Our 12-team, 2nd-year KEEPER league has a number of teams available for you to take over. If you're interested in joining send me an email (the_mad_nader[at]q[dot]com) with the following teams ranked in order of preference, and naming the FOUR players you would want to keep.

Live draft is tentatively set for Tuesday 10/27 at 7pm Pacific time, but if you're not available to participate in the live draft you can still pre-rank your players and let the auto-pick draft for you.

The teams we have available are as follows:
Team A:

• Steve Nash
• Kevin Durant
• Monta Ellis
• Deron Williams
• Andrei Kirilenko
• Rashard Lewis
• Travis Outlaw
• Joakim Noah
• Kendrick Perkins
• Manu Ginobili
• Hakim Warrick
• Cuttino Mobley
  

Team B:

• Mike Bibby
• Jamal Crawford
• LeBron James
• Gerald Wallace
• Andrew Bynum
• Brad Miller
• Joe Johnson
• Andre Iguodala
• Stephen Jackson
• TJ Ford
• Charlie Villanueva
• Spencer Hawes
• CJ Miles
  

Team C:

• Delonte West
• Rudy Fernandez
• Shane Battier
• David Lee
• Pau Gasol
• Mehmet Okur
• Mike Miller
• Paul Pierce
• Chris Paul
• Ben Wallace
• Vince Carter
• Paul Milsap
• Mario Chalmers

Team D:

• Mo Williams
• Ben Gordon
• Andrea Bargnani
• Dwight Howard
• Nene
• Derek Fisher
• Ron Artest
• Jose Calderon
• Peja Stojakovic
• Kelenna Azubuike
• DJ Augustin
• Mickael Pietrus
• Tyrus Thomas

Team E:

• Ronnie Brewer
• Rudy Gay
• Dirk Nowitzki
• Marcus Camby
• Samuel Dalembert
• Anthony Parker
• Hedo Turkoglu
• Troy Murphy
• Al Harrington
• Luol Deng
• Al Thornton
• DaSagana Diop
• Roger Mason
  

Team F:

• Jarret Jack
• Eric Gordon
• Shawn Marion
• Antonio McDyess
• Zydrunas Ilgauskas
• Luis Scola
• Jason Richardson
• Ryan Gomes
• Kenyon Martin
• Lou Williams
• Kevin Garnett
• Ronald Murphy
• Andray Blatche
  

Team G:

• Steve Blake
• OJ Mayo
• Jamario Moon
• Josh Smith
• Yao Ming
• Jermaine O'Neal
• Ramon Sessions
• Matt Barnes
• Dominic McGuire
• Baron Davis
• Derrick Rose
• Udonis Haslem
• Trevor Ariza
  

The teams are available on a first come, first served basis so I cannot guarantee which team you would get, but I will send you an invite ASAP and help get your team set up in time for the draft.

Thanks and I hope to hear from you soon!
P.S. Most of us are Blazers fans, but anyone is welcome!

OK, we're in our first year of a brand new fantasy KEEPER league just for Blazers fans and we have two teams that have been abandoned by their previous owners, which opens up the chance for YOU to take over one of these teams and join this fun fantasy rotiserrie league!

As I mentioned, it's a keeper league (you pick 4 players to retain for next year's roster), and we have 10 active players (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, Util, Util) and 3 bench spots.  We use 9 standard scoring categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, 3pts made, FG%, FT%, and TOs) - and so far there has been a lot of movement in the standings.  The majority of us are very active owners, willing to entertain trades and making quite frequent adds/drops so there is a good opportunity for you to make changes if you are not completely pleased with either of these two teams.

The teams available (and you can always change the names after joining) are:

P-Town Trailcats: Steve Nash, Deron Williams, Monta Ellis, Rashard Lewis, Manu Ginobili, Kevin Durant, Travis Outlaw, Joakim Noah, Kendrick Perkins, Hakim Warrick, Rip Hamilton, Andrei Kirilienko, Cuttino Mobley

Team Smith: Earl Watson, Ronnie Brewer, Rudy Gay, Dirk Nowitzki, Marcus Camby, Sam Dalembert, Deshawn Stevenson, Hedo Turkoglu, Luol Deng, Troy Murphy, Lamar Odom, Al Harrington, Andre Nocioni

As you can see both teams have some superstars you'll want to have as your KEEPERS, as well as quality role players and a few guys you'll probably want to drop.

If you want to join please send an email to "the_mad_nader[at]q[dot]com" (spell out the puncutation) and rank the two teams in order of your preference.

All we ask is that you take this seriously - it's fun, and we don't expect anyone to be a total geek about it, but be willing to check in on your team at least a couple times a week and respond when people make trade offers to you.  You do NOT have to be experienced at fantasy basketball - we've got a couple guys who've never played before, and at least one of them is making a strong run at 1st place!

Here's a link for you to look at the public portions of the league if you want to check things out first.

So, come on and show us all what you're made of!

as the two most important games of the season.  Yeah, Roy dropping better than half a century on the Suns was nice, and did a lot to bolster his "all-star cred" to the nationwide audience, but to be honest there are quite a few non-all-star guys who've past 50 points in a game.

