The signing of Millsap to an offer sheet is eerily similar to 1997 when the Blazers signed another young power forward from a division rival: Brian Grant from the Sacramento Kings.  At that time the Blazers were fresh off a first round playoff loss to the Lakers and with a starting five of Sabonis/Wallace/Augmon/Rider/Kenny Anderson, they were lacking some toughness inside.  There was talk of Grant even being able to play some small forward when he was signed.

As it turned out, Grant was a very good power forward and was one of the leaders of the Blazers deep playoff runs.  On the other hand, his presence inside pushed incumbent PF Wallace to SF in an attempt to get the Blazers' best 5 players on the court at the same time.  This left the team with an inability to defend quicker lineups and led to stagnation on offense without a creator at the SF.

The current Blazers need someone to attack the basket, which Millsap can do.  The question is whether the addition of Millsap will create the same kind of problems the addition of Brian Grant did 12 years ago.

The possible Millsap signing brings up the possibility of a minutes crunch and a possible loss of PT for Joel unless KP thinks that Aldridge can play 12-16 mpg at the SF spot.

Before anyone starts to flame on this post, consider for a moment that there are a bunch of SF/PF types playing the SF position now and most are the Blazers' main rivals:

Nuggets-Carmelo

Lakers-Artest/Odom

Magic- Lewis

Jazz-Kirilenko

Aldridge would match up quite well against any of these guys and could be an interesting matchup for LeBron if the Cavs meet the Blazers in the Finals.

Also, many fans are upset with L-Train's up and down rebounding numbers and his propensity for the outside jumper.

IIRC, the Spurs won a championship playing a front line of Robinson/Rose/Duncan and Robinson/Purdue/Duncan.  Granted, that version of the Spurs was not exciting to watch, but they were very effective.  Could the Blazers be looking to duplicate the Spurs' formula for success?

Now that Hedo has committed to Toronto for $60M over 5 years, Shawn Marion is now available.  Toronto was forced to renounce him to get the cap room to sign Hedo.

Nate would love the Matrix's versatility as he can guard 1-4 effectively, can slash to the hoop and run the floor.  He is also the best rebounding SF in the league.   He is not the Allstar that he was in Phoenix, but he is a SERIOUS upgrade from Batum/Outlaw and would give the team a great perimeter defender.

Matrix can be had for $32M/4 years, leaving some flexibility for a sign and trade for Hinrich/Sessions/Miller.

I have heard rumors of some problems with Miami and Phoenix, but would KP take a chance??

The prevailing wisdom regarding the search for a PG holds that Brandon needs a shooter who can play defense and won't dominate the ball.

I don't believe that is necessarily the case. 

Brandon has shown the ability to take over a game with the ball in his hands in crunch time.  However, I have seen this take a toll on him physically and as the number of clutch moments increase, the need for someone to take the pressure off Brandon will become huge.

Enter, Andre Miller, the classic creator and penetrator who has proven the ability to efficiently run a team, shoot a high percentage and finish in the lane.  Miller's ability to get into the lane and improved passing (over Blake) will create more opportunities for easy baskets from Roy, Rudy, GO an Aldridge.

The downside is that Miller is older, is not an effective shooter from deep, and is not as accomplished a defender as Hinrich.  Miller's ability to create would allow more mid range opportunites for the wings.  Playing with Miller, Brandon could score more easy baskets in transisition and scoring from mid range and allowing him a break from being forced to carry the team on his back as he did this year.

With the extensions of Roy and Aldridge looming, there is a need to act now in free agency to add the piece that takes the Blazers to the next level.

There are those who will undoubtedly object to the idea of acquiring Andre Miller due to his age.  However, a 3-4 year deal could act as a bridge to the Bayless era and allow Miller to mentor Bayless as a younger more athletic version of himself.

The Blazers are in need of a veteran presence and lack a slasher at the 3. 

Enter Desmond Mason, a defensive minded swingman who is a Nate favorite, is the definition of toughness, can slash and play well in the transition game, is an unrestricted FA and just happens to live in Portland and spend a lot of time at the practice facility in the off season.

With the expected departure of Travis, he would fit in great as a proven vet who can provide some spark of the bench if necessary and will not demand a salary of more than $3-4M/year. 

 I think Mason definitely signs in Portland.

Now that we know that:

Vince

RJ

Wallace

Salmons

Mike Miller

Will not be suiting up in the scarlet and black, does anyone know what Martell's status is?

The team could use his offense to take the load off of BRoy in the coming weeks.  Roy needs the help and the team desperately needs someone to step up.

Wallace would have been the perfect fit for now, but his presence could have caused problems down the road due to the $20M the franchise has invested in Martell.

Outlaw's deficiencies are becoming all the more noticeable as the season progresses and the Blazers need more offense from the SF spot.

I agree with Canzano, KP needs to make a move to improve the team, THIS YEAR, using RLEC.

Batum simply is not ready for heavy minutes in the playoffs and the team needs a scorer/defender/creator at the 3 in order to win the crucial games after the break.

I have seen a lot of contempt on the board regarding a Salmons trade, but no serious discussion of his merits.

From what I see him producing this season, he looks like a poor man's B-Roy with the ability to score, slash and defend.  It seems to me this is just what the Blazers need from the SF position.

So the question, if Salmons will fit the Blazers' need this season, what's wrong with:

RLEC+ 1st round pick for Salmons and Kenny Thomas?

Hoopsworld is reporting a possible deal involving Sac and the Blazers:

Raef + 1st round pick for

John Salmons

Kenny Thomas

Salmons is the versatile role player the Blazers need to solidify the 3 spot while Webster is on the mend.  His ability to score and distribute will help the Blazers in their playoff run.

Thomas is filler only, but means that Shavlik is sent away.

Salmons was not happy losing in Sacramento, but should change his tune once he gets to Portland.