Portland Trail Blazers By Bryan Williams, NBA.com HEAD COACH Maurice Cheeks (Second year) 2001-02 RESULTS 49-33 (Sixth in West) SEASON OUTLOOK: Once again Portland enters the season as arguably the NBA's deepest collection of talent, meaning that once again team chemistry will determine its success. The Blazers rode their athleticism to the West's sixth seed in 2001-02 and were summarily swept out of the first round by the Lakers. Without a real leader on the floor and without a supporting cast of players who accept more limited roles, Portland remains a team that is unlikely to crack the top tier in an ultra-competitive conference. Forward Rasheed Wallace and swingman Bonzi Wells are the real threats on offense. Wallace, with his size and ability, could still become one of the truly great power forwards in the game, and despite all the focus on his erratic behavior, he quietly set career-highs last season in both scoring (19.3 ppg) and rebounding (8.2 rpg). Then he really stepped up in the postseason, averaging 25.3 points and 12.3 boards in three games against L.A., numbers he's capable of putting up over an entire year with the right attitude and the right personnel. Wells, too, was impressive in his first year as an everyday starter; adept at slashing to the basket and creating his own shot, Wells posted 17.0 points a night and rebounded well at his position with 6.0 per game. He also improved his range, shooting a career-best .384 from three-point territory. Though a bit undersized at center, 6-11 Dale Davis (9.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg) remains a good fit in Portland's starting lineup. The 11-year veteran brings a blue-collar mentality, plays tough under the basket and -- as a career .534 shooter -- only looks to score in high-percentage situations. Of course, the Blazers will have their traditional internal turmoil. There is a logjam at the point guard spot as summer acquisitions Jeff McInnis and Antonio Daniels challenge incumbent Damon Stoudamire for his job, a competition likely to be won by McInnis as Stoudamire too often looks to score rather than pass. Derek Anderson has never been happy about his role as Wells' backup and is unlikely to change his mind on the topic. And Scottie Pippen, though still a skilled passer and defender after 15 years in the league, would better serve this team as a reserve, a demotion he'd never accept without a fight. VIDEO FLASHBACK: GREAT CALL OF 2001-02 Damon Stoudamire buzzer-beater vs. Milwaukee: "Stoudamire for three ... and the victory. You have just seen an unbelievable basketball game." 1264k avi | QuickTime WHO'S IN: Free agent signee McInnis, Daniels -- along with center Amal McCaskill and guard Charles Smith -- in a trade with San Antonio and draftees Qyntel Woods (6-8 forward), Jason Jennings (7-0 center) and Federico Kammerichs (6-9 forward). The Blazers also brought back free agent 7-3 center Arvydas Sabonis, who will see time backing up Davis. WHO'S OUT: In one of the oddities of the summer, Shawn Kemp (6.1 ppg, 3.8 rpg) agreed to a contract buyout and was waived by the Blazers, ultimately signing with Orlando. Guards Erick Barkley and Steve Kerr went to the Spurs in the Daniels trade, and free agent Rick Brunson signed with Chicago. BENCH: The talent is there, but the harmony is a different story. Anderson (10.8 ppg) and Stoudamire (13.5 ppg) are both longtime starters who will never be content on the bench. Ruben Patterson (11.2 ppg, .515 FG%) -- a hustle-type player and quality defender -- actually should be starting ahead of Pippen, but won't. Sabonis, on the other hand, will be happy as a reserve. The big man can barely run anymore and hasn't played in over a year, but he's still a great passing center and will get rebounds with his size alone. THE BLAZERS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS IF ... : Egos take a backseat to team chemistry and they run their offense through their real superstars, Wallace and Wells. THE BLAZERS MISS THE PLAYOFFS IF ... : Bickering and in-fighting leads them to completely self-destruct late in the year.		Bonzi Wells flourished as a regular starter in 2001-02, averaging career-highs in points (17.0 ppg) and rebounds (6.0 rpg). Sam Forencich/NBAE/Getty Images P R O J E C T E D   S T A R T E R S POS PLAYER SCHOOL YRS PG Jeff McInnis North Carolina 5 SG Bonzi Wells Ball State 4 SF Scottie Pippen Cen. Arkansas 15 PF Rasheed Wallace North Carolina 7 C Dale Davis Clemson 11 S C O U T ' S   T A K E "Athletically Blazers are top five NBA team … Good front-running team … They need to learn how to fight back and play better when they’re struggling … They’ve got three point guards, all dominant personalities … All have had success, so who do you start? Huge factor is team chemistry. Scottie Pippen is in a contract year. Rasheed Wallace is a great talent, but his temper tantrums throw not only his game off, but his teammates’ games, as well … Will late signing of Bonzi Wells affect the team? Very talented team that needs to put it together defensively and make the right decisions down the stretch to move to next level … Should help that Mo Cheeks was one of the best all-time about making decisions as a perimeter player." -- Western Conference assistant coach 2 0 0 1 - 0 2   L E A D E R S PPG Rasheed Wallace 19.3 RPG Dale Davis 8.8 APG Damon Stoudamire 6.5 SPG Scottie Pippen 1.63 BPG Rasheed Wallace 1.28 G A M E S   T O   W A T C H 10/30 L.A. Lakers 9:30 ET, ESPN 10/31 at Sacramento 10 ET, TNT 12/11 at New Jersey 7 ET, ESPN 1/9 San Antonio 10 ET, TNT 1/26 at Dallas 2 ET, ESPN F A N T A S Y   S L E E P E R Jeff McInnis - Guard If he snags the starting job from Damon Stoudamire, McInnis should put up some quality numbers from the point guard spot. He's improved his scoring and assists every year since he entered the league, and with the depth of talent on this team, he'll have plenty of opportunities to be a playmaker. T H E   S T A T 95 League-leading number of technical fouls called on Portland in 2001-02, 22 more than second-place Dallas.
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