The Rockets win was HUGE because Roy owned it at the end, full of confidence.  He slapped his chest and snatched the victory right out of Yao Ming's hands with that ridiculous loooong range three.  Anyone who still doubted that Roy was one of the ELITE superstars of the league was served a huge wake up call.  That proved that Roy could, at any time, elevate his game to that proverbial "next level" and do things you never thought possible.

BUT, last nights game was just as huge to me.  As much as we need Roy to be that NBA superstar go-to leader, we can't succeed on that alone.  Team depth has to be what carries the Blazers over the top.  We KNEW that if Roy turned it on, he could beat ANY team, but could the BLAZERS beat any team?

Uhhh, yes.  Yes they can!

Blake may always be thought of by some (myself included) to be a "backup" caliber PG - but he shut my mouth last night.  Outlaw may always have defensive lapses (especially painful late in the game) or throw up ill-advised clankers, but when he drove and jammed right in KG's face - well, I'll just bet the Grizz were wishing they'd offered up a little more than just Conley to get Outlaw now.

Rudy, oh Rudy.  Even on a night (or after a series of nights) where your shot seems snake bitten (how many times will a 90% FT shooter miss 2 in a row?), you still find a way to scrap, dig balls loose, and contribute to the win.  No sulking or show of weakness - Rudy kept running, moving his feet, and doing the things that winners do when they're lighting it up or scoreless....and you better believe Ray-Ray was getting more than a little tired chasing Rudy through all those screens - could that be why HE faded in the second half?

Oden, what can I or anyone say that hasn't already been said.  We've all heard that he's the "second coming", but of whom?  Greg is NOT Oden-lajuwon, and nor is he Oden-lowakandi.  He's Greg Oden.  He's a KID, with phenomenal physical gifts, who needs to learn the fundamentals of timing, positioning, and foot movement AS WELL AS the mentality and toughness (of body and between the ears) that will allow him to exploit those gifts.  Last night we saw a step towards that.  Moving quickly to where he needs to be in the post, both offensively and defensively was huge...but just as huge was how he looked comfortable using his muscle to exert control over opponents, rather than in a confused, flailing, haphazard way.  Oden IS the Blazers center of the future, and maybe he can be our center for today as well.

Oh, and I can't forget Aldridge.  There's a fine line in the NBA between being stubborn and being resilient.  Selfishly demanding the ball and stagnating the offense when your as cold as the ice on the streets of Portland 2 days before Christmas 2008 simply is not Aldridge's way.  But, when your friend and leader is out with an injury, and you find yourself to be the most offensively talented guy your team has, you cannot give in to frustration when your shot falls.  LaMarcus stuck at it, despite the cold stretches that threatened to become ice ages.  LaMarcus wasn't demorlaized by struggles.  He wasn't demoralized by KG jawing at him.  He took it and took it, then in the fourth with the audacity we've come to expect from Brandon Roy, LaMarcus gave a little right back to his opponents.  Simply brilliant!

Who else?  Bayless showed that fearlessness and confidence that will carry him through the rough days/weeks/months out of the rotation on the bench, through to the future when his time will come.  Joel once again proved that he doesn't know the meaning of the phrase "taking a night off".  Batum, as a 19 year old kid, is showing the fearlessness and persistent defensive pressure that normally takes years to cultivate.  He's like a younger, quicker, more athletic, cleaner playing, more offensively gifted Bruce Bowen...except Batum can actually hit a free throw now and then.

Then there's Brandon Roy...again.  He wasn't even on the floor, but this game may have a bigger impact on HIM than any other Blazer.  My biggest fear as a fan is that Roy's style of play will result in his body breaking down.  You need only look at Dwayne Wade last year to see what my nightmares are made of.  When a guy is so versatile and talented on both ends of the court, it is far too easy for the rest of the team to rely on that guy too much.  And with Roy's warrior spirit, he's more than willing to sacrifice his body each and every night.

But now he knows that he can hold a little back.  Save a little, for when it's needed most.  A Brandon Roy who is trusts his teammates enough to know he has the freedom to kick it into high gear when HE sees fit...that is a DANGEROUS man.

And the Blazers are a dangerous team.  We'll see just how dangerous on Sunday, January 4th @ 6:30pm

So, we're a little over 33% through the fantasy basketball season, and we're looking to replace some AWOL team owners in a rotiserrie basketball league specifically for Trail Blazers fans over on ESPN.com.  It's a 12-team league, with 13 man rosters (10 active, 3 bench), and scoring in 9 categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, 3 pointers made, TOs, FG%, and FT%).  This is also a KEEPER league, where you will be able to keep 4 players from your year-end roster for next year.

Here's a link to the league if you want to check it out in more detail

We've got 8 GREAT, active, and competitive owners - but 4 owners have abandoned their teams and will be replaced - so we're looking for 4 new owners to take over their teams.  ESPN allows co-ownership of teams, so if you want to share ownership with a buddy that works too.

The teams that are available have good players, and are still in the hunt for the league championship - many are well behind on the "games played" which means that they could even be higher in the standings when an active owner starts adjusting the rosters.

