So, I think SO's junk got a little loaded and now is underperforming. This is a new junk, same as the old one.

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 I think I heard today that the Blazers new slogan is "Rise With Us Again." Is this right? If so I think it's getting a little stale, and just like Canzano did on the radio today, I think we can do better. I think the rise thing has run it's course and there should be something that acknowledges what we are all looking for out of this team. The team has turned around from the 21-61 season of 2005-2006. We can say the team has risen from the ashes of the team seen at the turn of the millennium. So what do Bedgers think? 

My contribution to the fun is this: tic,tic,tic,tic,....this team's about to blow up.

Now I know nobody's gonna go for it because it mentions stuff blowing up, though it's clearly euphemistic. But even so, I think it's better than Rise With Us Again. I know, we've done this before, but why not do it one more time. Even though these aren't gonna get picked up by the Org. we can still have some fun with it!

as usual, keep it clean, and submit responses below!

Jeff, you were only here for one year but in that time, you gave us your all. Nobody would have expected you to even touch the floor, but as the bigs fell last year, you stepped right up. We will always be grateful for the heart, toughness and determination that you brought to the team, especially in the face of such adversity. Nobody in this town is happy about you leaving, and we all wish you the very best in your rehab and your future endeavors. We will miss your energy and your enthusiasm, and I for one would welcome you back in a heartbeat. You exemplify everything that we as fans want from our players on a personal level, and you have done your part in restoring the Trailblazers name. 

Thank you Jeff!!!!!

Well, the last junk just about cut itself with the depression born of the latest Trailblazers news. The signing of Fabricio Oberto. I don't expect him to have a huge impact, but I don't think (hope) he has to spend enough time on the floor to make a huge impact in a bad way neither, and well, darnit, I'm just too dang excited and well, shucks, ecstatic about what's about to happen in just four short days, and the way I see it, if you all just want to talk about how terrible things are all the time then gee, maybe you should just look yourselves in the mirror and say to yourselves, "Golly, I uh I just don't know why I even bother sometimes..."

C'MON PEOPLE, WE'VE MADE IT THIS FAR, AND THE REAL SEASON IS LESS THAN FOUR DAYS AWAY!! DON'T GIVE UP NOW!! THIS IS WHEN THE FUN BEGINS!!! THIS IS WHEN THE TEAM NEEDS US TO SHOW UP AND CHEER!!! WHAT'S DONE IS DONE AND WE CAN'T CHANGE IT, AND EVEN THOUGH IT'S HARD WE HAVE TO LEAVE THIS STUFF TO THE PROFESSIONALS NOW, AND TRUST AND HOPE THAT THEY WANT TO WIN JUST AS BAD AS WE WANT EM TO WIN, AND MAYBE JUST MAYBE IF THERE IS ANY DOUBT IN THEIR HEARTS ABOUT WHICH WAY THIS TEAM'S HEADING WE CAN DROWN IT OUT WITH THE SOUND OF OUR CHEERS, AND TURN IT INTO THE BEST DARN SEASON ANYONE ROUND HURR'S SEEN IN THE LAST TEN YEARS!!!!!

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Here's a spot to put your junk. What should it be about? The obvious thing would be college football, yawn. But seeing I'm not a crazy football fan and the Ducks game is lopsided as all get out, and I don't even know who OSU is playing, let alone any WA schools, that just ain't gonna happen. So I decided to write it about rain, which has been making a comeback as of late, (not that it ever got too far away with this nasty summer.) I have to say I'm really glad for the rain. I realized this year that I missed the rain, and I like the rain, and it's not depressing, nor does it send me into a malaise or anything of the sort. I like how it washes everything away, and I like the sound, and I like the smell, and I would love it if it rained on a parade, because I HATE PARADES!! Get those things away from me!

No junk yet, here you go. I am going to the Mariner's game tonight, and this will be the first Major League Baseball game I have ever been to. I'm not a huge baseball fan, but back in the day my Dad was quite a baseball player. I played when I was a kid but eventually my interests went to other things. So here we are, getting older as people do, and I got thinking, I have never been to a real baseball game with my Dad, (he grew up going to Dodger games with his pops), and this egregious oversight could not stand. So I bought some tickets way back in March to go take care of this. So, I guess that's it, the story of this junk. Either you all can comment on that, or other things you did with your Dad in the later years of life, or you can expound on all things completely unrelated to the opening of the junk.

No new junk yet this weekend? It's a holiday so maybe people are off doing family stuff for Dad. We had my better half's parents over for Indian curry lastnight, and are having my dad over for Teriyaki steak tonight, as per his request. What are people doing today? What are some good memories you have of your papa's? What did dad show you that you still use, or are grateful for? I want to thank my dad for showing me how to fish, how to play baseball, how to be strong when life treats you like scat, and how to love the people that are most important in your life.

