Hey I need someone to back me up on this! On the final rebound Battier got with a few seconds left, NO ONE TOUCHED HIM. More accurately, NO ONE GOT WITHIN A 3 FOOT RADIUS OF HIM. He slipped, dragging both feet, falling to the ground. By anyone's definition HE TRAVELLED. Blazers ball, down 3, seconds left. Except not. A foul. Without any visible contact. Yes, that's right. Series changing call. On ESPN both Van Gundy and Marc Jackson said it shouldn't have been a foul. Did anyone else see this? Does anyone disagree? (I would be surprised). Opinions please!!!

Earlier today I was reading Jason Quick's latest article in the "Behind the Blazer Locker Room Door" series. This article, detailing Friday night's game in OKC, featured a few paragraphs describing an on court tussle between OKC's coach, Scotty Brooks, and Nate McMillan back in their playing days. The anecdote seemed like an entertaining and comical side note to the game. However, one interpretation of the event offered by McMillan caught my attention:

"It was just competition,'' McMillan said.  "He was a great competitor. Both he and I came in to the league in similar situations, where we had to make it happen on the floor. We weren't stars coming into the league. Our energy and scrappiness, that type of thing, we had to make something happen.

"It's like what I talk about to this team all the time,'' McMillan said. "I guess it's what they say ... practice what you preach ... well, when I say it, it's from experience.''

I know this isn't exactly the most groundbreaking observation, but this quote does a great job of exemplifying Nate's on-court attributes during his playing days. Nate was more Brandon Bass than Brandon Roy. He got his playing time because he was scrappy and effective, not a gifted "natural" such as Brandon.

A year ago, this statement also would have been followed by laughter. The (choirboy) Blazers getting in someone’s face? You have a better chance of seeing Stud Ruffin drop a triple double.  

But looking at the Blazer’s roster now, I have little trouble imagining such an altercation. In fact, the fracas following Trevor Ariza’s attack on Rudy Fernandez almost qualifies. In short, the Blazers have come a long way in this respect in a very short amount of time.

It is based on these qualities of Nate and the recent progress of the Blazers that I can confidently state that he is the perfect fit for this young, incredibly talented team. Why? Because for all intents and purposes, Nate's qualities are the antithesis of those you would expect to find in a lottery pick. Nate is exactly what everyone would expect each Blazer NOT to become.

The attention, money and glamour that come with being a high draft pick has de-railed, if not ruined, the careers of many. Cough *DARIUS MILES* cough. But in his time with the team, McMillan has done a great job of keeping each player grounded. Each Blazer has to earn their time on the court, and knows that any post-game praise offered by McMillan is well earned. Bayless and Oden will have their time. But first they will have to show that they have what it takes. By taking this approach, Nate keeps the young Blazers in check.

This isn’t to say that Nate lacks the sensitivity to help this team prosper. Nate nurtures and values all the talented players on our roster. He lets them know they are the future, and he works to increase their confidence and performance every day. But he has also made sure none of them feel overly entitled in terms of playing time, shots or media attention. In short, he has worked to instill his values in each and every one of them. And I think it goes without saying that a player with All-star talent and D-League desire is a dangerous combination.

I'm not saying that there haven't been such coach/team combinations before - I think the Celtics stand out as a great example. Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce are all perennial All-stars. And while they are veterans (as opposed to the youth of Portland) they all left many of their former habits behind them under the tutelage of Doc Rivers. They embraced a new team philosophy in place of a game motivated by personal accolades. And I think we are all familiar with their success.

Plenty of the teams in the NBA embody qualities similar to those mentioned in Nate McMillan. There are also plenty of young teams that have talent similar to the Blazers (in the opinion of many, such a team may be the OKC Thunder). But I think it is rare to find such youth, talent and scrap all wrapped up in one franchise 

So while Nate McMillan and the Portland Trail Blazers may seem an odd fit at first glance, they appear to be the perfect combination upon further observation. 

I think almost everyone here at BlazersEdge and around the NBA knows that the playoff seeding in the Western Conference is a mess. Only a few games separate the 2nd and 9th place teams, and with the season boiling down to the final weeks, positions are shifting on a daily basis. Most likely we won't know who we are going to play (or, god forbid, if we are going to play) until the last day of the season.

Despite this uncertainty, I know a lot of Blazers fans have been contemplating who would be a better match-up for the Blazers in the first round. A division rival like the Nuggets or Jazz? A proven contender like the Mavericks or Spurs? Or a team searching for its identity like the Suns or Rockets?

I myself have spent a lot of time thinking about this. And while I very much hope for and expect the Blazers to finish above the 8th seed in the West, I have decided that a first round match-up against the L*kers might not be the worst thing for Portland after all.

Yes, the Lakers are 56-14 as I'm writing this post. Yes, they made it to the NBA Finals last Year. And yes, their roster features arguably the most unlikeable player in the history of the NBA. But after watching B-Roy and the boys battle L.A. both at home and on the road over the last few seasons, I can't help but think such a series presents a realistic challenge to the Blazers, albeit a daunting one.

Our last meeting with the Lakers was an emotionally charged one. It was a home game for the Blazers, and obviously the team really got really pumped up for the challenge of playing L.A. while the L*kers sleepily stumbled into the Rose Garden. We came out with more energy and dominated from the tip to the last buzzer. We definitely can't expect to even sniff a 30-point lead against L.A. in a 7-game series, especially with the extensive scouting and preparation that accompanies a playoff match-up. L.A. will come out poised and ready to send the Baby Blazers home with a sportsmanship award and no playoff victories. But I think the team knows and believes that they can compete with the L*kers, with or without their classless antics (yes, I'm talking to YOU Trevor Ariza).

