This Sports Illustrated article, which I found off the O-live Blazer blog, opens with a focus on Aldridge, and is a good read overall. But for my money, the real exciting quote was about Nate McMillan:

"There's more to it, starting with McMillan's dream of coaching in Portland for a decade or more. 'That's why I came here,' said the 43-year-old McMillan, who is in his third season with Portland following five with the Sonics. 'My thought was Jerry Sloan. That's what I looked at. I looked at something where I could get in and set a standard for how this organization operates. We're building it and laying the foundation for what we want to be in the future.'"

I know that for better or worse Nate gets some criticism here, particularly after a loss (infrequent as those are becoming) but I personally found this to be really encouraging. We're getting worked up about building a real dynasty behind Oden, LMA, and Roy, as well we should be, but all the great dynasties have another thing in common: a tenured coach who molds the team in his image, like Pop for the Spurs or Belichick for the Patriots. Having a young, talented coach who is looking long-term, dreaming of creating that kind of consistent winning culture is not as splashy as having an athletic, shot-blocking manchild of a center, or a GM known for Pritchslapping the Isiah's of the league, but to me, it's just as important, and just as exciting.

Anyone else eagerly awaiting a decade or more of the Nate era? Or for some of you, maybe you can't stand the thought of Sergio warming Sarge's bench for the next ten years?

Update: I forgot to include this when I wrote this journal--I seem to remember a lot of people saying before the season began that while Nate was a good coach for a young team, he wasn't necessarily going to be a championship coach. Do folks still feel this way? If not, what's changed your mind?