of an 0-3 hole. You'll hear both players downplay the head-to-head battle, but you know they'll both be trying to out do the other. Marbury should win the duel, as he is in his 10th NBA season and is the league's highest paid point guard, along with Allen Iverson (16.4 million this year).

Telfair, in his second season, just turned 20 over the summer, and had his jersey retired at Lincoln High in Brooklyn. Marbury, who also attended Lincoln, has never been honored in that manner, and doesn't hold the legendary status Telfair does in New York. It's not like the Marbury name isn't incredibly famous in Brooklyn, as five Marbury boys played Division I basketball. But Sebastian passed all the tests along the way, and became known as "2 Fast 2 Furious," a name given to him by buddy Jay-Z. He earned the name at Rucker Park, basketball's hallowed playground at 155th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard. Now, he's got a new name, "The Coney Island Express."

The Trail Blazer franchise, oddly enough, has a connection to several players from Telfair's past. Jamel Thomas, who tried on several occasions to make the roster, and was one of the final cuts a few years ago, is Sebastian's brother. Erica Telfair, Sebastian's mother, took Jamel in when he was three years old after his mother was murdered. Thomas, who had incredible potential, was always at Marbury's side as the two were recruited together out of high school. Marbury went to Georgia Tech, and Thomas to Providence. Jamel was never drafted into the NBA and has spent a lot of time playing overseas. He and Sebastian are still close.

The other player with ties to the franchise is Omar Cook, who spent time on Portland's roster two seasons ago. Cook, a playground legend himself in New York, left college early, wasn't ready, and is still trying to make it. Sebastian used the cautionary tales of Cook, and fellow New Yorker Lenny Cooke (who also never made it), in his deciding to skip college and head straight into the NBA.

This is an incredibly interesting story, and I don't have a lot of space in this blog to continue with it, so I'll get back to Marbury. (If you want to go deeper into this story go get Ian O'Conner's book, "The Jump." It's a great read.) The relationship between Stephon and Sebastian has been very strained in the past, and really, no one seems to know exactly where it stands today. Both players say the right things, but, as I've been trying to explain, there's a past here. Both the Marbury's and Telfair's lived in the same Coney Island apartments, Surfside Gardens. After Marbury had finished his third NBA season, his family packed up and moved out of the projects. The Telfair family was left behind.

There were even a couple of famous playground games between Stephon and Sebastian that have achieved folklore status around Brooklyn. One of them reportedly happened when Marbury was 25, and playing for the Phoenix Suns, and Telfair was 17. There was a lot of talking, a lot of one-on-one, and eventually Sebastian's team won the game. A one-on-one game followed some time after that, and again, reportedly, Telfair won it 11 to 7. Some say Marbury quit midway through that game, frustrated, but who knows for sure.

You'll see both players hug tonight before the game, and there's obviously a lot of love between them. But, I can't wait for those isolated one-on-one moments- Telfair vs. Marbury. We won't know what will be going on in their minds, or even what they'll be saying to each other, but now you know, history will definitely come into play.

Monia In Starting Line-up Wednesday (11.8.05)

Don't expect any changes to the starting lineup for the Trail Blazers on Wednesday night against the New York Knicks. Sergei Monia, who went from the inactive list to the starting unit on Saturday, will be in the same roll against the winless Knicks. This is hardly a surprise, and certainly isn't a secret, since most of the media covering practice saw Monia was working with the starters on Monday. His status was confirmed to us on our Courtside Monday Night radio program by assistant coach Dean Demopoulos, who was a guest. He called it a "great move" shifting to the bigger lineup with Monia playing the off-guard position. It gives Portland a 6-8 shooting guard, to go with 6-9 Darius Miles at small forward.

Miles sat out practice on Monday, but still shot free throws and was a part of things. His right knee was a little sore and Nate McMillan wanted him to take the day off. Miles did get a chance to sit and talk with owner Paul Allen for an extended period during practice. Allen was in town for a VIP sponsors party last night. He addressed the media following practice, and said it was tough not being at the Rose Garden for the win on Saturday. The owner was out of the country and just returned on Sunday. He told reporters he is happy with the direction of the team and enjoyed watching McMillan teach at practice.

We got a lot of e-mails to the radio show last night, and many of them asked about the status of Travis Outlaw, who was placed on the inactive list to make room for Monia. Some asked if he is injured, or in Nate's dog house. Neither is true. You'll likely see some shuffling back and forth this season, as the new rules make it possible to switch players on a nightly basis. It doesn't seem to have Outlaw too down, as Demopoulos told us he had a great practice yesterday. McMillan hasn't addressed this, but the inactive list could be a good source of inspiration at times for some of his young players. Hopefully it'll work that way for Travis, who will be called upon to help this team this season.

Wednesday's opponent, New York, appears to be in somewhat the same situation Portland is. Larry Brown is dealing with a few veterans, and is trying to work some of his talented young players. David Lee, Channing Frye, Trevor Ariza, and Matt Barnes saw action on Sunday in their loss to Golden State, and are fighting to show Brown they belong in the regular rotation. New York veterans Malik Rose, Maurice Taylor, Jamal Crawford, and Stephon Marbury are publicly stating concerns about the team's direction, and its use of the young guys. Brown has already shuffled players between the active and inactive lists, and currently has Taylor, Penny Hardaway, and Jackie Butler on the inactive list. That's $24 million bucks, or 20 percent of the team's payroll, on the inactive list. That is one huge difference between the Blazers and Knicks- New York's payroll is over $116 million dollars, while Portland's is around $57 million.

The Knicks are 0 and 3 on the season, but don't expect that to last. Coach Brown is still feeling out his new team, and in the East, you can get away with a slow start. They will be very hungry, and very inspired on Wednesday against Portland. They're opening a western road swing, and know that this young Blazers team presents them with a good opportunity to get a win. The Trail Blazers, who have four games left on this homestand before a seven-game road trip, know it doesn't get any easier following the New York game Wednesday. Detroit, Chicago, and Golden State are the teams left on the homestand following the Knicks.

By the way, I mentioned that Allen was in town for the VIP party held downtown on Monday night. He told the media after practice he might play a tune or two on his guitar at the party. Well, we got much more than that. Allen, with his band "Grown Men" tore up the Portland Art Museum, and blasted through an hour-long set of classic rock and original tunes. It's no secret one of Allen's heroes was Jimi Hendrix, and he's sounding more and more like the legendary guitarist all the time (he plays right-handed though). We always get treated to a concert by Allen and his group at this fall party, and he always stuns sponsors and guests with his abilities on lead guitar. I'm not just saying this because he is who he is. The guy can flat out jam. It's always fun to watch people who've never seen him play before looking at each other and saying things like "wow, he is really good." I guess you pick up a thing or two from hanging out with guys like Bono, and The Stones, or as Allen calls them "Mick, Keith, and the boys."

Opening Night Win (11.7.05)

Nothing helps you get over a loss like a win, and the Trail Blazers were able to send the big crowd at the Rose Garden home happy Saturday night. That's the great thing about the NBA, you never have to wait long to get a shot at redemption, and you can never let a loss linger too long in your mind. The team was as down as it could possibly be following Friday's blowout loss in Denver, but I saw some encouraging signs following the game on the flight home.

I took a walk to the back of the plane, somewhere over Idaho most likely, and instead of seeing players sleeping, or playing video games, I saw Sebastian Telfair sitting with Martell Webster. They were both focused on a video of loss they had just suffered at the hands of the Nuggets. They say after losses like that one you always burn the tape and just move on. These two young players were instead going over every detail, freezing the screen, pointing, and talking. It was just one of those little moments you remember, and I returned to my seat feeling better about the direction of the team.

Also during the flight home, Ruben Patterson took his usual walk up to the front of the plane where the coaching staff sits. Last season Ruben would always go up and speak with the coaches following games, and it was nice to see that continue. Communication on a team is a two-way street, and it's always good to see the players take the initiative. Ruben is always looking for ways to be better and we all know how he leads by example on the court. This was an example of leading off the court, and on the plane, if you will.