Since nobody's done it yet, I guess I will ( I'm looking at you CroRupt). Put your junk here. I'm not going to be as creative as DTL yesterday, I did have a robot cat story all cocked and loaded but he kind of stole my thunder. So anyways since our beloved Blazers season was ripped so coldly, and callously away from us, I have used the opportunity to spend a lot of time doing the things that I had been putting off all winter. That, with the nice weather we've been having has really distracted me from all things Blazers and I've been putting my time to good use, getting all of my ducks in a row for the opening of my new business, Kebab-a-Rama (shameless plug), the best darned food stand at any of the Farmer's Markets in Portland. So what are people looking forward to this summer, besides the weather? What are you gonna get into that you couldn't when you were spending all of your free time following all things Blazers this winter? I'm gonna finish up building a home office, paint the bedroom, and focus more on my music this summer, and maybe mix in some camping.

I can't be upset at all with this season. Honestly, I'm not even upset about losing this one, or this series.

 Our guys worked their butts off through the most adversity that any of us have ever witnessed. We welcomed new guys onto the team, and that wasn’t always a smooth transition. We never had a set rotation this year that could grow together and establish the kind of kinship and trust that other teams are so fortunate to have. Our team was like a group of mercenaries, but mercenaries that somewhere along the way stopped doing it just for the money. Somewhere along the way, these guys started caring. Caring about themselves, their teammates, and the honor and heritage of the Portland Trailblazers. In that sense the team did grow, and we were lucky to see that. My hope is that this is the down season that makes us appreciate even more when we go off on a deep run for the next ten years. This year will make a championship feel that much better. So for now, I’m going to withhold my criticism and just sit back and feel the love and the awe for a team that although came up short in the end, showed me more heart and more love than any team since it was led by men with the names Drexler, Kersey, Porter, Duckworth, and Williams. Get yourselves better boys, we’ll be here in the fall, waiting anxiously…

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Wow, after 10 am on Saturday morning and there is no junk? Why the no junk everyone? Don't tell me you're all burned out the day before the playoff's start? I thought we should go over a few pictures of our beloved Ballzers to show the difference between intensity shown in the normal season, and in the postseason.

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    I am so sick of everyone piling on Paul Allen over the events of the last two weeks. It seems like half the people only would have been happy if he presented KP with a blank check yesterday, and I don’t think that’s reasonable at all. Everybody who is listening to canzano talk about how terrible an owner PA is, go back and listen to what he was saying when Allen was diagnosed with cancer, and how he was saying how grateful we should all be to have an owner who was so willing to do what's right for the team.  Canzano is fueling the fire of speculation to get readers and listeners, that’s all! He doesn’t have any of the Blazers or the organization in his best interest.
    My opinion on this whole thing is, as far as we know right now KP is still the GM of the team, and he is under contract to be that through next year. Paul Allen and his “Vulcans” are under no obligation whatsoever to move up the timeline of KP’s extension, and anybody who wants to criticize him for not bowing to the demands of those who do not work with him and for him, should check themselves at the door. He has done an incredible amount for this team, and for this town- and as owner he gets to do what he wants. He listened to the fans when the team was acting like a bunch of idiots on and off the court, and he authorized KP to make the trades to get the bums out of town. He, as much as KP has helped to change the image of this team, and sometimes that includes making unpopular decisions. Nobody here, as far as I know is a billionaire, and therefore I don’t think it’s right for any of us to assume that he should always act logically, and it’s also not fair for us to demand total transparency in the organizations actions. Sometimes a bad apple has to be thrown out, and that is at a private company’s discretion. How can any of us say what it would be like to be in his shoes? How could you not feel that at any given time, people are going to try to take advantage of you? And if he already felt like he was duped by Penn and Pritchard’s agent, then I can’t blame him for not caving, and reacting to what could amount to a smear campaign’s resulting public outcry, especially given the potential for existing mistrust over the main constituent’s motives.
     Anyways, my point is, I’m not trying to eviscerate anybody here without knowing the facts. I’m disappointed with the last couple weeks, but I’m not ready to throw anybody under the bus, particularly the guy who has helped more than anyone, to bring us a team that we can all cheer for so vehemently on a regular basis. Feel free to criticize him, but I’m not going to kick the guy when he’s down, and I hope that everything works out in the end, including Paul Allen getting healthy, KP keeping his job, this whole thing becoming a distant memory, and us returning the focus onto BASKETBALL as we cheer our team on to the first of many championships.

        So somehow last night we pulled it off. Both of the last two games were terrible to watch, the refs let everyone be a little too physical, and in doing so, the true characters of some of the opposing players came out. In the celtics game we saw Garnett taking swipes at people after the whistles, I saw Paul Peirce gut check Andre Miller, all of the Celtics spent the whole game whining to the refs about how they didn't get ALL the calls to go their way. Then last night the refs swallowed their whistles while the pistons turned into a pack of wolves in the second half. Not only did our young squad have to contend with Rip Hamilton's notoriously lady like fingernails, but they also had to deal with Stuckey's constant unchecked hand checking above the circle, and one Charlie V. who got nice and personal with Juwan Howard's throat after an excessive foul on our (just returned from back surgery) Rudy Fernandez.