At the very least, I think playing the Lakers could give Portland a valuable experience. Competing with a seasoned veteran team like L.A. could give Portland the confidence it needs to be a contender for the next 5+ years. And I think no Blazer fan could imagine a better feeling than sending a #1 seeded L*kers team home after the first round of the playoffs.

So what do you guy think? To clarify: I don’t expect the Blazers to beat the L*kers in the first round. Heck, I don't even expect us to take it to 7 games. But I don't know if there is any playoff-bound team in the West that I DO expect us to beat. And while I think the Lakers would be a lot to handle in the first round, I think it would at least present a very valuable experience to the Blazers.

I’m sure this has been the topic of previous fan posts, and will continue to be the focus of many more to come. However, I can’t help but bring light to the fact that LaMarcus Aldridge is the most underappreciated player on the Trail Blazers.

He’s a lottery pick who has done nothing to convince us he won’t pan out as expected. He has a silky smooth jumper, solid defense, he hits the offensive boards hard and he runs the floor like a gazelle. He has even added a respectable low post game to his repertoire this season.

I’ve heard a lot of Blazer fans complain that Aldridge is “soft” - that he should average more than 7 boards a game or that he is not “assertive”. In my opinion there is little evidence to support those statements. Aldridge finishes with authority around the cup, and his board numbers suffer from the presence of Pryzbilla and Oden, who are almost always in the lineup when Aldridge is on the floor. To call Aldridge soft is to not appreciate the fluency and grace of his game. Aldridge may not muscle other 7-footers under the hoop, but he definitely isn’t the finger rolling type either.

I’ve also heard other fans claim that LaMarcus “disappears” in games. While I see some validity in this theory, I think many fans fail to recognize that it is a lack of touches in the post that often makes it appear as if LaMarcus is not on the floor, not his lack of hustle, desire or ability.

I just wish Blazer fans would show this guy more love – he is a very integral part of our team, he is durable and he is still improving greatly (despite the fact that his stats are nearly the same as last year). LaMarcus has come out of the break scorching hot, and he deserves credit. He has added a respectable low post game to his beautiful jumper and he could potentially bolt the Blazers in 2010 (which I don’t think would happen, but would HATE to see). Roy and Oden are part of the future of the Blazers and deserve thorough discussion. But don’t forget Aldridge. Please.

It can't just be me who notices that Corey Maggette gets some of the most preferential treatment by NBA refs. The guy gets more calls on offense and defense than anyone in the NBA. I know drawing a foul is an art form, and Maggette obviously knows how to throw around his body to get whistles. But it becomes ridiculous when you almost know he going to get the foul everytime he puts his head down, not the mention that he will flop on defense and get calls (i.e. the "offensive foul" by LaMarcus in tonights game).

So that this doesn't sound like a totally unsupported rant, Maggette has averaged 7 trips to the line per game in his career and more than a third of his career points have come at the charity stripe. He's averaged more free throws made than field goals in every season of his career. If he ever played pick-up I don't know if he could buy a bucket. Either that or he'd call his own fouls on every play...

I was kind of caught off guard by how many headlines I saw about Kevin Durant outplaying Greg Oden after the Thunder dismantled the Blazers earlier this week. While the #1 vs. #2 battle does seem like something the media would play up, I personally was astounded that some fans and writers are still trying to make a judgment on these two draft picks with Oden still having less than a half season of games under his belt.

While almost everyone can unanimously agree that Oden is still developing, I think the most ignored aspect of the Oden vs. Durant debate is how much Durant developed during his first season in the league. Pre All-Star break during the 07-08 season, Durant shot 40.2% from the field on 17 FGA per game (including 28.2% from 3) and put up a 19pts/4reb/2ast line. After the break, he shot 47.6% from the field (31% from 3) with 22pts/5reb/3ast line.

If you break it down by month you can see Durant's progression every more clearly. After shooting a dismal 37.6% in February, he gradually improved before posting a 24pts/6reb/4ast line on 46% shooting in the season's final 8 games in April.

My point is that Durant, after being one of the most inefficient scorers in the league for much of the season, became more familiar with the nuances of the pro game after the break and showed glimpses of what was to come.

This is what I expect to see (and have seen at times) from Oden this season. We all know he will have the occasional 6 pt, 4 reb, 5 foul game. However, as these instances become less frequent we will get a clearer picture of the player Greg will become. In time, Oden will gain his footing and begin his ascension to the top of the list of big men in the NBA.

So while it may be tempting to compare Oden and Durant nearly a year and half after they were drafted, what needs to be understood is that any player's rookie year in the NBA is a roller coaster, even for the most talented players. While Durant has found his place in the league, Oden is still searching for firm footing. Rest assured, he will find it soon.

Hey is it just me or has anyone noticed a striking resemblence between Rudy Fernandez and Bret McKenzie from the HBO hit comedy "Flight of the Conchords"? I know it's not an extremely popular show but during the time I have followed it I can't stop seeing Rudy every time I watch it. Try to tell me it's not the same for you.

Evidence Below:

Rudy Fernandez

Bret from "Flight of the Conchords"

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