Sergei Monia also spent some time with the coaches up front on the way home from Denver, and it was then we got a hint that he would likely be getting a shot on Saturday night. He indeed went from the "inactive list" to the starting lineup, and had a great game against the Hawks. I've told you in this blog several times that Nate McMillan is very, very high on Monia, but even I was surprised to see him promoted to the starting lineup in the third game of the regular season. Sergei played 30 minutes, scored 8 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, dished out 5 assists, and didn't do much wrong. For a guy who has struggled to learn the English language, along with a complex offense, he's off to a great start this season. Don't be surprised to see him start against New York on Wednesday.

McMillan's move to start Monia was just one of his great decisions on Saturday night. His substitution pattern during the game was very key to the win. Perhaps the most important move came in the fourth quarter, when he give Patterson the assignment on Atlanta's Joe Johnson. He had 23 points in the game, but with Ruben draped all over him in the fourth quarter, Johnson could only manage 4 points down the stretch. Sensing Atlanta's packed-in zone defense was hurting Portland late in the game, McMillan pulled Patterson and inserted Monia for offense. Sergei responded by hitting a deep zone-busting jumper from the left corner that was huge.

In the controversial final seconds, Zach Randolph was after Telfair's miss, and the officials put .2 on the clock and sent Zach to the line. He calmly hit the first free throw, missed the second intentionally, and Portland won the game 94-93. I don't care that it was against Atlanta, and that the Hawks were without Al Harrington. They played very well, and Portland found a way to win. "A confidence builder," Zach told me in the live TV interview after the game.

After opening in Minnesota, where there were about 6,000 empty seats, and then moving to Denver, where there were at least that many empties if not more, we were reminded Saturday what makes Portland, Portland. There were 18,918 fans at the Rose Garden to witness the home-opening win. And, this was on a day the Oregon Ducks sold out in Eugene, and Oregon State played just up the road in Seattle.

A reminder- tonight it's Courtside Monday Night on the radio (KXL 750 AM in Portland). Mike Rice and I will recap Saturday's win and will look forward to Wednesday's game against Larry Brown's winless New York Knicks. You can e-mail us questions and comments starting right now, at courtside@blazers.com. Talk to you tonight.

Is Nate Happy About the Loss to Minnesota... No. (11.4.05)

The Trail Blazers played well in Minnesota in the season opener on Wednesday, and as we talked about yesterday, there were plenty of positives to take from the game. But, it was a loss, and if you think the Trail Blazers' coaching staff believes in moral victories then I wish you could have seen the practice they went through Thursday in Denver.

Nate McMillan was very quiet on the bus ride from the arena to the airport in Minneapolis, and successfully sent the message to his team that he is never going to be happy following a defeat. That's the way it should be. The teaching and learning continued at practice in Denver. The team watched videotape of the game, and of the Nuggets for about an hour before practice, and then hit the court. If the players were hoping for a light, perhaps shorter practice than normal, then they were disappointed. Lungs were burning, as they always are in the thin air of Denver, and the conditioning portion of practice wasn't any different than usual.

Tonight all eyes (at least those of Portland fans) will be on Darius Miles. Can he, a) follow up on Wednesday night's incredible stat line, including 32 points, 11 rebounds, 5 steals, and 5 assists, and can he, b) follow up the amazing 47-point game he had the last time the Blazers played at the Pepsi Center here in Denver. That came on April 19th of last season. He had 32 points in the first half of that game, by the way. And, if you didn't hear us talk about it on the TV broadcast Wednesday, Miles has been named a co-captain on this team, along with Joel Przybilla.

Things to look for in tonight's game include... will Travis Outlaw get a chance to break into the rotation? Will Jarrett Jack, who was solid on Wednesday, play more than the 14 minutes he played in that game? Can Portland keep its turnover total again at 15 or under? Can the Blazers hold the NBA's best fast break team from a year ago, Denver, to under 20 fast break points? And, will George Karl's return from a 2-game suspension mean a victory for the Nuggets? Did you know Karl, in his career as Denver's coach, has only lost one regular-season game (19-1) at the Pepsi Center?

On a totally unrelated note, it's nice to have the NHL back this season. We usually end up in the same hotel with hockey teams, and the Anaheim Mighty Ducks are with us in Denver. Today, Anaheim's Scott Niedermeyer, on the elevator, got us fired up about his Ducks, and somehow TV producer Scott Zachry and I worked him for a couple of free tickets to the game. Then we watched the Avalanche take down the Ducks 4-3. I was hoping to see the great Sergei Fedorov, but he is on the injured list for Anaheim. The NHL is fantastic in person, not so great on TV. We probably see 5 or 6 games during our travels during the NBA season. Unrelated note number two... tonight I ran into Craig Stadler at the will call window. I worked the Fred Meyer Challenge for years when I was with KXL, and he shared a few memories about Peter's Party, probably while thinking "who the heck is this guy talking to me?" He lives in Denver and is a big hockey fan.

Tonight, Trail Blazers and Nuggets, six o'clock Pacific Time. We'll be on Fox Sports Net Northwest tonight, and will be returning to KGW on Saturday night for the home opener.

Positives About The Minnesota Game (11.3.05)

There is one undeniable truth that came out this regular-season opener tonight. If the Trail Blazers play that hard every night, they're going to win some games that maybe they shouldn't this season. How about one more…if Darius Miles plays anywhere near as well as he played in this game, the Trail Blazers are going to win more games than expected. I'm writing this on the team plane on the way to Denver, so everything is going to be present tense… just thought I'd explain.

So, let's see, in two of Darius' last three regular-season games, he's scored 32 points or more. That's one of those meaningless stats, I realize, but it's true. He scored 47 in the second-to-last game last season in Denver, and of course his line last night was terrific. He not only had 32 points on 13 of 24 shooting, but also had 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 3 blocked shots. Keep in mind, he did this against one of the better defenders in the NBA, Trenton Hassell, who gets paid to shut guys like Darius down.

Miles gave himself the nickname "The Punisher" on Tuesday, and talked about how he was going to take over this team. Mission accomplished on this night. Now, of course, you're saying to yourself (like we all are) "can he back this game up with a great night in Denver on Friday?" He was fantastic, and it was great to see.

Yes, the Trail Blazers lost to Minnesota, 90 to 86, but as we talked about on the TV broadcast, you can take a lot of positives out of this one. Personally, the thing that impressed me the most, was this team could have folded the tents about four times in that second half, and figured, "oh well, we played pretty well for a while." They were down ten, 82-72, with 6:18 to go in the game. They charged back, and cut the lead to 82-81 with 1:18 left. They showed maturity, poise, and battled. That's what Nate McMillan can be proud of.

They had a chance to tie down the stretch, but Juan Dixon's three-point attempt rattled out. He was the first guy I talked to on the plane tonight. I told him it was a great look and came in the flow of the offense. He rolled his eyes and said, "I rushed it…I rushed it."

Portland outscored Minnesota 25-16 in the fourth quarter to stay alive in the game, and that's a great sign. The Blazers also had 11 steals in the game and 16 fast-break points. Another sign that the team is learning this McMillan philosophy.

Nice to see Richie Frahm play well, I just wish it would have come against someone else. Frahm may have been playing with a chip on his shoulder, playing against his former team, but I'll just say if he had been half that aggressive as a Trail Blazer, he'd still be one. They couldn't get him to shoot last season, and he had the opportunities, especially late in the season. He was always too passive. He got a one-year deal from the Wolves and had a great opening night.

As I said earlier, we're high over the Midwest right now, heading to Denver. Friday night it'll be a much tougher test, as the Nuggets are a much better team than Minnesota. We'll be in late tonight, but that's business as usual. You get sleep where you can on the road, and most of the players sleep on the plane. I've never been able to for some reason. Glad we have satellite TV on the plane so we can watch the West Coast games. I'm flipping between Lakers/Denver, and Golden State/Atlanta. We'll probably be to bed by 2 a.m. or so.

Opening Night in Minnesota (11.2.05)

Greetings from Minneapolis. I sure hope the horrible weather in Portland yesterday morning wasn't some kind of strange sign. I'm not too into that kind of thinking, but it was a mess for us all getting to the airport early yesterday morning, and several people were stuck in traffic trying to get to the team plane. We ended up making it out of town just a little behind schedule.