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         So I am so excited for thanksgiving. It is the biggest meal I will cook in the winter (I got the BBQ going all summer long), and so I thought it'd be appropriate to share my recipe for the most delicious, succulent, juiciest, most moistest, sweetest turkey with the most tender boobs possible. This junk is so wet it's pouring off the cutting board, onto the counter, and down onto the floor. So if you wanna know the secret, (or you think you already know, and want to feel all special and smart about yerself), then cross the jumpy line with me, and I'll clues yous in.

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      So is it just me or is any game with the Warriors, pretty much the ugliest game of the year? For some reason we just cannot get over on them, and it drives me crazy to watch. Dirty, ugly basketball, which the warriors excel at and we don't. So whatever, they get calls every time, we get favorable calls overturned, and the fury of the fan base gets brought up to a frenzy as our team gets reduced to a bunch of whining, uncoordinated, d-leaguers.

      So it makes me wonder, shouldn't we be considering this a rivalry? Even though G-state is a streaky team that won't make the playoffs, they sure have our number. Feel free to talk about it, or not talk about it. Either way, I understand and yes, you are right.

via www.laballtalk.com

Just thought I'd make another drawer for all of the people running windows 3.0 on a 486sx. So put down your floppy's and get to junking, (Yes I'm looking at you S.O.), you're welcome. The Blazer's are probably driving everyone crazy in the game threads, I'm staying out of it. What is the deal tonight? Why has Oden only played 4 minutes in the first half, even though he only has two fouls? Is Nate second guessing his 3 guard rotation? Will the Grizzlies ever be good? Will they ever sell out their arena? Is this enough words to qualify? Why was there so much insanity around Portland today, school's on fire, shooting in strip malls, and mangled pedestrian effigies?

Discuss...

             So here we are, the end of the preseason is upon us. One week to go. We've barely managed to make it through the desert of the offseason without losing our collective minds. We've had a whole summer to speculate what's going to happen next. A whole summer to recover from an all too quick exit from the first taste of playoffs this town had seen in quite some time, and recover from the realization that hopes and expectations do not make reality. The team is almost through the preseason, fans can almost taste opening night. We've found ourselves in an all too familiar place though, a place we thought we had left behind. The realization that we are no closer to winning a title now than we were last year. For as many things we thought we could assume about this team, the last few weeks have given us an equal amount of questions. How many games will we win this year? How will new additions fit into a system established before their arrival? Will we make the leap towards contender, or will there be a backslide? Who's gonna start for the team? Who's gonna be on the team?

               With six days to go until opening night we've got some answers. But are we seeing the big picture? I think there are deeper things going on over at one center court than we are being led to believe. I have some theories about why we didn't pick up Ime Udoka, and instead went with a late second round draft pick, who just so happens to be injured (and no it doesn't have to do with money). Why this was the same day that Lamarcus Aldridge's contract extension was finalized. And why Coach Nate, Kevin Pritchard and Jason Quick have been so quick to show their outrage and indignance towards the fifteenth decision. Come with me, through the looking glass, and I will let you in on a theory that has been spinning around in my brain since the news came down the pipe! (Warning: Conspiracy Theories inside!)

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So I have noticed a trend lately, one that promises to take away all that is good and fun from our clever little junk drawers, and replace them with pedestrian mediocrity and a complete and total lack of spontaneity. This trend that I speak of follows the known phenomena whereas something clever and indy goes all mainstream and loses all of the shine that made it attractive in the first place. The subject of this trend? YOUR FACE! This is becoming a part of the lexicon for too large a segment of the population. The masses are gathering to steal away our beloved and endearing burn! We cannot allow this to happen. I'm not suggesting that we somehow go after the perpetrators of this injustice, (they're everywhere, they could be your friends, your neighbors, your family, maybe even YOUR FACE!). What I am suggesting is we come up with some new, more creative burns that couldn't possibly be known to the brainless mob, that exists out there in the world we used to know before we decided it was much better for us to spend our time showing each other how sharp and witty we are here in the land of make believe. So here's one to get us started: instead of replying "Your Face!" to something we may want to act like we object too, we say "You Suck", no wait I think Sandler has the market cornered on that one. Oh geez, umm, umm I'm thinking, Oh I got it "Your FACE", CRUD! I think it may be too late for me, maybe I'm trying too hard, I don't know. This must be what addiction feels like, it's just so natural for me to fall back on your face, I can't imagine a world without YOUR FACE! Dang main stream! Why do you destroy everything we love, with your STUPID FACE!

            Labor day? The irony of the term is so compelling. If nobody's working why do they give it a name synonymous with work? We may never know the answer to this perplexing, and esoteric conundrum, so better save yourself the obligatory head-explosion and stop pondering right now. Seriously!!!!

