NBA.com has their 2008-09 season team previews up.  Here is the Blazer's: http://www.nba.com/preview2008/por.html

The story from NBA.com is about what you'd expect. They speculate how much Oden will affect the wins collumn and whether the team will make the post-season. What caught my eye and made me blink a few times was the NBA Live 09's simulated preview of the Blazer's season located in the box at the upper right.

33W"s 49L's!!! 10th in the West. No playoffs. How can this be? Granted it's a simulation, but still... Why does this make me want to rant and say bad words? Why do I suddenly regret pre-ordering this game from amazon .com? I really wish I had gone with NBA 2K9! This sucks! When the Blazers make the finals this season, can I sue them? Make them eat their lame product. Sheesh.

Okay, I confess. I'm really not a woman. But fortunately for me, my wife is. Now, for the unfortunate side; she is not a fan of the Blazers or of any team of any sport. She thinks sports are just a macho male thing and a complete waste of her time. Despite that, believe it or not, I still love her (she has many redeeming qualities I won't get into here;-). There is a somewhat bright side to the siituation. Of all the sports, she finds basketball the least offensive - though if she's in the same room with me, she either makes me mute the tv or turn it way down, because she simply can't stand the squeaking noises their shoes make.

So, she's often made me wonder just how much of a minority are female Blazer fans, anyway? Personally, I know only one devout Blazer she-fan, and she's my aunt, while I know numerous men who are fans.

Warning: This post contains the word "Lakers." Read at your own risk.

For me, my fan-hate of the Lakers began in the elimination game of the Western Conference finals where in the final seconds of the game, Magic Johnson takes the ball and tosses it cross-court to bounce out the remaining time. He didn't hold onto it to allow the Blazers a chance to foul him. No, he did a smart thing, and I hated him - and the Lakers - for it as my dreams of a championship bounced away with the ball - in the wrong direction.

The funny thing about it is, I only hated him as a Laker. If the Blazers had made a trade for him in that very off-season, even if they'd traded Clyde, I would have been glad to have him and give my whole-hearted fan-love. Strange how that works.

It was the players that beat us, not the uniforms, not the yellow and purple. Still, throughout the years, my irrational fan-hate has festered in me to the point where I laughed at the tears in Kobe's eyes when he and Shaq were eliminated after years of dominating. I chuckled and guffawed when that girl tried her best to ruin his life and all the ensuing drama. Everything about me was anti-Lakers. No matter who played them, I wanted the other team to win.

Now, something has changed. During game one against the Spores this year, I found myself gripping my seat, rooting for the Lakers as they mounted a ferocious comeback from twenty down in the third to win the game. (Coming into this series, the Spores were my second least favorite team.)

After the game, I sat back and did some soul-searching. My hate was gone, and still is. The Lakers are simply a team who have done great things this year - a team thier fans can and should be proud of. Kobe has matured some - both as a player and a person, - and dammitall, he's amazing. I don't hate him either, despite all the things he's done to the Blazers.

I'm not saying I'm a Laker fan all of a sudden. I simply no longer hate them or wish doom upon their heads. At least, not when they're playing the Spores. Still, when they play the Blazers (or anyone besides the Spores) in the near future, I'll want them to lose badly - but only because I want my guys to kick their mules. Like Kobe, I think I may have matured a little. Hmm.

So, because we all love polls so much, I've added one. First, I'm going to ask you to imagine the impossible, in like, dude, that'll never happen fashion.

 Update: I'm new to posting fanposts. That said I'm a little annoyed that the poll format cut out half of my text. Here is what it should be in entirety;

OK. Here goes... brace yourselves. Suppose Harry Potter is real and the most powerful wizard in the world - who happens to be a huge fan of the Lakers. What's her face with the huge spectacles looks into her crystal ball and sees the future of the NBA. When Harry Potter discovers how dominating the Blazers are going to be for the next twelve years, he casts a spell on the owners and GMs of both teams orchestrating the biggest trade of all time. The teams swap their entire rosters. So do you...