FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!

Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Blazer fans—Ezra caught this round of fisticuffs after the Blazers & Celtics Friday at the Rose Garden:

Counterpoint: Roy Should Play

I’m guessing this won’t be a popular opinion around here, given some of the posts over the last couple of days, but here goes: Brandon Roy should play ball.

Pretending we know more than the doctors, trainers, advisors, coaches, players, and sooth-sayers employed by the Blazers and Roy himself is an amusing pastime, but patently wrong.

Logic, numbers, and common sense all trend against some secret cabal forcing or pushing Roy into playing against his will. If the Blazers thought Roy was in danger of blowing out his hammy, there’s no way they’d let him out there. He means too much to the organization to be our sexy sacrificial lamb, especially when the only goal within legitimate reach is a 6-seed or so. There’s precious little, other than a possible lottery pick next year, to be gained from angling Roy into risking a season- or career-ending injury.

Roy is the face of this franchise right now, especially since Oden’s knee/leg/karma is ranging from funky to foul. The Blazers know it, Roy’s advisors know it, he knows it. Dude’s smart. He has to know that there’s little to be gained in the eyes of management, and everything to be lost. I have to believe that Roy would shut it down if the injury were really that bad. I have to.

Sure, Roy has the warrior spirit. You can tell, watching him sit restless on the bench, or that off-key note of frustration in his voice during interviews—he’s raring to get out there. Roy is the anti-Stephon “Chinese Franchise” Marbury. But as much of the cold-blooded killer he’s channeling these days, Roy’s savvy enough to know not to risk his career fighting for the right to play Denver instead of Los Angeles in a few weeks. And you have to believe his handlers would do nothing short of roofying his Gatorade in warm-ups if they truly thought he was endangering his career.

So why not rest him until the playoffs, with the hope we even get there? Look, I love that we love our players so much. Love them to the point of second-guessing expert opinions from people who make many, many millions of dollars in order to keep guys like Roy making even more many, many millions of dollars. But for chrissakes, we’re approaching helicopter-parent levels people.

Why put him out there? Apparently Nate (or Kevin, or Brandon himself) needs to evaluate what, exactly, this injury is. Is it just a painful nastiness that limits him to 80% effectiveness for 20 minutes a game until we lock up a playoff spot? Is it, despite all the experts’ opinions, something much, much worse? Unless and until someone says so, I say let the man play. Let him figure it out. Until then, I’ll be over here enjoying my dinner of fingernails and cuticles. Oh, God… PLEASE.

Pick and Scroll

Your daily (Mon-Fri) roundup of links from around the blogosphere, typically Trail Blazers related.

• Portland takes on Boston tonight. I’m sure you’ve read our preview, check TrueHoop Network sister blog CelticsHub for the wicked sweet Boston perspective.

• It’s in Spanish, but here is a must read interview with Blazers overseas scout Jason Filippi from Marca.com. (Apparently there is a video with an interview in English but when I try to play it I get a message that says my IP address is not authorized. I did, however manage to find this video from TuBasket where Filippi talks about largely the same things.)

Now, for you non-Spanish speakers, the gist of this article, via my rough translation, is Rudy Fernandez’s agent said that Rudy was a bit frustrated before the Blake/Outlaw trade, but Filippi says that Rudy Fernandez is a favorite of Paul Allen and is untouchable “like Brandon Roy.”

There is also word that Portland was targeting Spanish guard Sergio Llull, but he got drafted by the Rockets. Filippi says that Victor Claver is an NBA prospect and if he comes to the NBA he will play for Portland, however, there may be difficulties bringing Claver over under the rules of the new CBA. Also, Filippi looks at Claver as a 3-4 in the Travis Outlaw mold.

Filippi is the reason we said to keep an eye on Jan Vesely and Alexey Shved, if these guys are worth taking, Filippi will know and he’ll make a recommendation accordingly. Stashing guys overseas is a great strategy because it enables a team to create depth for the future without impacting the roster today. Let’s say that Portland is hitting its championship window in a couple years and there have been some consolidation trades and they’ve got a pretty solid eight man rotation, but they could use some depth. Now, without the Euros, Portland would be like Boston, wiggling under the weight of the cap and having to use the MLE to attract new talent. With their European players, Portland has a PG/SG in Peterri Koponen, a SF/PF in Victor Claver, and a C/PF in Joel Freeland that can be brought over to give the rotation a real shot in the arm. Now, isn’t that better than overpaying the ghost of Rasheed Wallace?