            On a different tact, while many of us are now grown and no longer being held to the rigid guidelines of a public school system that was clearly put in place by evil adults,( Who we have now become), to destroy the will of children everywhere and supplant their stupid little imaginations with the inane reality that as adults we would so often find that life is anything but exciting and our happiness would slowly be bled out of us through a series of work related humiliations and frustrations, the likes of which the aforementioned imaginations could never possibly conceive of.

            Be that as it may, the Labor Day weekend still gives me a visceral emotional response, that seems to have been driven into my very soul by the many years of having a blissfully free summer ripped from my reality all too soon to know how it happened, and more so how it all went by too fast. Now however I am on the other side of the coin, and relish the time when all the spoiled, god-forsaken hellspawn stop roaming the streets in a never-ending quest for destruction of property, destruction of the self before they have truly become self-aware, and sticking it to the man who is about to take it all away from them, and mandate their every step for the next nine months!!!!!!!

            And it is why this year I am so happy that I have chosen this weekend to begin my vacation. No snot-bubbled, sticky handed, infectious germ-bomb, vandals to get in my way of having a good time. The next two weeks will be bliss as I forget about the life-sucking reality of a job that has lost its luster, co-workers who stopped caring a long time ago, and the perpetual feeling of futility that surrounds my daily existence.

            Tell me what is your favorite thing about this time of year? What memories and feelings come flooding in? And btw we are only 60 days from the full-on start of the regular season!!!

      So normally by this time in summer, I would have already gone on a couple of fishing trips, gone camping a few times and had some serious BBQ under my belt. But since THIS year I have to go to a wedding in Maine, where I am one of the groomsman, most of my recreational funds have been allocated. And because the doctor says my triglycerides are high I have to lay off the bbq,(too bad I already made 3 gallons of sauce). In your face Doc- I feel funny.....
      So just wondering what are everyone's favorite things to do in the summer, things you can only do in the summer, what you have done this summer, what you wish you had done this summer, et. al.....

          So I as many people in this wonderful city of ours today was reminded that today, June 5th is the 32nd anniversary of the Portland Trail Blazers sole championship title, by one 95.5 the Game.  This morning on my way to work I heard the first of many promo's that were devoted to a reunion of sorts, (by telephone) that John Canzano would be conducting as part of his 3 hour radio show dedicated to celebrating this illustrious anniversary. What a great thing I thought to myself. Until I heard the lineup. First off Lionel Hollins would make an appearance. As a member of the championship team it made sense. So far so good. Then the man responsible for bringing the city of Portland our first and only major league sports franchise, Harry Glickman would call in. Makes sense. Then Dave Twardzik would make an appearance. As both a player on the team and later in his career an assistant under Jack Ramsay this seemed to be appropriate. And of course this reunion wouldn't be complete without a call from the only coach to ever get this team to the top of the mountain Dr. Jack Ramsay would call in. Gotta love it. And then the roof caved in....

          It was announced without much pomp and circumstance, quite matter of factly to be honest that the then mayor of Portland would be asked to talk about the atmosphere in the city during the championship celebrations. He would be asked to talk about what it was like to set up the parade through downtown. The former mayor of Portland that they were talking about was one Neil Goldschmidt. I thought to myself, "Really? Canzano is really going to ask Neil Goldschmidt about the atmosphere in Portland during the championship?" For those of you who are not familiar with Mr. Goldschmidt, he has been a public figure for most of his adult life. He has been involved in politics in Oregon since 1970 when he joined the Portland city counsil. In 1972 he was elected as mayor of Portland, at the time the youngest mayor ever of a major city in the U.S. He was also elected to Gubernatorial office in the 1980's. After holding the office for one term he decided not to run for re-election. He became a lobbyist, and is widely regarded as having the greatest influence of any figure in Oregon Politics. And one more thing, while holding the mayoral office back in the 1970's he had an illegal affair with a fourteen year old girl. The affair lasted for 3 years and included potential cover-ups by future sheriff of Multnomah County, Bernie Giusto. A figure who has been linked to all sorts of nefarious activities dating back to his time as a personal security officer for Neil Goldschmidt.

         Now the point of this is not to drag these people through the mud. I am not trying to debase anyone's name or contribution to our city and our state. But given the fact that all of this is public record, and the fact that Neil Goldschmidt to the best of my knowledge has essentially gone into hiding, and has never granted an interview regarding his affair with an underage girl, I had to question the motives involved in bringing him into this otherwise celebratory discussion.  My whole body shivered involuntarily when it was announced that HE would be on the show.

         I must admit that I am not the biggest fan of John Canzano. I find a lot of his articles to be glib and self-serving, often times offering up more personal opinions and editorializing than sports. It seems that at times he will find a gossimer like thread between a sporting event and a personal interest story, and exploit it for everything it has to offer. What really offends me about this is it seems like he inserts himself into the story, and rather than being an observer he actively engages those involved in the story and tries to become a central figure. It's subtle but it's there. Often times he will speak of himself just wanting to do the right thing. He will talk about how he is lucky to be in a position to do something to help. Sometimes this can be a good thing.  Opening people's eyes to a charitable event for instance. But in this case I have to question his motives. I thought, "How could he possibly have Neil Goldschmidt on and not ask about the his abusing this girl, and hiding it from the public for a period of over thirty years? Can he really be concerned only with what the championship was like?" . I would have to wait until 3 o'clock to find my answer.

