NBA Double Jeopardy, for $2000: Three small ominous words Blazers fans should NOT want to hear right now
ANSWER IS: What are …
#1. Go
#2. For
#3. It
Or, exactly what Portland’s owner recently told Kevin Pritchard [GM] …
Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen tells his GM: Go for it
Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen has told general manager Kevin Pritchard to upgrade the team’s roster for next season, adding suspense, intrigue and pressure to what already figures to be a critical juncture in the team’s pursuit of a championship.
“Overall, our timeline has moved up,” Pritchard said last week after one of several offseason meetings with Allen. “We need to take it to the next level.”
Although Allen wants improvement every season, this summer’s edict comes at a crucial time. The Blazers are one of the league’s brightest teams on the rise, coming off a 54-win season and the franchise’s first playoff appearance since 2003. A bad trade, or free agent flop now could be the difference between a dynasty or a dud.
The big question, of course, is how Pritchard goes about improving the league’s second-youngest roster?
Does he listen to coach Nate McMillan’s desire for experience? Does he flex the team’s enviable muscle in the free agency market? Does Pritchard relent to his daring, go-for-it nature and make a blockbuster trade? Or does he sit on his hands as he did at last season’s trading deadline, when he made no moves in order to let his young team progress “organically”?
“Those propositions haven’t come to the forefront yet,” Pritchard said in the waning days before Thursday’s draft.
It’s a jumbled picture right now, with many possibilities and options open to the Blazers. But this much appears to be certain: The Blazers will be a major player when the free agent market opens July 1, and they are open to trading out of Thursday’s draft.
———-
Upgrade the team’s talent for next season?
Please ….
As is, the Blazers’ player roster for 2009-2010 is already slated to be amongst the very best in the NBA:
PG - Steve Blake, Sergio Rodriguez, Jerryd Bayless [Brandon Roy?]
OG - Brandon Roy, Martell Webster [Rudy Fernandez?]
SF - Nicolas Batum, Rudy Fernandez [Travis Outlaw?]
PF - LaMarcus Aldridge, Travis Outlaw, Channing Frye
C - Joel Przybilla, Greg Oden
despite being the second-youngest average aged in the league.
Upgrade the team’s talent?
Is Paul Allen joking????????
———-
The view from here says that now is NOT the right time for the Blazers to attempt their first dive from the High Tower.
Portland [Kevin Pritchard, GM/#1 and Nate McMillan, Head Coach/#2, below] has done a terrific job rebuilding their house, from the ashes which were left following the 2005-2006 season, when they won just 21 games, by:
#1. Drafting and trading in a masterful way, i.e. 2006 NBA Draft; 2. 2007 NBA Draft; and, 3. 2008 NBA Draft …
and,
#2. Posting increasing Win Totals for 3 successive years, i.e. 2006-2007, 2007-2008, and this past season.
Now is the Lakers’ time to shine in the spotlight of the Western Conference, as the Blazers’ young guns gradually acclimatize themselves to life in the Playoffs … by going deeper and deeper each season, for the next 2-3 years, i.e. dabbing their toes in the water this year, swimming for the deep end next season, treading water thereabouts for a while [i.e. bobbing up and down] and ONLY THEN being in an actual position to dive-in, headfirst, for the treasure that lies at the bottom of the sea, where only the very best Jacques Cousteau’s can go … without incurring the bends.
Yes, the Blazers have 5 picks in Thursday’s NBA Draft [i.e. No. 24, No. 33, No. 38, No. 55 & No. 56] but by swinging for the fences TOO SOON, in their development as a TEAM … instead of simply allowing more of their own players to evolve naturally and then adding key free agents at a later date, as need be, to get over the “proverbial” hump … they run the very real risk of seeing their hard work go up in a puff of smoke, right now, by adding the wrong player [e.g. Hedo Turkoglu] at the wrong time to an already potent mix.
Patience is a virtue … especially in the NBA … for those seeking to become The VERY BEST in their chosen field.
The current situation in Portland fits into THIS category.
Minor tweaks are okay. Seismic ones are not.
Time is on your side. Be Patient. JUST LET IT HAPPEN.
Tags: Brandon Roy, Channing Frye, Greg Oden, Hedo Turkoglu, Jerryd Bayless, Joel Przybilla, Kevin Pritchard, LaMarcus Aldridge, Martell Webster, Nate McMillan, Nicolas Batum, Paul Allen, Portland Trail Blazers, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez, Steve Blake, Travis Outlaw
June 23rd, 2009 at 8:05 pm
they will have some challenges resigning all that young talent. a trade may have to happen.
June 23rd, 2009 at 8:34 pm
Raps Fan,
True enough.
1. However, that time is not right now, or this upcoming season.
2. When that time arrives, Portland could always decided then:
i. To keep only the players they want most of all while letting the others walk away for nothing;
ii. To keep only the players they want most of all while trading the others for future draft picks, as expiring contracts;
iii. To keep only the players they want most of all while trading the others for a combination of future draft picks and veteran players who would be a better fit with what would be a more veteran team at that point;
iv. To keep only the players they want most of all while trading the others for a select combination of future draft picks and a veteran player PLUS signing a high profile UFA or two who would be a terrific fit for what would be a veteran team on the cusp of a League Championship at that point.
If I’m Kevin Pritchard right now, I would continue to grow my team “organically” and not force the issue this summer.
June 24th, 2009 at 10:05 am
I do agree, let’s see how well he stands up to Paul Allen.
June 24th, 2009 at 10:32 am
Portland should push the issue. They have an opportunity to win a Championship right now. That shouldn’t be taken for granted.
Anything can happen over the next few years, and their Championship window may disappear entirely.
June 24th, 2009 at 11:38 am
Dave,
I think Portland is still a ways off from being a legit contender to win it all … as their key players [i.e. listed above] are still wet behind the ears.
Pulling the trigger too soon is a sure-fire way to make your assets disappear into thin air.
Last year was the Celtics’ turn.
This season belonged to the Lakers.
Portland failed to get passed the Rockets … giving Houston its FIRST advancement beyond the 1st Round in a long time.
The Blazers’ ownership [i.e. Mr. Allen] should not delude itself into thinking that their franchise is just a move or two away from reaching the Promised Land.
IMO, they will eventually get there … but, not if they try to arrive too soon, i.e. before cats like Roy, Oden, Outlaw, Aldridge, Webster & Co. have learned their lessons well.
June 25th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Historically, I would have agreed completely with Khandor. But nowadays, my mindset rests elsewhere.
In the fickle arena of professional sports, the one thing you cannot count on is time. So if you have a realistic opportunity to at least get to the conference finals, I would take it.
Because you never know… the front office could blow up the roster, the fans could revolt if the team “underperforms,” Oden could go down, Aldridge could walk, and the list goes on.
Portland’s current circumstances are probably the best any NBA team will have - with a combination of small-market expectations, supportive management, quantifiable season-to-season improvement - but I would still vote to try to win NOW.
June 26th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
K-man,
I agree that the world of sports is fickle.
I disagree, however, that the way to cope best with this reality is a WIN NOW approach which involves making hasty decisions BEFORE the time is right.
Despite the words & sentiments of Paul Allen … what Kevin Pritchard needs to do is convince his owner to “be patient”.
It’s a virtue … which doesn’t change regardless of the current circumstances.
Strike while the iron is hot … not cold, not lukewarm, and not whilest it’s in the process of getting warm.
Hot is hot. Period.
IMO, the Blazers are just beginning to turn up the temperature in the WC … and, nowhere near the BOILING POINT, just yet.