Nate McMillan loves getting into places early, and getting the team acclimated a bit before practice. We hit the Target Center at three o'clock yesterday afternoon and the team went through a good, hard workout. The Trail Blazers went through their offensive sets, as usual, and worked on their defensive game plan designed to at least somewhat contain Kevin Garnett. I think it's amazing that KG will be opening his 11th season in the NBA tonight. This will be his 10th consecutive opening-night start for the Timberwolves. Last season, on opening night, he went for 28 points, 20 rebounds, and 7 assists, while helping his team to a win over New York.

As you probably know, Portland will be starting Telfair, Smith, Miles, Randolph, and Przybilla. I mentioned yesterday that Viktor Khryapa, Sergei Monia, and Ha Seung-Jin were placed on the "inactive list." The three did make the trip with us yesterday, and with the new rules, the night's active roster doesn't have to be turned in until an hour before tip off.

I spent most of practice today talking with Doug Przybilla, Joel's father (who is a loyal reader of this blog, he told me). Joel grew up just 35 miles northwest of Minneapolis, and attended the University of Minnesota. He left after his sophomore season, and as a reward for that gets booed, soundly, anytime he plays at the Target Center. You'll hear it tonight if you watch the game. I'm not sure it makes Joel feel better, but the Minnesota crowd also gives it to Utah's Kris Humphries, who left the University of Minnesota following his freshman season. Joel should be set for tonight's game, as he spent last night at home, getting a home-cooked meal with his folks. I wasn't able to obtain a copy of the night's menu. I'd guess some kind of meat, and potatoes. He's got a lot of family coming to the game tonight, including his 85-year-old grandmother, who's never seen him play as a pro.

I thought last night's opening night was inspiring, especially for the league's young teams (we're one of them, if you haven't noticed). The young New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets routed the heavily favored Sacramento Kings, 93-67. The youngest starting backcourt in modern NBA history, Chris Paul and J.R. Smith, both 20, were huge. Smith had 19, and Paul, who most likely will win Rookie of the Year honors, had 13 points and 8 rebounds. I hope the Trail Blazers noticed that.

See you tonight, 5 o'clock Pacific Time, on TV. I'll make sure Rice combs his hair. Are you ready?

Who Will Be Inactive(11.1.05)

One of the last remaining items for the Trail Blazers to take care of, before the start of the regular season, came today. All NBA teams had to set their opening night rosters. Before this season this was a much more important task, because the players a team decided to put on the "injured list" had to serve a minimum of five games before returning to the active roster. As I explained a while back, this is no longer the case in the league. There is now simply an "active" and an "inactive" list. Rosters only have to be turned in an hour before tip off, and you can move players in an out of the active roster at any time before that.

Starting the season on the inactive list for Portland, are Viktor Khryapa, Sergei Monia, and Ha Seung-Jin. I mentioned the change in the rules again so that you don't read too much into this. Nate McMillan is very high on all three players, but as he explained to us last night on our "Courtside Monday Night" radio show, he's activated the players he feels best match up with these first two opponents, Minnesota and Denver. He maintains the freedom to shift the active roster on a game-by-game basis, and probably will be doing quite a bit of adjusting, especially in the early going.

We also got on the subject of Martell Webster last night, and the fact that significant minutes don't appear to be on the immediate horizon for him. Nate defended this plan by simply stating that throwing Martell into a second team backcourt unit with fellow rookie Jarrett Jack would probably place too much pressure, too early, on Webster. This doesn't mean Webster hasn't shown the ability fitting of a 6th overall pick in the draft, and McMillan stressed that to our listening audience. We'll see Martell soon enough, especially if the team struggles shooting the ball early in the season.

The season starts out against two Northwest Division teams- two teams who have their sights on winning the division crown. Minnesota is looking to put last season in the rearview mirror, and play more like the team that went to the conference finals two years ago. Kevin Garnett, sore ankle and all, will be out to establish his dominance on opening night. Denver, the favorite to win the division, will be an equally tough matchup on Friday. Carmelo Anthony's image took a huge hit following the Olympic disaster, and he had a very rough beginning of last season. He's also out to prove a lot of people wrong, and word is, he's in incredible shape.

By the time you read this we'll be aboard Blazer One, flying to Minneapolis. My first order of business is always a long walk around downtown. Normally, a walk around Minneapolis during the season involves a lot of skyways, and you rarely ever see the street. That's a good thing. But, this time, being we're hitting the city before the deep freeze, a trip outdoors may actually be possible. On a trip there last season, the warmest it got in the three days we were stuck there, was -14. Following dinner one night on that trip, which was only about five blocks away, I decided I'd skip the cab and hoof it back to the hotel. Big mistake. The walk turned into a trot, and then I ended up running, which I thought would help warm me up. It only made it worse as I think my lungs actually started to freeze. Oddly enough, my light sweatshirt wasn't enough, and it felt like I was shirtless. Great planning on my part, and a terrific decision. I finally got warm sometime around noon the next day. Live and learn.

We're practicing at the Target Center this afternoon, and I'll have more for you tomorrow on what will be game day.

Opening Week Is Here!(10.31.05)

It's hard to believe this is opening week, and the NBA's regular season is upon us. As you can imagine, this is a great time to work for an NBA team. The office is buzzing, and we're packing our bags getting set to hit the road for the whirlwind that is the seven months of the season. There is so much you prepare for, and so much uncertainty during the summer, regardless of the expectations, it's just good to get things underway. We're about to do that. I will say that in my 13 seasons of covering (and in the last 7 working for) the Trail Blazers, this is the most unique preparation for a season I've ever been involved in.

Professional sports are so cyclical, and for so long this franchise has avoided any kind of true rebuilding process. It's really been rare. I hate to hear people say we've been "spoiled by success" but at times it certainly seems that way. I know I have. And, no one should apologize for it. This franchise has done too much of that in the past few years. It's not like now our owner's commitment to always fielding a team capable of challenging for a title has changed, it's just that turning the page was the best option, and starting over in this quest had to be done at some point. Even though it will no doubt be painful at times, I'm very excited to see where this is going to take us.

I do know this much for sure... starting up the mountain again is a heck of a lot more fun that sliding down the other side. Championship windows close at some point for all teams, and it sure seems like the process of it closing takes forever. That's where we've been for the last several seasons. This franchise should always be proud of its past, but yesterday is gone. This is a new time, and we've certainly got the right man in place to start creating the big opportunity again. I'm speaking of Nate McMillan, of course, who's made a believer of all of us close to the team.

I hear a lot of things from fans in the community. Whether it's at a charity golf event, speaking to a sponsor group, or just playing hoops at the gym on Saturday morning, I love the comments and questions. There seems to be more curiosity with this team now than ever before. Or, maybe the questions just outweigh the steady belief. That's understandable. Trail Blazer fans are passionate, and I guess that's the bottom line. For as much as the media loves to pound on this franchise (and understandably so, at times in the past), I'm always shocked at how many positive comments I hear from fans and critics alike. I think most fans want to get behind this team, and once they get to know the new players, and especially the new leadership, it'll be an easy sell. The thing I consistently hear is, "I want a team of good guys, who will play hard every night." That would seem to suggest that even if the team doesn't win right away, the Rose Garden will still be full. The real world doesn't always work that way, but I can assure you the effort has been made to bring in quality individuals as you know, and they will play hard.

I'm rambling, I know, but it's been training camp for broadcasters as well, and I'm excited to get to work. Mostly, I'm just excited for this new direction. I'm glad we had the great runs we did in the late 90's, and even the first couple of years into the new century, but I'm even more excited about what could be now. It's like the innocence is back, and at least for this season, it isn't "championship or bust." The picture is bigger. And, this isn't coming from some blind optimist. I've bled with this team just like many of you have. It's just more fun now to park the cynicism and get behind this new movement.

One broadcasting note - Tonight on Courtside Monday Night, Mike Rice and I will be joined by Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey. We'll give our predictions and opinions on the upcoming season.

