There were a ton of comments yesterday and I still haven’t had a chance to address some that need to be addressed. This blog set records this week for traffic, driven by the Blazers’ playoff run, of course.

So rather than go back and comment within the comment section, where many might miss the responses, here are a few statements in response to comments left on yesterday’s posts:

– Yes, I picked Portland to win the series in five games. Yes, I was wrong. I’m sure YOU picked the Rockets in six. What was I thinking, figuring that the higher seed with the homecourt advantage could win a series???

I think I was wrong for the right reasons, though. I said the Blazers had the better talent. I said I thought as the series went along the Blazers would learn how to better play against Yao and the Rockets and improve. I said the younger team would have fresher legs as the series moved forward.

I believe I was correct about the talent part. Always will believe that. But Houston had the better team. You draw your own conclusions as to why — you can explain it in many ways. I’ve got all summer to talk about it. I think I was looking very right about all the other things I said about the series until Game 6, when the Blazers fell off a cliff. I cannot figure that one out, but the effort level just wasn’t what you would expect in a situation like that.

– Yes, many weeks ago I said I thought Houston would be the best first-round matchup for Portland. That was prior to Manu Ginobili going out for San Antonio, which later made the Spurs the most attractive matchup. But of all the teams left, I think the Rockets have the least amount of talent. They sure play well together, though.

– And “Sam,” you’re trying to use “usage rate” as a measure of how often Brandon Roy and Michael Jordan had the ball in their hands. That’s not what usage rate measures. It measures production — which players best utilize their time on the court.

– When I wrote about the Trail Blazers using too much one-on-one stuff, too many isolations, I mostly heard this: “Hey, it was good enough to win 54 games” and “One-on-one is the best end-game strategy” or something of that nature.

Here’s the deal: I wrote earlier about this, but scouting and preparation in the regular season, with 82 games hitting you like bugs on a windshield, is nothing like playoff preparation. That’s the reason teams have great home records in the NBA — the home team always has more time to prepare than the road team. In the playoffs, when you’re easy to prepare for, teams lock in on you, the way the Rockets did on the Blazers.

Second, I have no problem with Brandon Roy isolations with 22 seconds left in the game. But the Blazers are running isolations in the first quarter and have all season.

– I recommended Alonzo Mourning as a mentor for Greg Oden as much for his mental approach to the game as the style he played. I also figured he might be available to do it. There are plenty of others who could, including David Robinson, but I’m not sure he’d be willing to leave the church and family for such a project. Robinson, by the way, proved you don’t have to be a fire-breathing dragon to prosper as an NBA center.

– At this point of my career, I’m not going to start identifying sources for anonymous quotes I use. They’re solid, trustworthy and time tested — and very candid because they know I’m not going to “out” them. The choice is yours, you can either trust me or not. And if you don’t, why are you here? Go somewhere else. You may believe my ego is sizeable, but it’s not at all intertwined with the number of visits I get to this blog.

– Blazers Edge got all geeked up about how “harsh” it was of me to say the Blazer offense was predictable and easy to prepare for. Honestly, I never thought twice that anybody would disagree with that. You’re saying it’s NOT predictable? Come on, it didn’t take inside sources for anyone to notice that.

– Folks, you’re going to hear more about this later, but don’t be too enamored with Portland’s great “chemistry.” That stuff’s important but it’s not the entire picture. I’ve been around a lot of very successful teams and they all had decent chemistry. But they didn’t all have great chemistry. It’s OK for players on a successful team to not all get along. It’s OK for them not to like the coach. Man, you think all the Bulls liked Jordan? Or Dennis Rodman? You think all the Pistons liked Isiah Thomas? Do you think all of Phil Jackson’s players enjoy playing for him? How about Pat Riley’s players?

Just don’t be deceived into thinking Portland can love itself into a championship. Deals will be made and there will be changes that come with them. Chemistry will change. But that big banger or star point guard everyone wants to bring in may not be the most lovable player on the squad. It’s just the way it is.

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Tags: Alonzo Mourning, Blazers Edge, Brandon Roy, Dwight Jaynes, Greg Oden, Portland Trail Blazers

Man, I downright felt sorry for the guy in the first round. Other than a few promising minutes, he was embarrassingly inept under the microscope of the playoffs.

Don’t get me wrong. I still believe he’s got unlimited potential. I still believe for the Trail Blazers to develop into a championship team, he’s got to become a central figure. I still believe he can be that central figure.

But man, there was not a lot of improvement during his rookie season. I can’t really point to one thing that I could say he did better at the end than he did at the start. And without being on the inside to know the real dynamic of all this stuff, let me make one suggestion right now:

Go find Alonzo Mourning, wherever he is. The guy is big, mean, tough and has the heart of a warrior. He was one of the game’s great competitors. Ask Alonzo how much money it would take to come out and spend about a month, or two, with Greg Oden — then write him a check. Get those guys together — in the gym and everywhere else — and see what happens.

At the end of that time, we’d know a lot more about Greg Oden and where he’s going to end up.

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Tags: Alonzo Mourning, Dwight Jaynes, Greg Oden, Portland Trail Blazers