           At 3 o'clock his program started. He talked about how this was such a momentous occasion for our city and our team. He talked a little about how we are lucky to have a team that we can all be proud of, much like the team that won it all. He said we should all celebrate our sole major league franchise title, and how the way things are going maybe we won't have to wait too long until all of us get to experience this kind of event again, or for some of us for the first time. Then he talked about his lineup of guests. He talked about Hollins and Twardzik and Ramsay and Glickman. And then added "The one person who won't be joining us today....Neil Goldschmidt." He then proceeded to explain why Neil Goldschmidt would not be on the show. And then debate it for the next HOUR.  This is during a 3 hour show.  He said how Goldschmidt's people had requested that the former mayor and governor only be asked about the Blazers and not his personal life.  And then he explained how it went against his journalistic integrity to not be allowed to ask any question of any guest that he wanted to.  So he cancelled Neil Goldschmidt's interview.  He then posited that it wouldn't be fair to himself or his listeners to have someone on with a sordid past, and not at least spend a little time addressing it. As if to say "The people deserve to know! And if your not willing to talk about your indescretions, then you should not be allowed to talk about a completely unrelated moment in our collective pasts!".

         I don't have any problem with any journalist trying to ask Neil Goldschmidt about his past. I think maybe he should come clean.  Already his public life has essentially been destroyed.  He can talk about it or he can stay away I don't really care. The girl who he molested has suffered psychological and physical impairment.  What he did was obviously wrong and it is also well known amongst the general public. 

           What I have a HUGE problem with is I think Canzano saw this as an opportunity to get a scoop.  He once again used an unrelated story to further his standing as a journalist.  Nobody can convince me that he had pure intentions by asking Goldschmidt to participate in this discussion.  He then put up a text vote on the show asking if he was right to cancel the interview given the realization that he would not be given full and total access to the interviewee. 

           I think the celebration of this anniversary was soiled today when John Canzano's obvious plot to ask a shamed former public figure about his transgressions, was shot down. This became a story about his, (Canzano's) personal integrity, and the purity of pursuing the "Truth, the Bald Faced Truth."  Instead of hearing the stories of the city being turned into one giant party, and the civic pride felt at the time, I was assaulted with this self-serving tripe!  I have to say that I am still thoroughly disgusted. 

           I know a lot of people may say that I didn't have to listen.  You're right. But I did want to hear about the good stuff, so I waited.  It helped me forget about the first part of the show a little, but I have to say overall I still have a sense of loathing that instead of celebrating the day, I and many others around town were subjected to hearing about this horrible story again, a story that tells us once again that we cannot trust our elected leaders to live any more a pure and honorable life than the scumbag pervert down the street.  Shame on you Canzano!  You should not have our one and only major league team in with this terrible example of human behavior. And then you have the gall to act like you are the innocent one in this, to act like it was important to have Goldschmidt involved with the discussion. Guess what,  he like many other fallen public figures has lost the right to be involved in ANY interviews until he is willing to discuss his lurid past!  You would have done better by all of us to have never made an attempt to bring him into the discussion. I would have been happier if you would have said, "I thought about having the former mayor on, but decided I didn't want to get off topic from celebrating the championship with this obvious distraction!"

          There is a time and place for everything, and I argue that a celebration of the 76-77 season is not a time to discuss this! Neil Goldschmidt never played for the Blazers. He never worked for the orginization. He was not a central figure in the team's run to the title. Yes he was there and he was part of the celebration, but for you to pass this off as an integral part of the story, and to elevate yourself by proclaiming your integrity, that was a mistake. Give the listeners a little credit, and take away a little from yourself. Put your ego aside and stick to the story, because for all of your talk about being proud of your baldness I saw today's broadcast as a giant journalistic hairpiece.  And just like the really bad rugs that old men wear, that no longer match the color of their greying hair it's obvious to all of us!

           So we have found ourselves here. Where you may ask? Here, in the postseason. It seems funny. I didn't expect it to be here yet. When I woke up this morning I felt good. It didn't feel like today was the last day of the year. I like many people have been ecstatic that we have made it to the postseason. Finally! To be totally honest I had forgotten what it felt like to root for my team in the playoffs. I had forgotten how much my blood-pressure and nerve would be tested. I had forgotten how easy it was to lose my objectivity about this game that we love, and how easy it was to start focusing on certain plays, and certain players that in my fanatically motivated fervor would bear the unfair brunt of my outpouring of emotions.

           So something has been bumping around in my head for the last several days. Something that I read when I was younger that has helped me regain my sanity, and keep my eyes focused where they need to be now. The future. Now over the last several years, we have all had to try and keep our eyes trained in that direction. Some people had given up, others rooted for the team no matter how bad or ugly things turned out. But right now none of that really matters to me any more. It's different now. The future is not cast in a hazy shade of grey. As much as we may want to cast blame or doubt, or second guess the events that have led us to this place, none of this will bring next season to us any faster.