Happy Halloween.

Preseason Ends The Way It Began(10.28.05)

Tonight the pre-season will end the same way it started for the Trail Blazers- with a game against the Seattle SuperSonics. This time the teams will hook up on a neutral court, in Spokane. Nate McMillan's new team beat his old team in the first exhibition game, and now both teams sit with 2-5 records in the pre-season. The Sonics are saying the same thing the Blazers are- "I hope the pre-season win-loss record is indeed meaningless."

For some teams it is, and for others maybe the records to this point are significant. Denver certainly hopes it's the latter. The Nuggets are 6-1 in the pre-season, and Houston is 6-2. Indiana is 5-2. Maurice Cheeks' new team, the Sixers, are 3-5. And, the defending-champion Spurs, who never seem to put together a decent record in the exhibition season, are just 2-7. In other words, don't waste your time analyzing the pre-season records. I know, I just did, but I'm here to tell you not to.

Most teams are now making their final cuts, getting down to the regular-season roster limit of 15 players. Some, like the Sacramento Kings, will carry less than 15. The Kings, at last check, were only planning on carrying 13 players. It's less expensive certainly, but that's about the only good reason I can think of why they're doing this. The Trail Blazers, after waiving Sam Clancy a week ago, are at 15, and that's where they'll stay. They had 15 players with guaranteed contracts before pre-season started, so their opening night roster wasn't really going to be a mystery.

I do love this one new thing that came out of the new labor agreement. There is no more "injured list" in the NBA. There is simply an active roster, and players who will be considered "inactive." You will see no more phony injuries listed by players' names that are on the inactive list. The most popular was always "tendonitis." I guess that was because it was hard to prove a player didn't have soreness and didn't deserve to be on the injured list. But it was so silly. Every once in a while you'd see a player on the injured list for things like "sore groin" or "subluxed middle toe." I saw a player once who was down for two months with "gastrointestinal issues." I guess they'd never heard of Tums. A player would always be taken off the roster, and then I would picture the team trainer giggling while throwing darts at a "board o' sports injuries." No more.

The best part of this new system is there is no time limit for players to be on the inactive roster. Used to be a player would have to serve a minimum of five games on the injured list before coming back. Now, it can be game-to-game, like the NFL's system. If you're playing a team with a huge front line, you can activate your big guys to come in and use up six fouls, and the next day they can be back on the inactive list. The young Blazers will no doubt take advantage of this new rule.

The other rule some teams will take advantage of, is this new ability to send guys to the NBDL for some seasoning. I'm not sure if Portland will jump into this right away, but they could. Some have assumed Ha Seung-Jin will be sent down to the minors, but they'll only do that if the situation is exactly right. Ha just turned 20 years old, and has made tremendous strides. Regardless of what you hear, or think, the Trail Blazers are very high on Ha. He's huge, strong, has good hands, and is getting more mobile. He's also very aggressive, and doesn't allow any easy looks around the hoop. Just ask the other Portland big guys who practice with him everyday. They've got the bruises to prove it. Ha is also a great guy, with a great sense of humor, and is always one of the first to come over and talk to me at practice. His English is good enough now that he won't have an interpreter with him this season. Last year he really knew just one phrase, which we taught him- "Ha is the man." He would say it over and over again, and I'm not really sure he knew what it meant. It was always funny though. He started greeting us on the team plane with "Ha is the man." Could be true sooner than you think.

One other guy Nate McMillan is very, very high on, while we're on the subject, is Sergei Monia. Other teams apparently are as well. I've been told that when teams call the Blazers inquiring about trades, the guys they are consistently after are Jarrett Jack, and Monia. It would take an absolute dream deal to get Portland to part with either of these guys. I don't think it'll happen.

Just one pre-season game left, tonight in Spokane against Seattle, and then it's on to the important 82.

Tough Night For Point Guards(10.27.05)

Okay, let's get this out of the way first. The Trail Blazers’ streak of 16 straight years without a losing record in the pre-season is over. I know, we've talked so much about how exhibition records don't really mean much, but that was a pretty unusual streak. It's over now, and I won't mention it again.

Reason number (insert big number here) why the NBA Draft can be considered a big crapshoot. Charlie Villanueva. If you watched the draft in June, you know the Toronto Raptors were absolutely killed by experts for taking Villanueva with the seventh pick. Most had him projected anywhere from 11th to 17th. He played just two years at Connecticut and just about everyone talked about his questionable work ethic, and how perhaps he was just a pretty good player in a terrific college program. Forget it. Villanueva is going to be a very, very good NBA player. He's possibly the leader in the clubhouse for Rookie of the Year honors. I know, I know, it's pre-season, but he'll be in the mix- probably with his tightest competition coming from Chris Paul.

It may be difficult to tell who the great teams are in the pre-season, but that doesn't apply to individuals. This isn't the summer league. Villanueva scored has now scored in double figures in seven of Toronto's eight pre-season games. Portland has a pretty good interior defense, and Villanueva, in back-to-back games, totally had his way inside. Last night he came off Toronto's bench and had 22 points and 7 rebounds in just 28 minutes. He's great on the block, is quick with the ball, is an incredibly explosive leaper, and by the way, was 4-4 from behind the three-point line. Toronto's scouts should take a bow. And, their pick at #16, Oklahoma State's Joey Graham, isn't too shabby either.

The Raptors are not going to make the playoffs in the East, but they've got solid young players and a good coach in Sam Mitchell. If they can find a way to get rid of Jalen Rose and his massive contract (15.6 mill this year, and 16.9 next), they can do more building. Don't blame them for Rose's astronomical numbers, that was a contract given to him by the Indiana Pacers. They came close to tying Rose to Vince Carter in a trade several times last season, but weren't successful.

For the Trail Blazers, the story begins and ends with taking care of the ball. They aren't going to win very often this season when they turn the ball over 24 times. Nate McMillan will be the first to say that. He preaches it, and the team practices it, believe me. Players know the routine in practice and immediately take off on a lap around the entire practice facility following a turnover in a drill or scrimmage. My guess is they'll be running quite a bit today following last night's game.

It was a tough night for the point guards. Sebastian Telfair and Jarrett Jack combined for 1 for 12 shooting, and 7 turnovers. The early offense and high percentage opportunities that were there on Monday against this same Toronto team weren't there last night.

I sat with my partner Mike Rice courtside, and we can't wait to get to work, by the way. Rice is going nuts (okay, more nuts than usual). He's always been on radio, of course, and has always worked every single game. We don't televise any pre-season games, and so we've been just watching and waiting, and eating a heck of a lot of popcorn. I'm happy to say our first TV broadcast is less than a week away now - Wednesday night, 5 p.m. local, from the Target Center against the Wolves. Rice is pumped because he'll have a telestrator at his disposal this year and says his first order of business will be to draw mustaches on all the refs. Looking forward to that like a trip to the dentist.

We'll be on the radio again on Monday night at 6 p.m., for a special edition of Courtside Monday Night. Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey will join us for a season preview, and we'll all give some meaningless predictions. Nate McMillan is scheduled to join us live as well.

Welcome to the NBA Martell (10.26.05)

There certainly seemed to be a lot different feel at practice today, following the win. The mood was lighter, and some of the pressure we've talked so much about seemed to be lifted, at least a little bit. That's what a solid performance will do for a young team.

After practice, rookie Martell Webster was put through the annual "rookie toss into the ice tub." About 10 players carried him into the training room and gave him a baptism. Webster, who's become used to this already, didn't put up much of a fight. He pleaded to have his shoes saved from the icy bath, but that feel on deaf ears, as expected.

Webster didn't play in Monday's game, and with Nate obviously making an effort to shorten the rotation, Martell may be hard pressed to get meaningful minutes early in the season. We asked him about that on our "Courtside" radio program last night, and he said that will simply inspire him to work even harder. He's naturally disappointed, but it's not like he's had a bad pre-season, or hasn't lived up to expectations. He realizes he's 18 years old, this is all very new to him.

