Everyone says it — including me, all the time — that the reason the Trail Blazers have trouble making a trade is that they overvalue all their players to a great extent.

But just a thought after another improbable road victory, this time in Philadelphia, where they’ve often found it difficult to win with all their supposedly best players in the lineup.

What if all these guys really are this good? I mean, it’s possible, isn’t it? Yes, it is. But if so, it’s probably still going to be difficult to get equivalent value in return for them because nobody will quite believe they’re this good. It’s just so improbable that one roster could be this deep.

What I like about the way the Trail Blazers play without Brandon Roy, by the way, is how much better ball movement they usually get. That doesn’t mean I want Portland to deal Roy. It doesn’t mean I don’t think Roy is the key to this team. He’s a budding superstar.

What I do think is possible is that the Trail Blazers can have this kind of ball movement when Roy is in the game and be an even better team. He’d still get his points but probably in easier fashion and other players would get better shots, too.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Brandon Roy, Dwight Jaynes, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers

That’s what this story out of Philly says:

Andre Miller’s agent, Andy Miller, has confirmed that within 24 hours Andre Miller will be a Portland Trailblazer.

Miller said the two parties are “finalizing” the deal today and it should become official within 24 hours. His client, who has been the 76ers starting point guard for the last 2 1/2 seasons, will receive a deal that one source said was “an improvement” over the deal the Sixers were offering, which was reportedly in the 1 year/$6 million range.

Yesterday, Sixers General Manager Ed Stefanski removed the team’s offer to Miller.

That means by Sunday afternoon, he better be in the gym working on his outside shooting.

UPDATE: This is a sure sign that Jerryd Bayless is history. They’re just not going to bring that guy back to be the No. 3 point guard. I don’t think he could handle it. To hear him talk, he’s vying for the starting spot. He’ll get a change of address real soon — and I doubt they’ll get a lot for him.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Andre Miller, Dwight Jaynes, Jerryd Bayless, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers

They are reporting in Philadelphia that Miller is seeking $10 million a year. I have no idea what they’re putting in those Philly cheesesteaks these days but this guy has to be hallucinating. It isn’t going to happen for him at that price in this economy. Obviously it’s just a starting point in negotiations and the writer should have pointed that out.

And any talk of a sign-and-trade with the Trail Blazers at that price? No way. You can’t have $10 million of your cap space tied up with the likes of Andre Miller. Sorry, but a guy who over the last four seasons has made just 23 of his 122 three-point attempts? A man who has, during his career, made only 21 percent of his three-point field goals?

It isn’t just that he can’t make threes — it’s that he runs from them as if they’re his own personal Kryptonite.

That’s just plain ridiculous for most teams to sign him at that number, let alone a team that plays the kind of game Portland plays. The Blazers need shooters. They need players who keep the floor open.

A guy who can’t consistently make a three-point shot just can’t play alongside Brandon Roy at any price, can he? Roy needs people around him who can keep the defense away from him — guys who make defenses pay for double teams. I just cannot imagine that the Blazers’ interest in Miller is real.

It has to be a smokescreen, doesn’t it?

Tweet This Post

Tags: Andre Miller, Dwight Jaynes, NBA free agency, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers

You ought to read this. I don’t know who “JS Gilbert” is and I’ve never read the “American Chronicle.”

Here’s the opening paragraph of a VERY long piece:

Disgustingly, former Blazer Antonio Harvey has come out on the “Fifth Quarter” radio program on Portland´s 95.5 FM and publicly defended an obvious fix-job by NBA refs. The simple fact that Harvey would defend such detestable officiating shows that he not only does not deserve to represent the Blazers or their fans on the air, but also, he does not deserve to call himself a Blazer, or even to represent the fans of sports in general. Anyone who justifies thrown games and cheating officials cannot truly be considered a fan of sports.

Tweet This Post

Tags: American Chronicle, Antonio Harvey, Dwight Jaynes, fixed games, JS Gilbert, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers

First off, a great game. One more team comes into the Rose Garden extremely well prepared to play the Trail Blazers. Some reaction:

– Man, Philadelphia played an incredible first half. At the half, it was 19-0 in fast-break points. And the 76ers had 36 points in the paint. They flat took it to Portland right at the basket. The Sixers were physical and active, not what you’d expect often from a team that played the night before and was on the end of a five-games-in-seven-nights run.

– I don’t want to hear anything about the officials. Honestly. Yeah, Leon Wood had a bad night. Steve Javie did a real bad thing, too. When the crowd was in the middle of its “Javie sucks” chants, the referee in question went to the Philly bench and flashed a snarky smile as he exchanged a few remarks. That’s not good, Steve — you make it look as if you’re conspiring against the other team. Try real hard, by the way, not to look so much like you enjoy it when everyone’s on your ass — it makes you look psychotic.

– That said, the officials had NOTHING to do with the outcome.

– All night long, Philadelphia did as efficient a job on Brandon Roy as anyone has done all season. In the first half, the Sixers jumped every single pick and roll Roy was involved in, doubling him and forcing him to give the ball up. In the second half, Portland mercifully got him out of those pick and rolls, but Philadelphia still doubled him at every opportunity. And when the Blazers spread the floor for Roy’s hope for a one-on-one chance, Philly mobbed him, making him beat two or three more defenders.

– That said, what on earth was Portland thinking going to that set with the game on the line and 20 seconds left? Four guys standing there watching Roy play one-on-five is not productive. This is a playoff preview and I’d like to emphasize, as I have at previous times, the Blazers have to come up with something better than that in late-game situations. In meaningful games, the good teams are not going to allow you to get Roy into open-court, one-on-one situations — GIVE HIM SOME HELP! Give the whole team some options — move the ball and move bodies. Don’t give the defense such an easy option to lock him down.