• Related to the previous item, Hoopshype reports that Claver has signed with his team for another year. They quote Claver as saying “Me playing in Portland next year? I don’t think so.” However, after reading the article that Hoopshype linked to myself, I can find no such quote. Admittedly, my Spanish isn’t perfect. Either Hoopshype is being a little sloppy and not linking to the proper story, or they paraphrased a quote and attributed it to Claver. In either case, an explanation would be nice.

UPDATE: I received this message from Hoopshype:

Victor has said lately in interviews made in Spain that he’s thinking about the ACB right now and not the NBA. When he talks again about his future in the NBA he says “Mucho tienen que cambiar las cosas para que me vaya este año” is almost as saying “I don’t think so”. Anyway, I admit that the translation is not accurate and I apologize for that.

• Ben Golliver made some great shake charts illustrating scoring consistency. I’d like to see these for rebounding, assists, and PER as well.

• Wendell Maxey says Portland may be looking for another point guard, and floats Mike James as a name to watch.

• The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman covers the addition of Marcus Camby and has this quote from Andre Miller:

“When you’re playing against him, you know not to go (into the lane) because he’s either going to block your shot, take a charge or make something happen. So he definitely brings a presence that will hopefully get us over the hump.” 

• At the bottom of Sean Meagher’s article in The Oregonian there is this video; towards the end of that clip, Aldridge is recorded talking about Marcus Camby as a “natural big.” When I interviewed Aldridge in Houston, he emphasized that he was not a center, saying

“I know I’m not a center but I just try to do things we need, that a center would do. It’s going to be a little bit harder because it not in my nature but I’m going to what it takes to win”

I don’t know why, but something bothers me about those statements, it is as if Aldridge is giving himself an excuse to not bang down low as much. Obviously Aldridge’s role as a power forward in Nate MacMillan’s offense is as a stretch four that can stick the midrange jumper and run the court, and Aldridge does those things very well.  However, I don’t know if Aldridge will ever take that next step to All-Star status unless he goes against that self-proclaimed “nature” a bit. Hold on, I’m receiving a phone call from David West who is calling me a liar… You get the idea though.

• From the TrueHoop motherblog, Kevin Arnovitz  gives us the low down on the James/Wade/Bosh sweepstakes.

• This year’s trade deadline was fast paced and frenzied. How many of this week’s myriad of moving players had Blazer ties? Eight total, plus a trade that happened as a consequence of Portland’s actions.
1. Tyrus Thomas, a Blazer for like five minutes, was traded from Chicago for a future first-round draft pick, Flip Murray and Acie Law.
2. The original expiring contract, Theo Ratliff, was traded from San Antonio for a future second-round draft pick. 
3. Houston received Kevin Martin and Hilton Armstrong from Sacramento for Carl Landry and former Blazer draftee Joey Dorsey. 
4. Sergio Rodriguez was traded to the Knicks for Larry Hughes.
5. Utah traded Ronnie Brewer to Memphis for a future first-round draft pick. I left this one in there because it’s a direct result of Portland signing Millsap to that “toxic” offer.
6. The Clippers traded Sebastian Telfair and his winning attitude to Cleveland. 
7. + 8. The Clippers also traded Marcus Camby to Portland in exchange for Travis Outlaw and Steve Blake.

Blazers vs Celtics - Preview

Nearly a month back (to the day), the Celtics narrowly defeated Portland 98-95 in an overtime game on the parquet floor of Boston. While moral victories are about as common as unicorns—or vegetables on Big Baby’s dinner plate—that loss showed heart from a Blazers lineup that was missing Brandon Roy. Yeah sure, but that was before the Camby man came to town.

The Blazers latest acquisition gets the starting nod (sorry Juwan) at center in his first game for Portland, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. In his first few weeks with the Blazers we all witnessed Andre Miller struggle to mesh with his new teammates, but given his low-post position and previous experience with Miller while in Denver, Camby’s tradition should be much smoother. It will be exciting to see Portland have a defense presence around the rim for the first time since Joel Przybilla hit the hardwood on December 23rd in Dallas and never got up. 