The annual General Manager's Survey conducted by nba.com was released yesterday afternoon. It asked the league's general managers an assortment of questions. One of them was, "Which player is most likely to have a breakout season in 2005-2006?" Orlando's Dwight Howard was first, taking 46 percent of the vote. Second, was Travis Outlaw. That's how highly he's thought of by the league's power hitters. Travis played 10 minutes in Monday's game, showing he is most likely going to be in Nate's regular rotation. But, he's struggled at times to adapt to this new system, and that's put him a little behind. It is very early, and Travis has plenty of time to earn himself more minutes. It's all up to him. Remember, even though Travis seems like a veteran, he's only 20 years old.

Trail Blazers Needed This(10.25.05)

We don't normally say this during the exhibition season, but, the Trail Blazers needed a win. You already knew that. They didn't just need a win, they needed to win like they won last night. When you're working as hard as this team and coaching staff is working, you need a reward to raise morale among the troops. I've been downplaying the importance of exhibition games, but after a win it's always a little easier to find the importance in them, isn't it? This makes it easier to forget the previous losses and realize this team has this kind of ability.

It was Nate McMillan's plan to rest a veteran player in the remaining games. Saturday night, he told Zach Randolph that his knee needed a break, and that he would not play against Sacramento. How about this? Last night was to be Darius Miles' turn to take a break. Nate told us on Saturday that was the plan. Darius would have none of it. I've been giving you examples of how much Darius has been buying in to Nate's system, and how he is totally committed to this team. This is the best example I have had so far. He refused the offer of a rest, and turned in a fantastic performance in Portland's 105-98 win last night over Toronto in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

In just over 3 quarters, Miles scored 20 points, on 8 of 12 shooting, and most importantly, got the team off to a great start to open the game. That's where they've been really struggling. Last night Miles went into the low post repeatedly, and worked for his shots. After the game, when he joined Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey on the post-game radio show, he downplayed the performance, and said simply "this is what I need to all the time." On the win he said, "this is nothing but a learning experience. The season starts November 2nd." Last week, well after a practice had ended, Ruben Patterson, who was sitting with me on the bench, ribbed Darius about his 2 for 17 shooting performance against Utah. Miles smiled and said, "why do you think I'm out here getting extra work." It's obviously paying off.

The Blazers shot 62 percent in the first half, 59 percent for the game, and showed the desired energy at the defensive end that led to all those easy buckets. For the first time in this pre-season, they were consistently defending hard, crashing the boards and quickly looking to push the ball up the floor. That's Nate's style.

Sebastian Telfair was efficient (9 points, 8 assists), Jarrett Jack, again, was very impressive (13 points, (2-3 3pt), 4 assists, in just 18 minutes), and Juan Dixon finally found his shot (5-6 fg, 16 points, in only 18 minutes). I've got to mention Zach Randolph (15 points, 7 rebounds), and Charles Smith (5-9 fg, 11 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists) as well. And, Joel Przybilla does so many things that don't show up in the box score, like setting crushing picks, and always being in the right place. The latest example of doing the "little things" is his mastery of the outlet pass. He rebounds, turns, and fires, and initiates the fast break, just like McMillan teaches.

Here's the stat of the day. Do you know it's been 17 seasons since the Blazers have had a losing record in the pre-season? I don't have the time or the desire to research it, but that's got to be an NBA record. To continue that streak (that many would see as meaningless, I know) they have to beat Toronto again Wednesday, and then beat Seattle in Spokane on Friday.

By the way, because last night's game was on a Monday, "Courtside Monday Night" will air tonight, from 6pm to 8pm, on KXL in the Portland area. Martell Webster is among the guests. Feel free to e-mail Mike Rice and I your comments and questions to courtside@blazers.com. Talk to you tonight.

Preseason Not Long Enough(10.24.05)

As I've mentioned, a lot, lately, the exhibition season is about searching for the right combinations, evaluating talent, building on a positive moments, and trying to remedy the not-so-positive moments. This is the case for every team. For the teams with returning players and coaches, it's more about fine tuning. For teams like the Trail Blazers, who have a new head coach and a lot of new players, it's about a whole lot more.

The NBA's pre-season is fundamentally flawed. If you ever catch our "Courtside Monday Night" radio program (which is actually on Tuesday night this week) you've heard my partner Mike Rice pounding on this point. In our league there just isn't enough time to prepare for the season. In a situation like Portland's, this is a glaring problem. You get only about five practices before your first exhibition game, and then get a chance to wedge in a few practices in between pre-season games. It's literally preparing on the run. There's no long spring training season, like in baseball, and no extended training camp, like in the NFL. This frustrates Rice because he's a former college head coach where you get months to get set for the season.

But, it is what it is and I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses (which is exactly what I'm doing). Teams like the Blazers are just at a big disadvantage in this system, and the clock is ticking, if you haven't noticed. Opening night is just 10 days away.

Portland's new coaching staff is working night and day to prepare this team for the season. Nate McMillan told me after practice on Friday that he's been staying up until about 3 a.m. looking at tape and going over every aspect of the offense and defense. He's been cramming to install his complex offensive system, and is also trying to find time to work on the other things, like out-of-bounds plays, trapping defenses, and intricate on-the-fly play calling. He did say he's going to try and "keep things simple" for now, and work to build some confidence on a team that has taken its share of beatings in the pre-season.

Nate sees what you're seeing, don't worry. He's concerned about the same things you are. He knows the players are desperatly trying to please him, and are trying too hard not to make mistakes. With that comes a team that is not free flowing, not confident, and not finding a rhythm. But, there are signs that things are coming around.

The best sign yet came during the third quarter of Saturday's game against Sacramento. The Trail Blazers reeled off an 18-4 run on the Kings and got back into a game that had been blown open very early. The defensive effort improved, the team created turnovers, and, as always, that led to some fast-break opportunities. That's when we got a glimpse of what this team can be, and how it will have to play to be in games come the regular season. I think this team, during that stretch, started to get the idea of exactly how hard it has to play at the defensive end to get things to click in the open floor, the style Nate likes to play. Portland won that third quarter 31-23, and for now, you've got to take those little victories and try and build on them.

Tonight, another pre-season game for the Trail Blazers, this time in Winnipeg, Manitoba, against the Toronto Raptors. At least it's not winter yet.

In the zone(10.21.05)

Zone, zone, and more zone. We talked about this yesterday and it certainly came true again last night. There was probably more zone defense played in last night's pre-season game against the Utah Jazz in Eugene than I've ever seen in any NBA game. If you're the Trail Blazers, get used to it. We're going to see more and more of it. And, it wasn't just the Jazz playing the zone, Portland was playing a fair amount of it too.

If you know anything about college basketball, you know the dean of zone defenses for years has been John Chaney, the head coach at Temple. Nate McMillan's lead assistant coach for the Blazers is Dean Demopolis, who was an assistant under Chaney for 17 years at Temple. So, Dean knows a thing or two about zone defenses, and is now probably the dean of the zone defense in the NBA (no pun intended).

I told you about how the Trail Blazers were working on their zone offense yesterday at practice, and how coach McMillan was telling the team "we're going to see more zone than any team in the NBA this season." Exhibit "A" was last night against the Jazz. While the Blazers are working to combat the zone, they've obviously got a lot of work left to do, and do have some time left before the regular season. As long as they keep shooting a low percentage from the field it will be the defense of choice for opponents.

While browsing NBA.com last night combing over box scores from pre-season games, I came across this. It's our game recap from last night against the Jazz. I took this right from the story...

"Meanwhile, Clippers forward Darius Miles did not enjoy the same success, missing 15 or 17 shots and committing four turnovers in only 27 minutes. Los Angeles struggled as a whole, shooting just 29 percent (20-of-69) and trailing by as many as 33 points."

Again, that's from our game last night. Not sure who wrote the story, but it's obviously still the pre-season for the press as well. Not only did they error in saying Darius still plays for the Clippers, but even called us "Los Angeles." Wow.