– The spread offense continued in the overtime period and again, to no avail.

– Portland had virtually no fast-break chances when Sergio Rodriguez wasn’t on the floor. He’s not only got to be the backup point guard, he should be getting more minutes. His court vision helps get other players involved.

– I’m saving Greg Oden for another post. Suffice it to say he was a huge factor.

– I don’t know much of anything about Tony DiLeo but man, all I have to say is that if Maurice Cheeks was still coaching that team, you wouldn’t have seen that kind of defensive effort and cohesion.

– Yup, a lot of fouls went uncalled. It was a physical game. People got knocked down. That’s the way it gets at this time of the season and the Blazers, and their fans, better get used to it.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Brandon Roy, Dwight Jaynes, Maurice Cheeks, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, Tony DiLeo

Honestly, this is one of the most interesting matchups of the season for the Trail Blazers, because of the circumstances of the schedule.

Several factors are at work here that would make the game a totally hands-off affair if I were a betting man. I wouldn’t want to bet on a team at the end of a pretty grueling five-game road trip, as the Sixers are. At the same time, I wouldn’t want to bet on a team, like the Blazers, who are coming off a grueling five-games-in-seven-nights trip, either. They used to say the first game back after a week-long trip is like another road game.

Philadelphia is playing well, as the win at the Staples Center against the Lakers certainly reflects. And the 76ers, a young team on the rise that is going to make the playoffs, hammered Portland in an earlier game at Philadelphia.

I expect both teams to be tired and battered. It’s going to come down to effort points — offensive rebounds, second-chance points, points off turnovers. The team that can find an energy source somewhere — and that usually means the bench — will be the winner.

I always think it’s critical for the home team to jump out in front in a game against a visitor that is at the end of a long road swing. Get out on them and give them a chance to pack it in — to think about how good it’s going to be to get home.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers

Wow… don’t remember seeing Portland this bad all season. It’s so tempting to talk first about the offense, which was out of sync all night. But really — pin it on the defense first. You have to defend with more intensity than that to win in the NBA, particularly on the road. Here are a few thoughts:

• I’m beginning to wonder if the Trail Blazers should ever have drafted Greg Oden. I mean, seriously — what’s the point of having a seven-foot force in the middle if the coach doesn’t want to play him and doesn’t seem interested in getting him the ball even when he does use him? The guy is coming off a half in Chicago Monday night where he carried the Blazers. Not many people noticed he barely got a touch in the second half as the Portland jump shooters took over that game. But then Wednesday night, he plays 18 minutes and gets three shots. What’s that all about? Perhaps he’s hurt, or something. If so, I apologize for this — but come on now, there are a bunch of coaches in this league who would sell their first born for a chance at getting a powerful center like this to develop. Why is he playing only 18 minutes and not getting the ball? Dunks aren’t as good as 20-foot jump shots? This makes no sense whatsoever. The plus-minus in this game showed Przybilla at -13, Aldridge -16, Roy -9, Outlaw -18 and Oden +5 — the only Portland player in the plus category. Yes, I know the plus-minus hasn’t been kind to Oden this season, but the guy is improving with every game and not only needs to play, he needs to be used as the weapon he can become. This ranks right at the top of my list of several things I don’t understand about the way this team plays.
• Related to the previous item: Doesn’t everyone see how much better this team is when it plays inside-out? Aldridge, Oden and Roy should be posting up — then that will get you OPEN jumpers instead of the tough shots Portland had Wednesday night. The ball needs to get inside much, much more frequently than it does. This requires more patience, though, than anyone seems to have.
• For every night that Travis Outlaw scores 30 points or so, there are four or five nights when he wanders around the court like a guy who is looking for his lost dog. Man, you have to guard someone, you have to chase the ball down, you have to play with force, you have to make the smart pass. You have to be INVOLVED even when you aren’t shooting the ball!
• Jerryd Bayless is obviously the coach’s favorite in the backup point guard derby. Might just as well start him in Blake’s absence, too. And, I think, may as well trade Sergio, too. Nate McMillan just doesn’t seem to like him — and Sergio seems to sense it. Bayless, who doesn’t look ready for any kind of extended duty yet, is going to get it, though. Man, 1 for 11 from the field, no assists and two turnovers — yeah, meet Thursday night’s starter.
• With Steve Blake and Rudy Fernandez out at the same time, it’s going to be very difficult for Portland to win. The Blazers fire up all those outside shots and now have Sergio and Jerryd — two reluctant, almost frightened, shooters — to share the point-guard duties. If Rudy were healthy, you could at least play him and Roy together.
• Shavlick Randolph? On a night when toughness and inside scoring would have helped, why not?
• Pat’s Cheesesteaks are better than Geno’s. Sorry Blazer Broadcasting, you got that one wrong.
• Man, it puts me in a lousy mood to have to watch an entire game on a computer screen when the Blazers are playing that poorly. Feels like such a waste of time sitting there with those keys in front of you and all that information at your fingertips and you’re watching these guys flounder around without much purpose – know what I mean? Come on Directv, let’s get that deal signed with Comcast Sportsnet, OK?

Tweet This Post

Tags: Brandon Roy, Dwight Jaynes, Geno's, Greg Oden, Jerryd Bayless, Pat's Cheesesteaks, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Rodriguez, Shavlick Randolph

Fans seated courtside for Philadelphia 76ers games will have one fewer person to chat with now. Maurice Cheeks has been fired, even though his contract has been extended twice in the last 11 months. I think if I owned the franchise, I’d be looking to sack the guy who felt the need to extend that contract two different times.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Dwight Jaynes, Maurice Cheeks, Philadelphia 76ers