Thanks to a Webber-esque timeout from Pau Gasol, the Celtics just knocked off the Lakers in Los Angeles, and toppled the Kings two days earlier to start off their west coast swing. The Celtics are known for their defense—which is excellent—but their offense is a better indicator of this team’s ability to win. Boston is 16-0 when they score over 105 points in a game, yet a mere 4-10 when they fail to break the 90 point mark. Instead of parting ways with Ray Allen, and Ray Allen’s bloated contract, the Celtics swapped Eddie House for all 5”9 of Nate Robinson. Not exactly a blockbuster deal, but Robinson should be ready to provide some spark off the bench and has a history of playing well against fellow Huskie alum Roy and the Blazers. Robinson has missed a few of the Knicks’ previous games against Portland, but the three previous times he has played against Portland the resident slam dunk champ is averaging 27 points a game.

Brandon Roy will (possibly) return for this game, which is a frustrating point of contention for Blazers fans. A life without Roy is a life not worth living, yet the team’s future precariously balances with the fate of his tender hamstring. Should he take a seat on the pine and rest? Absolutely, but he won’t. If we have witnessed anything in Roy’s glorious run as a Blazer is that the man is as stubborn as he is tough. Neither furrowed brows from the coaching staff, or worried bloggers pretending to be doctors, matter to Roy. If he wants to play, he’ll play. Hamstring be damned.

Thursday Practice Notes

Part 1: The Latest on Brandon Roy:

Something is rotten here in Trail Blazer land. After Tuesday’s game a somewhat emotional Brandon Roy admitted the lingering hamstring injury has him wondering if the season could be “in jeopardy.” Roy played 15 first half minutes against the Clippers before his hamstring became too tight. He did not play in the second half. It seemed as if he (again) came back too early, and that more time to rest and rehab were needed.

The next day, however, Roy said he would try and play Friday against the Celtics. It doesn’t make sense, and I asked him today to clear things up. Roy has concluded that the injury isn’t getting any better, and since it isn’t, he has decided to play on it. But risking a longterm ailment makes little sense, especially since Roy admits that he is unable to make certain moves in his current state. If he’s having to curtail moves in practice, as he has been, then how is playing in a game a good idea?

Surely the three-time All-Star is anxious to get back on the court after the most persistent injury of his short career. And clearly it’s frustrating to be close to playing health, but Roy is not fully there—he admits it time and time again.

Even though the addition of Marcus Camby has re-energized the team’s focus and opportunity to make the playoffs, no one in their right mind would argue that the acquisition puts the Blazers in the title hunt. So why risk it and let Roy play?

Today Coach McMillan, with a smile, basically declined answering any questions about Roy’s status. It’s too all over the place for even the coach to keep up with. “Will he start?” a reporter asked. “I can’t say,” McMillan answered. “What did he tell you guys?” Here’s what he said:

Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy

I can’t get over the feeling like something is—or could go—hideously wrong here. I asked GM Kevin Pritchard about the situation. Here’s our exchange:

Tonry: When Brandon doesn’t seem to be getting better, I’m confused on what the forward thinking is for him to play.

Pritchard: It’s his call.

Is it really?

If I ever feel like it needs to be mine I step in. But I trust Brandon. I trust what he’s about. I trust that he does what’s best for himself and what’s best for the team. I think where he gets into the challenging part is that he wants to play but he can’t go 100%. I talk to him every day.

But he seems frustrated, and that seems like a strange time to make decisions when you’re upset.

Yeah, but he’s got to trust his body too. He’s got to understand that he’s got to listen to his body. But he’s the best. As a human being, it doesn’t get any better than that.

The problem is, it doesn’t seem like Brandon is totally trusting his body. As you can see in the video above: when I ask Roy to help us understand the conflicting messages, he admits that the injury doesn’t feel like it’s getting better.

Part 2: Welcoming Marcus Camby

It’s been a crazy few days for Marcus Camby. He stuck around Tuesday night to attend the game, then jetted off at 6 am Wednesday morning to gather some of his things from his home in Los Angeles. Camby’s 9 pm flight back to Portland was cancelled, so he had to jump on another at 6 am this morning. He’s drained, but happy. Even though he’s only spent a few hours in Portland, Camby admitted that he’s seeing what this franchise is all about and liking it—there was the rousing applause at the introduction on Tuesday at the Rose Garden, and even the stewardess’ and pilots on the flight back were wishing him good luck in Portland.

Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy

Camby answered more questions, but my video recorder ran out of batteries:

On the culture of Portland:
I can tell already. Just how (the fans at Tuesday’s game) welcomed me, and how they take care of their own players here. I haven’t experienced anything like that in a long time.