It is nice to see NBA trades that benefit both sides, or in this case all three sides. I kept thinking about that while watching Utah's new rookie point guard Deron Williams continue to get more and more comfortable with his role with the Jazz. If you remember, Utah traded it's 6th and 27th picks in the draft to Portland for the 3rd pick. With the 3rd, Utah selected Williams. The Blazers selected Martell Webster with the 6th pick, and then traded the 27th, and their 35th pick to Denver for the 22nd, where they took Jarrett Jack. Denver ended up with the 27th pick, and selected Linas Kleiza, who played well against Portland last Saturday in El Paso.

Bright spots in the game last night against Utah included Jarrett Jack, who played very well in the second half, and was agressive offensively. Sergei Monia followed up his good game against the Clippers on Tuesday, with another strong effort against Utah, and Theo Ratliff had five blocked shots and looked as good as he has so far in the pre-season. The Blazers pre-season continues on Saturday night when they host Bonzi Wells, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and the Sacramento Kings, at the Rose Garden.

Full Court 1 on 1? (10.20.05)

I ended yesterday's blog by saying, three pre-season games down, and five to go. That's a very good thing at this point for the Trail Blazers. They obviously don't like the way the last two have gone, and are working on changing things. Nate wants them to bring better intensity, and play with a greater sense of urgency, but I don't think he's panicking because of a couple of exhibition losses. Keep in mind, McMillan's Seattle team went 2 and 6 in the pre-season last year, and then started the season 9 and 1. I don't think he's expecting 9 and 1 to start this season, but clearly this is tune-up time and that's it.

The one thing you can tell early in this exhibition season is how teams plan on playing the Blazers this season. Make them shoot. The Clippers certainly went with that defensive philsophy on Tuesday night. Pack the middle, switch on just about every pick, and force Portland to be a perimeter team. Get used to seeing that.

In the late stages of practice yesterday, that's exactly what Nate was telling his team. He told them they would probably see more zone defense than any team in the NBA. He had the team working on their own zone defense, and explained that they better be working on the zone offense as well.

I updated the condition of Joel Przybilla in yesterday's blog. He did take part in practice yesterday, and the ankle appears to be in pretty good shape. This is good news following the scary crash to the floor he took in last Saturday's game against Denver. X-rays followed, and that's never a good sign. But, all appears to be well.

Sergei Monia's strong performance in his first pre-season action on Tuesday has paid quick dividends for him. Yesterday at practice he spent a lot of time with the first and second team units. He's catching on to things now, and Nate appears to love his hustle on the floor. The fact that he can shoot doesn't hurt either.

I love hanging around after practice to see what guys stay to put in extra work. The most interesting thing yesterday was a one-on-one game between Juan Dixon and Steve Blake. This wasn't your normal game of one on one however. They played full-court one on one. Talk about a workout. Steve told me they used to do the same thing when they were college teammates at Maryland, where they won a national title, of course.

It'll be a treat for Blazer fans on Thursday night, as they take on the Utah Jazz at Mac Court in Eugene. There are a lot of Blazer fans in Eugene, and it's always nice to take the team to them.

Who Will Win The West?(10.19.05)

The Sacramento Kings will most likely challenge for the Pacific Division title this season, but if they falter at all, the L.A. Clippers could be ready to grab the top spot. Well, either the Clippers or the Golden State Warriors. How strange does that sound? Believe it though. With Amare Stoudamire out for possibly the entire season, Phoenix is now a long shot to take the division. And, from what we're hearing out of Lakers camp, they're a mess. If anything happens to Mike Bibby in Sacramento, meaning if he misses significant time due to injury, it could very well be the Clips and Warriors battling for the crown in the division.

Tuesday night the Trail Blazers got a first-hand look at the "other" L.A. team. If Sam Cassell can stay healthy and share the ball even a little bit (which will be a huge challenge for him) they'll make plenty of noise. They certainly took it to the young Blazers.

As Clips coach Mike Dunleavy was snatching my 4-month old son, Jack, out of my hands before the game, I was complimenting him on the talent he has at his disposal this season. He said he's excited about it, and loves the additions of Cassell and Cuttino Mobley, who didn't play Tuesday. Our conversation was limited, because he was holding Jack and was trying to get him to smile. It's not tough to get Jack to smile. He was passed around all night, and after a while gave up and went to sleep. It was Jack's first game, and on the drive home I reminded him that this is only the exhibition season, and not to let this loss linger too much. He woke up, spit up, and I realized maybe we'd revisit this conversation another time.

Clippers assistant coach Jim Eyen, another class act, who was also an assistant to Dunleavy in Portland, told me the division is indeed wide open and that they intend to make the playoffs. I'm happy for those guys, and they deserve it.

Again, this is the pre-season, so take the Portland loss with a grain of salt. Nate McMillan won't, but as head coach he can't. He jumped on his players early in the game, when they fell behind right out of the gate, and told them during a timeout they have to come with a greater sense of urgency, and be more intense. They're still learning, and he's going to keep pounding away.

One great bright spot in the loss was the play of Sergei Monia. He had 12 points on 5-9 shooting, and this was really his first opportunity of the pre-season. It's been difficult for Monia so far, trying to learn the complex offense. It's even difficult for the players who actually speak English. Monia is working on the language, but that's been what has really held him back so far. Viktor Khryapa has kind of been serving as an interpreter for his friend Sergei, but expressed to me after practice two days ago that he feels he needs to perhaps do less of that in order to make Monia stand on his own and figure it out for himself.

A quick update on Joel Przybilla for you. He went down in Saturday's game holdng his ankle, and when we heard he was going for x-rays it was a little scary. Joel told me tonight it's not bad at all, and that he probably could have played if he had to. He was suited up for practice on Monday, and said he'll most likely practice today with the team.

Three pre-season games down and five to go. Next up, the Utah Jazz, at Mac Court in Eugene on Thursday.

Bright Spots In The Pre-Season Loss?(10.17.05)

Following the first pre-season win last Wednesday over Seattle I mentioned that this is just the pre-season, and wins and losses don't really mean that much. Of course, you bury a statement like that following a win, and following a loss it usually leads the story. That is the case here, following Saturday night's loss to Denver in exhibition game number 2.

There were some big positives that came out of Saturday's game, however. I know Nate McMillan hadn't planned on playing Martell Webster very much, and wasn't going to play Theo Ratliff at all. Martell didn't play at all in the first half, but then came in midway through the third quarter and again should the courage and confidence he showed in that first game against Seattle. Webster ripped off 12 quick points, all from the outside, and the silky-smooth jumper was on display again. Nate has said it would be very hard to start Martell come the regular season, mostly because he's just a rookie, but if he keeps looking this good who knows what'll happen.

I know there were some fans critical of John Nash and Blazers management on draft day for choosing Webster over fellow high school phenom Gerald Green. Green may very well be a solid NBA player some day, but for now Boston sounds like they're sending him to the NBDL for seasoning, and Martell is being talked about as a possible starter for Portland. Let's not forget that when we're throwing around praise and blame. Nice pick fellas.

There was a scary moment on Saturday night in El Paso, and it came in the first half. Joel Przybilla came up lame on his ankle, and immediately went with trainer Jay Jensen to the locker room. We heard moments later he was going to have x-rays on the ankle. That's never what you want to hear, obviously. I'm happy to report, it sounds like things are fine. X-rays were negative, and Joel may miss a practice or two, but it's not serious.

By the way, tonight on Courtside Monday Night at 6pm (KXL 750 am in Portland), Martell will be one of our guests. If you haven't heard this guy yet, you'll want to tune in. Keep in mind when you're listening to him, that he was just going into his senior season in high school at this time last year. It's remarkable. The kid has that "it" quality that few have. From the way he carries himself, to the desire he has to learn whatever he can at practice, to the way he gives inteviews to the media, he's got superstar written all over him.

The exhibition season continues tomorrow when the L.A. Clippers come to town. This is going to be a team fighting for a playoff spot in the west. I can't wait to see how Sam Cassell works out with this bunch. If all goes well, and Mike Dunleavy can build some kind of chemistry early, they could be a player. How about that? Two teams fighting for the Pacific Division title this season could realistically be Golden State and the Clippers.

