<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Call it luck or call it destiny. Call it whatever you want, but be sure that the Trail Blazers pairing of Steve Blake and Juan Dixon is something special. The two first met at the University of Maryland in 1999. Blake was a freshman, and Dixon a sophomore. Since then, the two guards have shared some amazing experiences. They made the NCAA Final Four in 2001, won Maryland?s first National Championship in 2002, visited The White House and even met the President. And that was just college. After winning the National Championship and completing his senior year, Juan left for the NBA. The Washington Wizards made him the 17th pick of the 2002 draft. Steve would stay with the Terrapins for his final year, but it wouldn?t be long before they met again. The Wizards drafted Steve the following year, reuniting Maryland?s winning backcourt. "It's one of the best feelings I've ever had," said Blake. "To be able to stay in the area, and play with Juan again -- it's a dream come true." Washington knew that they had two players with a special bond. During their three seasons together for Maryland, Dixon and Blake won and astounding 82 of their 107 games. Dixon left the Terrapins the school?s all-time leading scorer and winningest player in Maryland history, and Blake graduated the Terps all-time assist leader, as well as well as 5th in NCAA history. The two spent 6,800 minutes on the court together during their three seasons at Maryland. Now add that to the over 100 games they played together for the Washington Wizards and you?ve got two players with experience beyond their few short years in the NBA. In the summer of 2005, Dixon signed with Portland. Shortly after, he heard the Trail Blazers were also looking at Steve Blake. "I talked to Coach (McMillan) about it," Dixon said. "I told him what I thought about (Blake) and I said a lot of great things. He was here in the next couple of weeks." Though both Juan and Steve are fairly young by NBA standards, their years of playing together make them appear, at times, like veterans. "Any time you play five years with somebody, you?re going to know that guy pretty well," Dixon explained. "Blake and I know each other extremely well." It shows on the court. Steve knows where Juan will be on a fast break without having to look. They know each other?s favorite spots, strengths and even weaknesses. At this point, they are able to act instinctively, and their ability to feed off one another has helped secure their first starting roles in the NBA. Interestingly enough, the two former Wizards got their first starts together wearing the scarlet and black against their former team in Washington. The two were warmly welcomed, but only for a bit; Portland won the game 97-92 This season sees Juan averaging career-bests in points, minutes and field goal percentage, while Steve is on track to set career-highs in points, assists, field goal and three-point percentages. Reuniting the National Championship?s winning backcourt has improved the Trail Blazers stats as well. Before the two former Terrapins entered the starting lineup, Portland had a winning percentage of .272. In the 28 games Steve and Juan have started together since then, they have produced an improved winning percentage of .420. As Juan and Steve continue to settle into their starting roles, we can only assume they will continue their improvement ? and with a history as rare and special as theirs, there?s no telling what could happen</div> link: http://www.nba.com/blazers/features/Experi...-168614-41.html