          So I thought I would share this Chinese parable with everyone who hasn't come across it before in the hopes that it would give us a renewed vision, and a hopeful, ( If not just a little bruised), outlook towards the greater goal which we have for our REALLY GOOD basketball team.  The story is the story of the Stonecutter. And it goes like this...

There was once a stonecutter, who was dissatisfied with himself and with his position in life.

One day, he passed a wealthy merchant's house, and through the open gateway, saw many fine possessions and important visitors. "How powerful that merchant must be!"  thought the stonecutter. He became very envious, and wished that he could be like the merchant. Then he would no longer have to live the life of a mere stonecutter.

To his great surprise, he suddenly became the merchant, enjoying more luxuries and power than he had ever dreamed of, envied and detested by those less wealthy than himself. But soon a high official passed by, carried in a sedan chair, accompanied by attendants, and escorted by soldiers beating gongs. Everyone, no matter how wealthy, had to bow low before the procession. "How powerful that official is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be a high official!"

Then he became the high official, carried everywhere in his embroidered sedan chair, feared and hated by the people all around, who had to bow down before him as he passed. It was a hot summer day, and the official felt very uncomfortable in the sticky sedan chair. He looked up at the sun. It shone proudly in the sky, unaffected by his presence. "How powerful the sun is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be the sun!"

Then he became the sun, shining fiercely down on everyone, scorching the fields, cursed by the farmers and laborers. But a huge black cloud moved between him and the earth, so that his light could no longer shine on everything below. " How powerful that storm cloud is!" he thought. "I wish I could be a cloud!"

Then he became the cloud, flooding the fields and villages, shouted at by everyone. But soon he found that he was being pushed away by some great force, and realized that it was the wind. "How powerful it is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be the wind!"

 Then he became the wind, blowing tiles off the roofs of houses, uprooting trees, hated and feared by all below him. But after a while he ran up against something that would not move, no matter how forcefully he blew against it-- a huge, towering stone. "How powerful that stone is!" he thought. "I wish I could be a stone!"

Then he became the stone, more powerful than anything else on earth. But as he stood there, he heard the sound of a hammer pounding a chisel into the solid rock, and felt himself being changed. "What could be more powerful than I, the stone?" he thought. He looked down and saw far below him the figure of a stonecutter.

From the Tao of Pooh, by Benjamin Hoff

          So what does it mean? I think that I like a lot of people this year really got caught up in this crazy season. We can't be blamed after not having a lot to cheer for the last few years. But I really got caught up in thinking that we could beat anybody. I got caught up in the parallels between this season and the season we won the championship. "So what if the team is young?", and "This team is way ahead of schedule!" were things that I for one told myself all season long. In the end these things may be true but to put as much faith into this season "Being the year!", has proven to be folly. Fools Gold. In the end youth and inexperience did in fact rear their ugly heads, not just for the team, but for all of us.  Maybe it wasn't the Rockets that beat the Blazers tonight, or the refs, or coaching. Maybe the Blazers beat the Blazers.

          And maybe, just maybe that was the best thing that could have happened. Maybe if things had gone differently, our matchups in the postseason could have been more favorable. Maybe we could have made it out of the first round. And then maybe this team wouldn't have learned a damn thing. Maybe we could have had a post-season like New Orleans last year. See where they are now. Until this team knows itself better, knows its strengths and weaknesses, knows how it will react under pressure, and knows just how valuable it is not only to the fans or to the city, but to itself, the road ahead may stay rough and uncertain. But in life, and in basketball it is difficulty that builds character, adversity that brings unity, and the act of failing at something only to get back up, try again, that gives us a greater understanding of the full value of what it was that we were searching for. They could have played better, they could have played a lesser team, we can go back and look at a lot of things that may have brought a different outcome. But when I look back at this season, the things I will think about are things like hope, and joy, and the feeling I had at the end. How I knew that this was not  the end. This was only the beginning!

THANK YOU PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS! THE CITY OF PORTLAND LOVES YOU! YOU HAVE GIVEN US BACK WHAT WE TOOK FOR GRANTED! AND WE ARE ETERNALLY GRATEFUL!

         So I just want to start off by saying once again that I am not a stats guy. So if you are looking for a statistical breakdown of the upcoming playoffs this is not the post for you. I would like to express my appreciation for this team, my appreciation for where we have come from to where we are now, and express my love for the one and only sports franchise that has ever mattered to me. I love this team. I love that I can watch a game and believe that this team wants to win, and win for the sake of winning. Not for the "street cred", not for the sake of proving it to anyone but themselves. I love that I can watch a game, even when the Blazers are behind and think to myself, "We got this."

