From the FanPosts...

The Cougars have been nothing short of amazing this year, but good luck finding many people outside of Utah who realize that. BYU basketball has been flying under the radar this year. Even our #10 ranking hasn't caught the attention of many people. Frankly, I like it that way. I don't want people to be too aware that we have something special here. More importantly, I don't want our team to figure out that they're one of the best in the nation. I've seen our football team go to pieces one too many times once they realize they're pretty good.

So every time I see an article like the this one from Basketball Prospectus touting the Cougars as one of the best in the land, I cringe a little. I want to tell them, "Shh! If you tell them they're good, you'll jinx the whole thing!" Maybe I'm just paranoid. Maybe Jimmer Fredette will turn out to be completely different than Max Hall and thrive under the spotlight

Personally, I don't really want to find out. Let's keep the Cougars out of national attention so they don't realize they're great until they're holding up the trophy after they've won it all in the Dance. I think we'd all be happier that way.

If you're reading this, chances are you're making plans to celebrate a Blazers championship sometime within the next four years. It may, then, come as a shock to you that others across the country don't feel quite the same way. In a current ESPN poll, only 16% of respondents felt that Brandon Roy would win a championship with the Blazers - not just within the next four years, but ever. (29% said it would depend on Greg Oden.) A staggering 55% of respondents felt that the Blazers would not be winning a championship anytime soon.

I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but seriously? Only 16%? That's a lot of disrespect, considering what the team has accomplished over the last two years. Except when you stop to think about it, maybe it does make sense. After all, despite everything we've become as a team, the Blazers still aren't truly among the league's elite. If you were to make a list of teams that could realistically compete for the championship this year, you'd probably limit it to the L*kers, the Spurs, the Celtics, the Cavs, and the Magic, right? Those are all teams that have the talent and the experience to win NOW, rather than sometime down the road.

The Blazers? They're fantastic, absolutely, but even if they won 65 games this year, I wouldn't start making parade plans just yet. (Alright, maybe if they won 65 games.) For all their success and progress, they still have enough weak points that I'd be hesitant about naming them among the league's elite. When we've shored up our perimeter defense, found a reliable second and third scoring option, and when Greg develops into the beast we know he can become, then I'll feel comfortable labeling us as title threats.

And when you think about it, isn't that what the poll is measuring? Right now, no one believes Portland is a threat to win it all this year. Sure, we have the potential to win it in a couple of years, but I'm betting that most of the people answering the poll aren't thinking long-term. They're thinking, "Well, they aren't beating the L*kers this year, so I'd better say no." No respect.

Let's prove them wrong. Also, let's stuff the ballot box and make those results a bit more respectable than just 16%.

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