A Day Off?(10.12.05)

Following the Trail Blazers win over Seattle on Wednesday night a few members of the local media were wondering, out loud, if perhaps coach McMillan would give the team Thursday off. I certainly didn't figure this would be the case, but thought I'd check to make sure following the game. Joel Przybilla chuckled at the idea, and then gave the correct response, "we've got way too much to learn and don't have enough time as it is."

That is one crazy thing about the NBA. The union has fought for fewer days of training camp, and the Blazers were actuallly fortunate with the way their pre-season schedule worked out. Some teams had just three days of organized practice before their first game. Obviously, these days the players know the old notion that you come to camp to get in shape is no longer true. And, for veteran teams maybe camp isn't quite as vital. For the Blazers, they need every day they can get.

Yesterday was a chance for the new coaching staff to work on some more offensive sets, and some out-of-bounds plays. College coaches have about two months to implement this kind of stuff. Pro coaches get, again, about a week. The media was allowed into practice in time to watch coach McMillan work to teach the team some farily simple baseline out-of-bounds plays.

This morning the team left for El Paso to get set for Saturday's game against the Denver Nuggets. For the new players, and free agent acquisitions it'll be the first time aboard one of Paul Allen's custom 757s. I remember last season on an early-season trip watching a wide-eyed Sebastian Telfair on a self-guided tour of the plane. People don't understand how well Mr. Allen takes care of his players, in an attempt to give them every opportunity to win. Players who have flown with other teams immediately realize it's different here.

Speaking of Mr. Allen, it was great to watch him on Wednesday night from his seat at the Rose Garden, pumping his fist following several big moments for his young team. He was at nearly every pre-draft workout, attended summer league in Las Vegas, and is very well versed on every one of his players, and potential players. He's obviously very much looking forward to the start of this season and is as committed as ever.

Saturday's game is a radio-only game for us, so tune in to Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey. Mike Rice and I will have to wait until the season opener at Minnesota to take to the TV airwaves. After 15 years of doing every single Blazers game on radio, Rice was going nuts Wednesday just watching the game with me. The first time in those years here he'd actually just sat and watched a game. Trust me, just because he wasn't on the air doesn't mean he wasn't talking.

First Pre-Season Game (10.12.05)

They say the preseason doesn't mean much, and wins and losses mean even less. But, you couldn't have told Nate McMillan that after the win over his former team, the Sonics, on Wednesday night. Young teams have to learn how to win, and what it feels like, so that they can repeat it. Sounds very simple, but I loved hearing Nate embrace that following the win. And, make no mistake, this one felt good to our coach.

After Tuesday's rough practice, it was easy to get the feeling these Blazer players were getting tired of beating on each other. The practice was very chippy, and tempers were short. Nothing of note specifically happened, and certainly nothing escalated, but the high-energy five-on-five drills were rough. This is a good thing. But, it's a better thing when you finally get to beat on someone else. The Trail Blazers won't have many worse shooting nights than this, hopefully, but still found a way to win, and that's was the most important lesson learned, I think, on Wednesday. They outworked the much more veteran Seattle team, and that's why they won. I'm sure coach McMillan told them as much after the game.

By the way, I pulled up a chair in the locker room after the game and had a quick word with Martell Webster. This guy is extremely likable, and as you've probably heard, is mature beyond his 18 years. I basically wanted to know how he felt about getting into his first NBA game, and immediately being put in a matchup with Ray Allen. "I didn't even really notice right at first," Martell told me. "But after the first play I was standing next to him, and it kind of hit me. I couldn't believe I was standing next to him. I had watched this guy on TV for so long, and now I was playing him. He was my man, and I had to guard him, and then he guarded me." It was great to hear honesty from a young player like Webster, and that he wasn't afraid to admit he was in awe and maybe a little starstruck for a moment. Martell's first offense look was a catch and shoot from just inside the three-point line. He buried it, and also had an impressive slam dunk in transition. I thought this guy wasn't athletic enough to thrive in the NBA at 18 years of age?

Camp McMillan - Day 4 (10.7.05)

This is the final day of training camp for the Trail Blazers, and things conclude tonight with a scrimmage at Linfield College, which will be attended by 600-700 Linfield students. The team will return home following the scrimmage and get set for Sunday's Wells Fargo Fan Fest at the Rose Garden.

Because of the scrimmage tonight, the morning session today was on the lighter side, with no intense conditioning or stamina drills that coach Nate McMillan has become famous for. The team continues to add offensive plays, and continues to work on the fundamentals.

As some of you may have heard, the only player not taking part in this final day is Theo Ratliff, who has returned home to Alabama to attend the funeral of his aunt, who passed away on Wednesday. He is expected to return to the team on Saturday and should be taking part in Sunday's event at the Rose Garden.

Last night's practice was considered the best workout yet for this young Blazers team. I sat with general manager John Nash, player personnel director Kevin Pritchard, and a number of the team's scouts, who've been in McMinnville throughout camp. They all agreed last night was as sharp and as spirited a workout they'd seen all week.

Bill Bayno, the former head coach at UNLV, who coached the Blazers summer league team, and who is now a college scout for the team, walked over immediately following the scrimmage and said the MVP of last night's five-on-five session was Sebastian Telfair. Telfair was one of five Blazers who hit the floor in pain during the intense workout. Sebastian was elbowed in the throat, accidentally, by Jarrett Jack, and it was a scary moment or two as he gasped for breath. Telfair sat out about five minutes and then rejoined the action. His decision making, quickness, and outside shooting touch continue to improve, and his toughness was certainly on display. None of the other players' injuries were significant, just enough to scare you for a second, and all came in the course of hustle and hard work.

In my opinion, the guy who has made the most progress during this camp has been Martell Webster. Last night in a full-speed, full-court drill, he showed everyone why he was considered the best pure shooter in the draft. During one stretch he hit nine straight deep outside shots, most with a hand in his face. Pritchard and I were shaking our heads in disbelief. I said he reminded me of Michael Redd, with his quick release and compact motion. Pritchard said he thought Martell looked a lot like Walter Davis, a former Blazer who was an offensive force in the league.

I've talked a lot this week about how much attention the team has paid to defense. The defensive exercises have greatly outnumbered the offensive drills. You can expect this team to pressure the ball, hard, and pressure it full court. My partner on TV the last two seasons, Steve Jones, always used to get frustrated that the Portland point guards never played pressure defense for 94 feet. He always begged for our smalls to try and make it difficult for opposing point guards to bring the ball up the floor. Well, that will change this year.

Coach McMillan stopped the five-on-five action several times last night and yelled at his point guards to jump up and get on the ball as soon as possession changed. Jarrett Jack really got into this and as soon as shots started going up, he would immediately find his man, usually Telfair, and climb all over him. This is very disruptive, and by the time the opponents get into their offense the shot clock is usually down to about 12 or 13 seconds. Not enough teams use this tactic in the NBA. The Blazers will this season, mark my words. I wouldn't be surprised to see this team win 8 to 10 games this season by pure hustle alone. The comment I've most often heard through the years is, "I just want the team to play hard, every second." You will see that this season, and not just from Ruben Patterson, who has been tremendous in camp, by the way.

I've talked so much about McMillan's desire for excellence in these blogs this week. Every drill has been intense, and when it comes to mistakes he does not discriminate. Last night, while working on new plays, he stopped the drills several times and shouted "where are we supposed to be!" If an offensive player was in the wrong spot, they got an earful, and many times were replaced. He would then turn the rant into a learning experience, saying "if you don't know the plays, get with an assistant coach before or after practice and learn them. I don't care who you are, if you don't know the plays backwards and forwards you will sit." His desire for an efficient, error-free offense is a pleasure to watch.

It's already very apparent what Nate's pet peeves are. Turnovers. Players continue to leave the drills and run laps after each and every turnover. They've gotten so used to that already, no one needs to be told to do it. At one point last night, Darius Miles made a sharp pass across the floor, which tipped off the hands of his intended target. Before the ball even went out of bounds, Darius was off on a lap around the entire arena. There is accountability with swift and immediate consequences. Everyone knows it, everyone understands it, and everyone has bought into it.

