No, Sly, nobody is coming after your canine handle. But, according to Part 3 of Quick's series on the rebuilding of Iron Man, Wes is pissed at the Blazers: Good read: http://www.oregonlive.com/ironman/
As if the franchise and city wasn't fully behind him while he was here - trying to motivate himself is fine, but no need to act like you weren't treated well while here.
I don't think it has anything to do with how he was treated while he was here. It's the fact that the Blazers didn't reach out to him as a free agent this summer.
That was my thought too. I wonder if the Blazers had re-signed Wes, if he would have been instrumental in re-signing LA. Water under the bridge now. We all know that Wes uses every opportunity to give himself a chip on the shoulder to use as a motivation. Given that the Blazers are going to suck this year anyway, I'm not sure how much difference a motivated Wes makes in the outcome of those 4 games.
Olshey said in a presser that both Matthews and RoLo were told they were a package deal with Aldridge. If LA goes they were not coming back. No reason to reach out to Matthews
That's not how it reads at all - he's trying to motivate himself by posing as a victim. "Think I was good before, imagine what kind of dog I'll be now." I like his fight, but he's become a bit delusional.
Hold the presses, something does not smell right here. Before Olshey was able to contact Wes about an extension, I seem to remember an interview or two he did where he implied he would not be playing for the Blazers again. Or is my old memory still hanging in the closet this morning.
Kobe said something similar coming off of his Achilles injury. "Imagine what kind of hog I will be now."
Yeah, and I think it was the right way of looking at it by Olshey. Re-signing Matthews and RoLo would just keep the Blazers in the competition for a lower tier playoff berth. The rebuild was the way to go.
He's an injured dog, a delusional dog. I worry that he'll become a realist dog, and a complacent one at that. Hopefully, I'm wrong and he has a long, healthy career, but right now, I don't see it.
I appreciate his position, but it would have been grossly incompetent to sign him to that kind of contract, given LMA leaving and his recent injury. I like Wes alot, but he was part of the old team that LMA destroyed. Keeping him would not have worked on several levels.
"In Portland, he'd been the Blazers' heart and soul, but never the star. He had never been entrusted with making the right play in crunch time. He had never been counted on to carry his teammates. Was there a team willing to give him that chance?" I love that Wes believes in himself. It's what drives him to be better. But I just don't think he can carry a team in crunch time. As a SG he just does not have the handles.
I wish Matthews all the best. Hell, I hope he scores 300 points per game against us. It's not like we are working on making the playoffs or anything. He's gotta understand we couldn't pay that amount to him, knowing our history with players and injuries. That could get a GM fired.
This. Not getting a call, or even a token offer has to sting a bit so I get his disdain. But how quickly he forgets that this team made him the highest paid player in his draft class for the duration of all rookie deals. And how quickly he forgets that this team gave him bonus upon bonus to lure him into a contract that was ridiculed around the league. Love Wes, but he comes off looking a bit petulant here.