        I am a diehard Blazer fan. I watched every game I could during the worst of times that I have ever seen since I have been a fan. I have met "Jail Blazers" out in the real world and been straight dissed by them in person, and continued to watch my beloved Blazers on tv and gone to the games. I have allowed excuses for losing, and held faith in the idea that things would get better. And I'm glad that I did. Because things have gotten better. A lot better.

        My expectations going into this season were modest. I remember the day that the schedule came out I thought to myself, "You have got to be kidding, this cannot be happening." I thought this must be some kind of marketing ploy by the NBA, to showcase the next big underdog. The schedule this year has been nothing short of brutal. All year I have tried to keep myself in check saying, "This team is young. This is a learning year. All of this will help build them into a winning team." But I must say I had no idea that things would be looking this good heading into the post-season. First I want to say I think this team can beat anybody. I think they can beat the rockets. I think they could beat LA. But I am taking a wait and see approach. If they do, then they will reinforce everything that I have seen all year. They have shown that they will not back down. They do not acquiesce to the status quo. They win because they are winners. They know they can win and they aren't arrogant about it. They are humble in victory, and they do not get ahead of themselves. They are flexible, they are hungry, and they are highly skilled. This is perhaps my favorite Blazers lineup of all time. I would be more than happy to support this team for the next 12 years.

    With that said, I wanted to add that if they do not make it out of the first round,(Which I think they will), I know that this is going to be a different team next year. The roster may be exactly the same, but as people, all of these players will have gained the maturity,poise and focus, that they will need to be perrenial playoff contenders. This team has never been to the playoffs. I don't know if that matters. And for what it's worth,  I believe this team has what it takes to be CHAMPIONS. The Blazers have officially put the rest of the league on notice. 

             TO THE NBA: GET YOUR HEADS ON STRAIGHT! IF YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO BRING YOUR A-GAME, THEN DO NOT EXPECT VICTORY AGAINST THIS TEAM! THEY WILL GIVE YOU NOTHING! IF YOU WANT TO WIN THEN  BE PREPARED FOR THE FIGHT OF YOUR LIVES! YOU MAY THINK THAT YOU ARE WINNING, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE SCOREBOARD AT THE END OF THE GAME YOU WILL SAY ONLY ONE THING; "WHAT THE H HAPPENED?" THIS TEAM IS YOUNGER THAN YOU. THIS TEAM IS BETTER THAN YOU. THIS TEAM CAN BEAT YOU ANYWHERE. THIS TEAM HAS A BETTER ATTITUDE. THIS TEAM WILL MAKE YOU WISH THAT YOU WERE YOUNG ENOUGH TO START YOUR NBA CAREER LIKE THIS! AND THIS TEAM WILL BE THE CHAMPIONS! Maybe not this year, maybe not next but, I Believe. I BELIEVE! This team has made me remember what it is to be a Blazer Believer! I LOVE THIS TEAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 So there has been an awful lot of talk about Greg Oden's current injury in the media and on the message boards lately. I wanted to talk a little about my opinion that most of the comments about him are too glib, and don't really get to the heart of the matter when answering the questions, "Is Oden really hurt?" and "Does Greg really want to play?". I think the first problem is the questions.

 The first question, "Is Oden really hurt?" is in itself of a purely subjective construct. Listening to the Rome show today, one of his guests was former Duke standout, and current Rocket Shane Battier. When asked what he really thought about Tracy Mcgrady's current woes, he referred to his time playing with coach Hubie Brown. His response was that Brown told him "Don't ever think that you can be in anyone elses shoes." I thought this was incredibly analogous to our current situation. He went on to say that what may seem like nothing to one person, (when talking injuries) might be incredibly painful for another.

  Now we can all speculate on the severity of Gregs injury, but to do so is both unfair to him and unfair to the team. It is an overblown distraction to an otherwise nice season, the best we've had in years. As of right now he is not going to play. Now this may or may not have any bearing on his future as a player. This injury could be physical. It could be mental. Or it could have varying degrees of both of these. I think to understand a little of Greg Oden you have to look at his history. Greg Oden has been told that he was a superstar since he was a child. He has always been the best member of any team he has played for, and often been the best player at his position in any contest, through his first year in college. In a way it is easy to see how for much of his life because of the support he has had on top of his physical attributes this has been less challenging for him than 98 percent of people out there. In essence he has never had to come into a situation where the moment he stepped on the floor he was not "The Man". So the transition to the NBA has not been kind to him. With all of the hoopla surrounding his entrance to the NBA, media attention and speculation, fan expectations and finally a year long rehabilitation it is easy to see that there has been enormous pressure on him to perform. I think he wants to perform, but is very fragile because he is still young and inexperienced, and compounded with the injury it is very understandable that he is hesitant to play at his full potential right off the bat.