Guys are so humble. Even when guys are out of the lineup they’re still in contention for a playoff spot. It says a lot about the coaching staff and it also says a lot about the coaching staff.

On playing with LaMarcus:
My job is to come make his job a whole lot more easier. I’ll take the tougher of the low post players out there so he doesn’t have to be in foul trouble. On the offensive end I’ll be just looking to get him open for shots—the same thing I was doing with Chris Kaman that made him an All-Star (*Laughs) I aint saying I’m (responsible) but you see how he struggled the other night in Portland.

On knowing Juwan and Andre Miller:
Coming in the other night Andre asked me if I had a car here and he’s like, I can borrow one of his cars. Unselfishness like that really hits home to me.

On the trade situation:
I’ve never gotten traded in season. Being an opponent of team you’re getting traded for in the same city is even more weirder than having to sit on the bench watching my former team play my new team. It’s like, wow—a whirlwind 24-48 hours.

On Portland:
I’ve been coming here for 14 years and Portland is a great city. I’m staying downtown and I know all the good restaurants down there. Now I’m just trying to get some rest. I’ve had two 6:00AM flights in 24 hours. So I’m just waiting for my stuff from FedEx to get here, and I’ll unload some stuff and get some sleep.

Part 3: The Coach

Coach McMillan was beaming after practice. Having acquired another veteran—especially one who fills the gaping hole in the middle—has made him almost giddy. McMillan touted Camby’s loud communication on defense and plans to insert the veteran at center for Friday’s game against Boston. More from the coach:

Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA policy

Pick and Scroll

Your daily (Mon-Fri) roundup of links from around the blogosphere, typically Trail Blazers related.

• The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman has a great article on Rudy Fernandez adding the teardrop shot to his arsenal. More importantly in my opinion, we get this money quote from Coach Nate:

When the Blazers acquired center Marcus Camby on Tuesday, they did more than simply shore up their front line. By trading away proven veterans Travis Outlaw and, especially, Steve Blake, coach Nate McMillan said Blazers management showed that they “have committed to Rudy and (Jerryd) Bayless being our backup guards for the future.” 

If I had made a bet, I do believe that Dwight Jaynes would owe me dinner.

• The Oregonian has some news for those of you affected by the Comcast debacle.

• Brandon Roy will try to play vs. Boston. Good idea? Bad idea? You tell us, but please, unless you are Willis Reed, don’t call Roy soft. I’m giving you the Cliff Notes version of a long story, but I once was hit by my friend’s 97’ Crown Victoria at 40 mph, I bounced off his hood and then went through the windshield. After making sure nothing was broken too badly, and tying off my arm to staunch the blood flow, we realized that driving the car was probably a bad idea and would attract the attention of the local authorities. So I walked the better part of a mile to the hospital to go get the glass removed from my body. After all that, I still do not feel qualified to tell a professional athlete that they are “soft” for not wanting to risk their careers (and millions of dollars) to push through a potentially devastating injury during a non-championship season.

• Bust a Bucket checks in on our dearly departed friends, Blake and Outlaw.

• Dave from BlazersEdge takes a look at Portland’s roster dynamics post-Camby trade.

• It’s going to be a mad dash to the finish for this trade season. Rumors are swirling and GM’s are playing their multi-million dollar shell game. What trades that are going down will significantly impact the rest of Portland’s season? Are the Kings making a push for the 8th seed? They sure will if they land David Lee in a trade for McGrady. Let us know what you think in the comments below.

• P.S. Rumor has it that former Blazer Sergio Rodriguez will be getting his shot in New York. That’s a tailor-made situation for Sergio, if he can’t put up great numbers there, then I think we can finally put the great debate to rest. However, if he succeeds, we will be very happy for him.

Blazer Whips: The Answer

I’m like most of you—I thought the purple Impala had to be Travis Outlaw’s. But just to be sure, I asked him in the back hallway. “Nah man, that’s LaMarcus’,” Outlaw said. “Mine is green.”

Awww… Just seeing that sweet green ride, and remembering its Aww-Shucks owner, I get a little teary. Someone’s going to have to fill his big floppy shoes, come through with some comedy and character on this team. I need the backwoods take! And someone who wears a smile like Oregon isn’t drenched in rain seven months of the year.

