First things first, I've got nothing against Steve Blake the person.  I love his attitude and work ethic and admire his love for the game.  I was a supporter of his last season, defending him against attacks from many of my friends.  Last Season there was no better option then Blake at the PG spot.  The next in line at the PG position was Sergio Rodriguez who is having trouble finding playing time on the Kings now.  With this security and massive amount of playing time on his hands he had a career year.  But this is a new season and Steve Blake's role has diminished on this team during the offseason.  We spent 7 million to acquire a new point guard, Andre Miller, a huge upgrade at point guard who does everything better than Blake except shoot the 3.  We also have Rudy, Martell (back from injury), Batum (who is out now but will be back and deserving playing time later in the season), and Outlaw who all want more minutes and can have those if Blake loses his.  With Rudy taking some playing time at the point and no more three guards on the court simultaneously with one being Blake (that Nate loves to play for some reason) taking time away from our SF's there will be more time for all the players listed.  And those players deserve Blake's 26 minutes a night, 4th most on the team. 

On a team as stacked as the Blazers are, every player needs to bring a unique set of skills that he does better than the other players he is competing with for playing time.  Unfortunately for Blake, he doesn't.  Blake's biggest competitor for minutes, Miller, can handle the ball, rebound, initiate the offense, execute difficult passes, drive, and get to the line better than Blake and pretty much any other player on this team besides Roy.  The single thing that Blake does better is shoot the 3, but then again Martell, Batum, Outlaw, and Rudy can all hit the 3 as well so Blake's skill in that category is very redundant.  Blake has little talent in finding his own shot, unlike Miller, Rudy, Outlaw, and cannot defend like Martell or Batum.  While Rudy and Miller are no defensive Aces either, they are not any worse than Blake at defending point guards.  Blake does not bring anything to the court that his playing time competitors don't already do better. Even the states say so.  His points per shot is truely telling at 1.00, by far the worst of any player with significant minutes except pryzbilla.  

Name                   MIN     PTS     REB     AST     TO      FTA     3P%     PPS

Blake                   26.0       6.4       1.4       3.4     1.6          .8     .389      1.00

Martell                 27.2       8.8       3.0       1.0        .8        2.0         .4      1.22

Outlaw                24.8      12.4      4.8       1.0      1.0        2.8         .4      1.13

Rudy                   22.4        8.2       1.8       1.4      1.4        2.4    .286      1.32

Miller                   25.0        8.2      2.4        5.0      1.0        4.0    .333      1.08

Blake is last in points, rebounds, turnovers, free throw attempts, and points per shot.  He is second for assists, and third in three point percentage.  How does that kind of production warrant 26 minutes a night on a playoff bound team?  With Blake's talent and ability, he is at most a 10 - 15 min a night backup for a team with depth issues. 

what is he up to these days? is he still trying to become a blazer again?  Also, what is his contract like and when does it expire?

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