  Now anyone who has had a severe injury, or has been sick for a long time can attest to the fact that this kind of thing can easily shake your confidence. Sure there are plenty of people who can have a skydiving accident and go up a year later and jump out of an airplane. But it doesn't mean everyone can. I was hurt while training to be on the ski team in high school and it took me several years to get back to my old form. I opted not to have surgery, and let it heal with physical therapy, but in the end it didn't come down to anyone else expecting me to do it. I had to find the confidence to do it for myself. I couldn't imagine if I had an entire country waiting to see if I would ski again. If that were the case at that age I would have wanted to disappear. I guess my point is he is in a situation that he has no experience with, there are huge expectations for him and enormous pressures at work both internally and externally. So to ask the question "Does he want to play?", is potentially equally simplistic to the first question.

 I think the better question is "Is he scared of failing?". If he fails he doesn't just fail. He fails an entire city, he fails his team, he fails his family, and more than these possibly he fails himself. Now the local radio shows will talk about the team treating him with "Kid Gloves" and "Babying him", and while there is some merit to what they are saying, pointing this out does not necessarily lead to his movement towards resolving these issues. The msp will talk about how we need to keep the pressure on him to "Man up", and several masogonistic references about his character, but this is potentially exactly the wrong thing to do. How many times have you heard about Nene, or Andrew Bynum, or Al Jefferson in the last week. Zero I bet which is understandable as we do not live in their markets, however these are guys who are going through an equally rough time in their careers, and I have not heard about any of them on any local or national media since they went down. These guys could easily be called frail, or injury prone, but they are not recieving the same kind of skewering that Oden recieves, both nationally and locally. My biggest problem with people talking about his spate of injuries is that I think he listens to what people say and think about him, and while we can all speculate about how he needs to get over it, that is something that people develop over time and experience. Also it is unfair to ask him to "Man up" because everybody deals with lifes challenges in different ways, and taking a long view on him historically it is completely understandable that he has not had to deal with a challenge as great as what confronts him now. He was thrust into a leadership role and told he was part of the big three. In hindsight this might have been a bit premature. It is hard to ask somebody who is not confident on their own to inspire confidence and show leadership. In fact it is one of the surest ways to set somebody up to fail. A friend told me long ago that people will always rise up to the level of their own incompetence. Now I'm not saying he is incompetent as a player or as a person, but I think in his mind right now his ceiling is lower than it's ever been in his life. So I think everyone needs to relax about him a little right now, and stop expecting him to be that final missing piece this year. The road to greatness is long and arduous, and it doesn't help if the people supporting you are the same ones knocking you to the ground.

  Which leads me to the other part of the story. Why we shouldn't worry and be happy about our team. Everyone knows how tight things are in the west right now, and we all know how important it is to get every win we can going down the stretch. However, I think it is important to have a little perspective. How do we see this season ending? Is it realistic to expect a championship this year? The way I see it when I'm being honest with myself is this is not the year to win it all, at least when it comes to the trophy. I see that as a team the Blazers are still growing, and learning what it takes to be a championship contender. And one of the most compelling arguments for why we can say we are elevating to that status is what happened last week on the dreaded "Texas Swing"

  Nobody will say that the Blazers played well against Houston, or San Antonio. It would have been great to get a win down there. Especially frustrating was the loss to Houston which could have easily decided home court advantage in the WCP's. However what it did, and what has needed to happen for awhile notwithstanding that these types of things all too often have to happen naturally, is the further emurgence of Brandon Roy as the true leader of this team. After losing to the Spurs, he finally anounced that he had "Had enough", and that the team was being put on notice. This is a revolutionary development as far as I am concerned. It is one thing to lead by example, but another thing entirely to gather the troops and inspire them to give their best. This is the mark of a true leader. It is one thing to walk the walk, it's one thing to talk the talk, but it is another thing to have other people respect you and believe in you for it. This was evidenced to me by our throttling of the Spurs on sunday. Enough was enough, and this team might have finally got it through their heads that they are as good as any other team. It's not talent alone that wins in sports, more often it comes down to who wants it more, and which team is willing to put it all on the line because hesitation does not earn any points.

 We can look at a lot of things this season. We can talk about records, and we can talk about blowouts and teams that we beat that have dogged us in recent years. But I think the greatest victory of the season will never show up in the statbook. The biggest victory of the year is the fact that this team has won its identity, this team can stand alone against anybody on any night, and be the team that inspires awe and fear in their opponents. This team can be a team of champions and this team can do it with or without Greg Oden. Now I'm not saying him coming out and being a dominant beast isn't going to add to what is rounding into a perennial contending team, and I'm not saying that we need to baby him. What I am saying is we are where we are, we are who we are, we're winning the way we are and from where I'm sitting for this year, things look pretty good to me. So lets be happy that we have a team to be proud of, a team that is exceeding expectations, and this team is once again finding respect from other teams and fans all over the country. It's taken a long time to get here from where we were just five years ago. It has been a painful journey, but it is starting to pay off. And I for one would rather be a part of "Make it better." than sitting around talking about how this guy sucks, or this guy is a bust or saying we've made a huge mistake. No we haven't. We are witnessing things being better, and if we can just enjoy what we already have, which right now is pretty good, than when things get even better, we can stand up and be proud and tell everyone "This is how it's done."