Here are the teams that are available (remember, you can change the team name once you become the owner):

P-Town Trailcats: Steve Nash, Deron Williams, Monta Ellis, Rashard Lewis, Manu Ginobili, Kevin Durant, Travis Outlaw, Joakim Noah, Kendrick Perkins, Hakim Warrick, Rip Hamilton, Andrei Kirilienko, Cuttino Mobley

Team Holly Hoop: Baron Davis, Kobe Bryant, Francisco Garcia, David West, Rasheed Wallace, Andris Biedrins, Jason Kidd, Michael Beasley, Ray Felton, Jameer Nelson, Tayshaun Prince, Jarret Jack, Rashad McCants

Team Smith: Earl Watson, Ronnie Brewer, Rudy Gay, Dirk Nowitzki, Marcus Camby, Sam Dalembert, Deshawn Stevenson, Hedo Turkoglu, Luol Deng, Troy Murphy, Lamar Odom, Al Harrington, Andre Nocioni

The GO Grampas: Andre Miller, Nate Robinson, Corey Maggette, Chris Bosh, Al Jefferson, Marc Gasol, Brandon Roy, Zach Randolph, Rajon Rondo, Tyson Chandler, Kevin Martin, JR Smith, Anthony Morrow

If you are interested in joining our league, please email me at "the_mad_nader[at]q[dot]com".  Please rank the teams you are interested in by NAME, from 1 (the team you want the MOST) to 4 (the team you want the LEAST).  Teams will be re-assigned in a first come basis.

All I ask is that you be an active owner - you do NOT have to have fantasy experience to join.  We are a competitive league that wants to have fun, but at least one of our owners is playing fantasy for the first time, and he's doing really well.  Please be prepared to participate EVEN IF you get your LEAST favorite team - I cannot guarantee that everyone will get the team they want the most, so if you have your heart set on one of the above teams and would quit if you ended up with one of the other 3, then please don't ask to join.

Thanks for reading, and I hope to have you competing in our league soon!

Alright, I'm just a fan and don't know JACK about the "behind-the-scenes" stuff that goes on with players and teams in the NBA - that's why I read blogs like "Blazer's Edge".  But I'm wondering whether the Blazers have hired (officially or unofficially) a coach, mentor, skills trainer, etc specifically tasked with working on developing Greg Oden one-on-one?  If now, why not?

I hear about how the Lakers have Bynum learning directly from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, one of the best big men to ever play the game.  I believe that Dave Cowens once worked with both David Robinson and Tim Duncan.

My point is being, with a player like Oden who has such phenomenal potential, it does seem like you would want to take every step possible to ensure he grows and develops his game to it's fullest.  Building bad habits, flaws, and deficiencies in your game can earn you a reputation with teammates, opponents, and refs that is hard to overcome no matter how much you ultimately work to correct them.

Is anyone else keeping track of JJ now that he's a Pacer?  I think trading him was probably the right decision, but I was at least a little sorry to see him go.  I have always liked Jack's heart and energy, and do think that he could develop into a "Chauncey Billups-lite" type player.

Last night, as Indy beat the defending champ Boston Celtics 95-79, Jack (coming off the bench) logged the 5th most minutes of any Pacer, scored the 5th most points (11) for his team, and 7th most points of all 21 players who played in the game.  JJ also grabbed 7 boards, had only 1 assist, but only 1 TO - and this on a night where the starting PG (TJ Ford) was on fire.

Like I said, it probably was the right move to trade JJ, but I for one will be rooting for him to have nothing but success and continued growth with his hew team.

OK Blazers fans, I've decided to start a 1st year Keeper Fantasy Basketball league over on ESPN Fantasy Sports.  I have never participated in a keeper league before, and thought it would be fun to start one up especially for Blazers fans.

I've managed to fill 10 of 12 spots, so there's room for 2 more!  The plan is to have a live online draft on Saturday, November 1st, @ 1pm (PDT) - assuming we can get those last two spots filled by then.  If you are not able to participate in the draft at that time, you will of course have the option to pre-rank your players for auto-pick.

Here are the basic settings for the league:

• Rotisserie style league
• Standard 9-category scoring (points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals, turnovers, 3-pointers made, field goal %, and free throw %)
• 13 Player roster; 10 active slots (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, Util, Util), 3 bench slots
• Each owner may keep 4 players from his/her end-of-season roster to carryover to the following season
• No maximum transactions
• Trades subject to league vote (6 votes against required for veto)
• Trade deadline will be February 20th, 9am (PDT)

I will be making use of some of the special features of the ESPN fantasy game system to add some extra dimensions to the season (league polls, hopefully on a weekly basis, trophies for various achievements, news and updates on the league homepage, etc)

If you are interested, or have any further quesions, please send me an email at: the_mad_nader[at]q[dot]com

Be sure to include the email address where I can send you the league invite.  Also, participation in a ESPN fantasy league requires a free ESPN registration (information on how to set this up if you don't have one should be included in your league invite).

I hope you'll consider joining this league; I don't care if you're a fantasy expert, have played once or twice, or this is your first time - as long as your a BLAZERS fan, and are willing to actively participate, you're welcome to join!

Thanks for checking this out!  Go BLAZERS!!!