A few weeks ago I was complaining about the lack of basketball, in particular Raptor centric news. The end result was endless searching of the internet for even the mildest hoops news of interest.
It led me to odd places and I touched on a variety of topics like the blog on NBA.com written by Gilbert Arenas.
Things have not changed much in terms of hoops news but once again there are some things that make me wonder, and interestingly enough most of them pertain in one way or another to the team that I always caught myself watching after a Raps game last season…the Portland Trailblazers.
In fact, it has been mostly ex-blazers that have filled the headlines as of late. Obviously the biggest news out of the Portland area as of late is the passing of former centre Kevin Duckworth.
The Blazers Edge does a great job giving the latest information surrounding his passing. Cardiac arrest seems to have been the cause and the NBA has lost one of the good guys at a very young age.
Unfortunately this next guy and fellow ex-blazer will never be confused with being one of the "good guys". The rumour in Memphis is that the Grizzlies may be considering a move to acquire perennial bad-boy Zack Randolph. HUH?! Does this make sense to anyone out there because to me even considering such a move should result in the immediate dismissal of Chris Wallace (although the Pau trade really should have been the cause of that). It wasn’t that long ago that the Blazers were in complete rebuilding mode and decided that Randolph was the last guy they wanted around young and impressionable players. Look at the Memphis roster and you will note that almost all the guys on that team are young and impressionable.
The off-season has passed Memphis by, and after a half-assed attempt to sign Josh Smith away from Atlanta they should simply sit back and let their young talent gain experience next season. If they do find a home for one of their three young PGs and can bring back someone even half sane they should consider it, but Zack Randolph? Zack Randolph? (Insert Jim Mora voice here.)
Although Portland is on everyone’s radar as the team to watch next season with Greg Odon finally suiting up, not everything is peaches and cream in the west. Another "Jail Blazer" has come out of no-where and his signing in Boston is bad news for Portland and their salary cap situation. Yup, Darius Miles has returned having signed a contract with the Celtics. I won’t get into the nitty-gritty about how his signing affects the Blazer’s other than to say that his salary is back on the books and that’s one big salary.
Kevin Pritchard can however take some solace in watching this play by Rudy Fernandez over and over again. It’s scary how much young talent has been assembled on that roster, which unfortunately only reinforces how disappointing it must be for that team to see Darius Miles re-appear in another NBA city.
Having lost the gold medal game that Rudy dunk may be one of the only highlights for the Spanish team. Of course an American victory at the Olympics really shouldn’t be that much of a surprise given Lebron James’ latest comments surrounding the gold medal win. When discussing the victory James said, "But winning an NBA championship never would compare to winning a gold medal for my country."
Those are some significant words. We all were "witness" to Lebron and how he carried that Cavs team to the Finals just two seasons ago. His performance in the Eastern Conference finals was legends are made of. To think he wanted to win a gold medal even more is scary. If we know anything about the King at this point it is never to bet against him. Of course if I were a Cavs fan I am not sure how I feel about that statement…
On the topic of the Olympics Henry Abbott recently discussed the 2010 World Championship roster and the 2012 Olympic roster. He is clearly a staunch supporter of CB4 and his play. A front-court of CB4 and Howard could be devastating for years to come on the international scene. Of course talk about Howard and Bosh together will inevitably lead to more discussion on the possibility of the two uniting on an NBA squad. This was a hot topic just a few short weeks ago, but may I suggest that it’s Orlando that should be concerned and not Toronto. The Raps are the team that have set themselves up cap wise to make a big move, not Orlando who will be burdened by that Rashard Lewis contact more the next lifetime.
Of course CB4 gave his thoughts on the Olympic experience on his blog. CB4 also seems to have fantasy football fever as he invites his visitors to compete against him in this upcoming NFL season. It’s that time of year when many minds start to focus on NFL football and decisions like Romo or Manning and Jackson or Westbrook.
Speaking of Fantasy Football out draft is Thursday. I best be studying.
HOWLAND
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