Alright all Blazer fans can sit back and relax as we watch our Blazers tank from what was greatness 4 years ago and hit the lottery hard. I don't think this is a bad thing though. Blazers haven't been the team they should be the past years, especially with the bankroll of Paul Allen. I think with a few roster moves this team can be a contender in 2 years. First order of business, the NBA draft. Who should the Blazers draft? Even though with our shitty management we will probably draft another PG or PF, we definately need a SG. The 3 players that I believe we would benefit from the most, even in the long run are: Salim Stoudamire, Rashad McCants, or JJ Redick. Those 3 players fill in our void at the 2 slot, and also possess great shooting abilities (especially Redick and Salim). I think for now all we need to concern ourselves with is shooting guard. Now on to free agency and trades. I DON'T think that the Blazers should go after Redd, because we are into the whole "youth movement" aka another way to say we suck and are giving our young guys minutes so they can be good and we'll trade them just before they hit their prime. Hopefully this doesn't happen though. I don't think free agency is the right way for us to go, we have enough talent and should be able to persuade some GM's into wasting their money like Paul. The only worry we need to think about free agent wise is resign Richie Frahm, he will develop into a good role player some day and he is an excellent shooter we should keep. Trading is the final piece to the puzzle besides the draft. People we deffinately need to get rid of are Shareef, Derek, and Theo. I love Theo but he is not living up to his salary, like some of our other players [cough] Damon, Derek, Shareef, Nick, Darius [/endcough]. I think a possible trade prospect is Eddy Curry, because a lot of talk has been done about him and he has all the ingredients to become a good blazer: young, unpredictable, and subpar post defense. With some help, I do believe Eddy Curry would be a key element to a good Blazer team. Of course, I think we should grab a veteran point guard to help aide Sebastion IF Damon walks, so in that case maybe a player like Sam Cassell or Kenny Anderson could bring out some positives in the young Telfair. Damon though, is a perfect fit as a mentor to him if he could learn that bench time isn't the worst thing in the world, and that in 2 or 3 years he might whine about coming back to a winning team like us. Trading Derek Anderson is a must, he has become the worst decision maker in the NBA. I think trading him for a good shooter would be a good choice. I think Darius and Telfair have great basket attacking skills, and that we don't need a slasher at the 2 so getting a shooter would benefit us the most. Shareef, I don't care about Shareef, just let him walk. Packaging him up with DA would be a hefty price tag, but would be worth it if it brought in a good 1 to 3 players. Theo doesn't need to be traded, but probably should be because we need youth on our side, not bad knees and declining talent. NVE is going to retire, we dont need to worry about him. So after all this is said and done my idea of a great Blazers lineup would be... PG - Sebastion Telfair / Veteran PG SG - Rookie Shooter / Seasoned Shooter / Richie Frahm SF - Darius Miles / Victor Khryapa / Ruben Patterson PF - Zach Randolph / Travis Outlaw C - Joel Przybilla / Solid Veteran Backup / Ha Seung-Jin We can let the Blazers fill in the blanks.
you may think i am crazy.. but the TrailBlazers future isn't as bad as you think. Telfair will be a star in 2-3 years. If Randolph can work on his defense and improve his game over the offseason, along with D-Miles improving his shooting even more and coming in focused the Blazers can do very well next season. If they could add Redd the team would be dynamite. Or could possibly trade a package of players for Peja since the Kings are getting rid of him this offseason.
I told everyone that the future looked bright at the begginning of the year because of the huge expiring contracts (Stoudamire+Van Exel+Reef=Roughly 40 Million) and young talent. Now with Pryzbilla emerging this season, it's making theory look better. With their 2 European swingmen, to go along with a core of Randolph, Telfair, Miles (if he aint delt), Outlaw and their pick, the future looks brighter than it did 2 years ago. Not sure if Pryzbilla is a FA or not, but they need to hold on to this guy, he's a beast. If they're able to trade DA and Ratliff (seems to want out) in the same deal, for some depth behind Z-Bo and Joel, then this team looks solid. Ruben Patterson also seems to have some value too. Damon won't be coming back in my view, so they need a backup PG, who they can acquire via trade with Patterson, DA or Ratliff. They need to get everyone out from the horrible days (except Z-Bo).
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">PG - Sebastion Telfair / Veteran PG SG - Rookie Shooter / Seasoned Shooter / Richie Frahm SF - Darius Miles / Victor Khryapa / Ruben Patterson PF - Zach Randolph / Travis Outlaw C - Joel Przybilla / Solid Veteran Backup / Ha Seung-Jin We can let the Blazers fill in the blanks.</div> I like most of the things youve said but the team you've just putten up can give about 60 point a night in good%,the other 40+ points will come after horrible shoots down the strech and the Blazers will still lose alot of games. John Nash will screw up the draft. The Blazers MUST and i mean must get Redd,and i hate to say it but - even if it comes in a Redd- for Randolph deal,especially after Zach's injury,Redd is shooting in about 50% - thats crazy!! Its not just about bringing "a star" like Redd,its about having as many weapons as possible aginst the other team's D. Plus,if you wanna build a solid team in today's NBA you need a strong 6th and 7th guys to come off the bench and bring out some fresh scoring sulotions,meaningless to say those guys needs to come in the guard and SF positions. I would want to see a team that looks like that: C JoelSolid Veteran Backup / Ha Seung-Jin PF Shelden WilliamsTravis outlaw/Jerome Beasely SF A strong good scorer - Stojacavic?/Ruben -Darius Miles - only one of them can stay!/Victor/persue Korver! SG Redd/A good defender on the ball/richie frahm or any other sharp shooter PG point guard who can whoot well from beyond the arc but also can arrange good scoring situations for his peers - i would be happy to see Damon Jones /Talfair So in cunclusion: Ratliif,Derek andrerson,Ruben Patterson,Zach Randolph and even a resigned Studemire and reef for One Redd,one Korver or Peja and one solid point guard who can score - i think that could be arranged.