On that note, I also asked Brandon Roy if he’d talked to Travis since the trade was made official. Roy said he had, and Travi’s his spirits were up. He is excited to play in and explore a new city. I asked Brandon what he though life might be like for Travis in the hideously gorgeous mess that is Los Angeles. “He’ll be fine,” Brandon said. “He’s 25 now. If here we’re 17, like when he came here, well I don’t know.”

The final results of the poll:

Pick and Scroll

Your daily (Mon-Fri) roundup of links from around the blogosphere, typically Trail Blazers related.

• I’m sure by now you’ve all seen this article on Brandon Roy’s hamstring. First off, allow me to state that, even with Marcus Camby in the fold, the rest of this season and the playoffs are not worth endangering Brandon Roy’s career. Also, anybody calling Roy “soft” over the whole ordeal needs to read this article and take a long look in the mirror (then punch themselves in the head).

• Mike Barrett agrees that the Roy injury takes just a bit of the luster off the Camby trade:

Clearly, the trade is a positive, and Camby will give this team a huge lift on the front line, but without a healthy Roy none of this probably matters. Time will tell on this injury, and when he’ll give it go again, but he’s very frustrated.

• Coup from the Rip City Project has this to say about last night.

Yes, Portland almost gave up another big lead, but we’ve been over this time and time again: this roster isn’t made to hold leads. It sure would be nice if the Blazers had a shotblocking center who could also help deter the Clippers from grabbing 14 offensive rebounds, wouldn’t it? I’m not saying recent changes with act the Cure All for the late-game defensive problems, but with how efficiently the offense is operating, a bandage is all that’s required.

• Ben Golliver from BlazersEdge had this quote about DeAndre Jordan’s jumpshot.

It never ceases to amaze me that players like DeAndre Jordan are able to make the NBA without someone fixing their horrible herky jerky shot releases.  His uncontested jumper pre-game warm-up routine was rated R for violence.  The ball should not change direction four times in the palm of your hand during your release.  Hire a shooting coach and start from scratch.  His dunking form, however, needs no work. 

• Is Mike Dunleavy tampering with Marcus Camby? Henry Abbott thinks he might be and I’m inclined to agree. Article XIII Section 2 of the 2005 NBA collective Bargaining Agreement states:

No Unauthorized Agreements.

At no time shall there be any agreements or transactions of any kind (whether disclosed or undisclosed to the NBA), express or implied, oral or written, or promises, undertakings, representations, commitments, inducements, assurances of intent, or understandings of any kind (whether disclosed or undisclosed to the NBA), between a player (or any person or entity controlled by, related to, or acting with authority on behalf of, such player) and any Team (or Team Affiliate):

(i) concerning any future Renegotiation, Extension, or amendment of an existing Player Contract, or entry into a new Player Contract;

Both the Anti-Collusion articles and the Circumvention articles could apply to Dunleavy should he toe that line any harder. Of course, the league has looked the other way so hard on the whole “LeBron, Wade, Bosh to New York or wherever” furor that they might look a bit silly to crack down on Dunleavy’s infraction. 

• TrueHoop Network sister blog NBA Playbook asks if the All Star game may have shed light on how to defend LeBron. Step one, field an All Star team?

• You know it’s a good deal when one of the players that is being dealt thinks it’s a good trade! The Oregonian’s Jason Quick has this and more about how the trade went down.

On Tuesday afternoon, hours after the trade had been completed, McMillan phoned Blake, his trusted point guard through two stints with the team. Blake played part of a season with Camby in Denver, and couldn’t help but give his input to McMillan.

“Blake praised him. Said he loved him. Said he’s going to be good for us and that he’s what we need,” McMillan said. “So it was good to hear that.”

• The Basketball Jones likes the Camby trade for Portland.

• You’ll be pleased to know that according to Ryan J. Parker, the Basketball Geek, Camby is the third best defender in the league.

• Bust a Bucket likes the win, and the Camby acquisition.

• I’m not a big fan of his metrics and the conclusions he draws from them, but Dave Berri likes the Camby trade too. Even if Wages of Wins is a poor metric to use as a standard or single number to evaluate the value of all players, it does have its uses. For instance, when looking for a rebounding big man, WoW may help identify diamonds in the rough.

• Andre Miller’s 52 point explosion is one of the top 20 games so far.

• Henry Abbott talks about why picks are so important. He’s right too, the Suns traded away picks that could have been Luol Deng, Rajon Rondo, Rudy Fernandez, and Sergio Rodriguez.

• The NBA in 3-D in your living room? What next? The players will be nine feet tall, blue, and eco-friendly?