We truly don't know what's going to happen once the season starts, but I've watched Blazers training camps since about 1993, and this has been the toughest, most intense, and most exciting camp to witness. To see the players enthusiasm, and desire to please their coach has been a joy.

We hope to see you Sunday at the Rose Garden, and after that, on Wednesday night for the pre-season opener against, as fate would have it, McMillan's former team, the Seattle Supersonics.

Camp McMillan - Day 3 (10.6.05)

Day three of training camp at Linfield College was scheduled to get underway at 10 o'clock, but as usual, there were players on the floor getting set to go by about 9:20. And, 10 o'clock doesn't mean 10:15 or so, like it did in the past. They continue to buy in to Nate McMillan's John Wooden-like structure and direction.

The first two days I've talked a lot about the attention to detail and the constant reminders from the coach during the workouts that "we're going to play the right way." That's what McMillan has preached since his opening press conference back in July, and he delivers that message often during these training camp workouts.

As expected, as camp continues McMillan continues to add more and more to the workouts, getting them more and more specific. On Wednesday the team started going through offensive sets and plays, and that continued today. They added a few more plays, and walked through the offensive sets paying close attention to spacing and movement. Last season Joel Przybilla was one of the best on the team at setting solid screens. This year I think everyone will have that down, as that's vital to this new Trail Blazers offense. They are learning, from scratch, the art of setting a good pick using timing and the proper footwork.

It's great to see the players continuing to buy in to their new coach's philosophy. They already have a great desire to please him and a fear of letting him down. During the offensive work today McMillan stopped a play and told Zach Randolph he needed to start higher in the post for the play to be effective. Zach replied with "oh, I'm sorry," and hustled to get into the correct position. Nate replied, "you don't have to say you're sorry, let's just get it right." But that simple exchange illustrated once again to me the respect they already have for the coach and the professionalism that is shown both ways.

The offensive playbook is a big one and the players are trying to get it down. One particular player commented to me today that they've already learned more plays in three days than they had even attempted to run in the last two seasons combined. The players seem to be thriving on the structure and learning process.

I mentioned in an earlier blog about how these practices have seemed to resemble a college or high school workout in terms of the time spent on fundamentals, and that continues. Nate continues to try and strip away bad habits and start over with the attention to the little things. He constantly shouts things like "catch the ball with two hands," or "don't travel," "or watch your footwork." And, he's really stressing communication. During a 5-man weave drill today he stopped and complimented Ruben Patterson and Darius for being vocal leaders during the exercise, and helping direct traffic on the court.

There has been a lot mentioned about Darius and his growing relationship with McMillan. He's also becoming more of a leader on the court. During one drill today, he was in a group with Jarrett Jack. Jack got a little out of position at one point, and it was Miles who stepped in and helped the rookie.

The younger players are obviously feeling the support from the more seasoned players as well, as today Martell Webster finished a full-court passing drill and immediately walked to Juan Dixon for a pointer. Dixon, by the way, has more than lived up to his reputation as being a hard worker and professional in every way so far.

It wasn't like McMillan took it easy on the troops today, but there did seem to be a few fewer hard-core conditioning drills. They still run, and are pushed to run extremely hard, especially during what McMillan calls "stamina" drills, but there wasn't as much of that today. By the way, the player with maybe the best stamina on the team in these conditioning drills so far is, in my opinion, Webster. The guy runs like a deer and doesn't ever seem to get tired. I've heard some people around draft time question his athleticism. I disagree.

Incidentally, between the morning and evening workouts tomorrow, Nate McMillan will be speaking to a middle school in McMinnville. The topic of his talk is leadership.

Camp McMillan - Day 2 (10.5.05)

It’s always tough to tell what kind of shape the players are in on day one of training camp. Day two, however, is usually another story. Sore muscles from the first day, minor strains and sprains, and tired legs usually start to show. The good news from day two of camp is, these guys were already in very good shape. A lot of us who have been watching workouts for two weeks already knew that.

The greatest moments for me in these first two days of camp have been at the start, and at the end. That’s when coach Nate McMillan calls all the players together and tells them what’s going to happening, how he feels, and reminds them how fortunate they are to be there. I can’t tell you what a great motivator he is, and how well he grabs the attention of the players.

I talked about this a lot after day one of camp, but it needs to be mentioned again. The biggest thing Nate teaches is professionalism. He wants total concentration, total focus, and attention to every single detail during every single drill. During a three-man weave drill today he stopped it twice, and reminded players to catch the ball with both hands, give sharp passes, as focus. No one just goes through the motions on Nate’s watch. We all know that now. The players have learned that in a hurry.

Many of the drills conducted in the first two days have been timed. Once the team achieves a certain number of baskets in the allotted time, coach McMillan will either shorten the time they have to achieve the goal, or, he’ll increase the amount of points the team needs to score. The point is, he’s never satisfied, and that’s a very good thing. He’s always yelling, “push yourself,” in the drills. That’s what this has been all about so far.

There was talk about Zach Randolph hobbling on his recently-repaired knee. I can tell you that he didn’t sit out of any action today, and wasn’t dragging the knee at all. That’s a good sign. He’s not 100 percent yet, and he’s admitted that, but he’s well on his way.

A guy who’s been very impressive to me so far, is Steve Blake. His quickness, ball handling ability, and outside shooting, have been very solid. It’ll make for great competition for Sebastian Telfair, and another great mentor to Jarrett Jack.

Joel Przybilla is in incredible shape, and that’s showing on the court early in camp. His weight is down to about 240, as compared to about 255 last season, his arms are much more defined, and he looks quicker and more powerful.

I mentioned Telfair above, and he’s another guy who’s gotten more muscular. He told me he’s only put on about 7 or 8 pounds, but fans will notice the difference in his arms right away.

Much more work on the offense today at camp, after most of the attention was to the defense on day one. The team went though some offensive sets, and walked through most of the plays. There will be more of that as camp continues. I’ll report back following tomorrow’s day 3.

Camp McMillan - Day 1 (10.4.05)

It’s been said that Nate McMillan is a taskmaster, and one who is a stickler for the details. It’s also been said that McMillan is the perfect coach to run this extremely young Portland Trail Blazers team. On the first day of training camp, both things seemed to ring true.

Monday night the Blazers took the short bus ride from the practice facility in Tualatin to McMinnville and Linfield College, and today opened training camp. If the players didn’t know before that coach McMillan gets serious, in a hurry, they do now.

The team had a quick meeting at center court before camp started, and McMillan stressed to the team how players should come to camp already in shape, and if they’re not, it’s going to be a long week. I think it’ll be a long week for some of them anyway, and for players who came in ready for the season to start it’ll just be slightly easier.

Defense was the theme of the first day- defense and conditioning, that is. The team really didn’t do any work on the offense, outside of the normal three and five-man weave drills. No organized shooting drills, no out-of-bounds plays, no offensive sets. Just defense, foot work drills, full-court pressing drills, and running, lots of running.

Coach McMillan has a lot of rules. One of them we’ve heard so far is no headbands. There’s also no sitting down during practice. One rule the players got familiar with on day one was no sloppy play, even in drills. You commit a turnover during a drill, or scrimmage, or anything, and it’s a lap around the entire gym. A lot of players were running laps on day one, as expected, being this was the first day of camp.

I was sitting with some of the Trail Blazers scouts, general manager John Nash, and player personnel director Kevin Pritchard. It seemed we were all very interested in what exactly a McMillan practice was going to be like. Everyone had flashbacks to high school, and college ball. Very, very structured and very organized. I can tell you we haven’t had a practice this on schedule, and goal oriented in my six years with the team- nothing even close. They say people thrive on discipline, especially young people. The young Blazers are going to get plenty of that.

The best part of the entire workout was at the very end, when the players lined up on the baseline, and McMillan said, “now, we’re going to condition.” As if they hadn’t. Coach then randomly called each player to shoot two free throws. Make them both, no one runs. Miss one, it’s one sprint up and back. Miss two free throws, it’s up and back twice. I remember that very well from high school practices. It’s pressure, with a big reward, and, it’s a lot of fun. Welcome to Camp McMillan. They said day two will include a little more offense. I’ll let you know tomorrow.

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