Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of Darius Miles' life.

by Winchester on Oct 26, 2008 9:41 AM PDT Comment 31 comments

"Adding insult to injury?: While the Celtics have been praising Darius Miles, two NBA general managers said the Blazers have been bad-mouthing the free agent forward to potential suitors. "He can still play and he also hasn't played in two years, so you have to understand that he will get better," one NBA GM said. "Too bad Portland is putting out bad information that he is not a good kid. Anything and everything they can say bad they are. It's too bad. He's a nice kid with a bad injury who has fought back. Right now, he's still an NBA player and he's going to get better. He's going to improve. It will be a smart pick-up for someone." The Blazers declined comment on the accusation. When asked about Miles being waived by the Celtics, Blazers coach Nate McMillan said, "That situation, it's behind us. What he was doing in Boston, that's behind us. He's no longer with us."-Boston Globe

Normally I wouldn't put much stock in this, but it makes me uncomfortable that it's coming from a general manager. I would be very curious to know who's saying it. Could it possibly be coming from one of our future competitors in the West? Hopefully everything is cool with the Blazers and the Bobcats. I want to see Gerald Wallace in a Blazers uniform.

I still don't think Darius is coming back, especially to a team that would actually benefit from us losing cap space.

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Yes, of course the interesting question is, "Who are these GM's?"

Not every GM in the league is a Prince Charming like our own KP. Isiah Thomas wasn’t alone…

"We don't back down to nobody." --Joel Przybilla

by hurryup09 on Oct 26, 2008 10:00 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

OK, maybe Isiah was an extreme case!

"We don't back down to nobody." --Joel Przybilla

by hurryup09 on Oct 26, 2008 10:01 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I just read.......

this on ESPN. I think Isiah is really losing it! He has serious problems and needs to step away from basketball completely and get better. I feel bad for the guy.

by Mallardvalue on Oct 26, 2008 5:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Some of us are less "okay" than others, pretty clearly...

But reached on his cell phone Friday, the 47-year-old NBA great told the New York Post he had not been treated for a sleeping pill overdose, and that it was 17-year-old daughter Lauren who had a medical issue.

It “wasn’t an overdose,” he told the newspaper. “My daughter is very down right now. None of us are OK.”

“It wasn’t his daughter,” Harrison Police Chief David Hall told The Associated Press. “And why they’re throwing her under the bus is beyond my ability to understand.”

"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex

by timbo on Oct 26, 2008 8:50 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

And what Bad mouthing are they talking about?

I don’t recall hearing anything from them (either Nate or KP) re Darius since before (well before) he hooked up the C’s.

"Fez, the foundation of any good relationship is three little words: I-don't-know.

What're you doing? I don't know.

What're you thinking about? I don't know.

Who's that under you? I don't know. "
-Michael Kelso

by 92wastheyear on Oct 26, 2008 10:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Who's the cowardly GM spilling that quote?

I hope he gets pritchslapped like an Ainge. Bittertears are flowing in front offices around the league.

BINGO, BANGO, BONGO

by blzrfan on Oct 26, 2008 12:03 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

bad sometimes = truth..and the truth sometimes = pain.

A league doctor said “career ending”

how much worse can you get?

I mean why does that get overlooked when people say things about miles?

say as much good things as you want but if they don’t include that “career ending diagnosis by a LEAGUE DOCTOR” …..you’re talking smack….

but really?…how much worse is what anyone say’s as far as basketball is concerned, than…..“career ending, by a LEAGUE DOCTOR”….

that pretty much say’s to me, if I were a NBA GM……….“do not touch with a 10 foot pole”

I could care less if his former teams players/coaches/fans/front office said anything else….that “career ending” would be enough for me….

I mean ain’t that the idea behind a independent diagnosis?

so who’s trying to skrew who here? there are alot of reasons to pick miles up and most of them don’t have anything to do with his ability to play ball…

I mean what were his pre season stats again?

seems to me he ain’t all that great at the game anymore….shoot, judging by his stats I’d say he doesn’t belong on the same court as a d league team.

But I’m one of them once was a miles believers so I have alot of …..let down to deal with still. :)

The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)

by faith on Oct 26, 2008 10:29 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs

At least he'll always have his acting career...unless he has to play the role of basketball player.

Ha! If Nefarious Darius had acted right, none of this would be happening.

"People? You man Sheeple."

by Mike-Fu on Oct 26, 2008 10:32 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

If he's gonna improve by a lot

and he’s such a good kid , why hasn’t this gm offered him a contract?

Even if Porland is badmouthing MIles, the GMs should be smart enough to discount some of the things said because we have obvious vested interest in the matter.

by Falcao on Oct 26, 2008 10:44 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

By all account Miles seems to be acting like a model citizen lately

…some of the “bad information” could simply be noting his past behavior. The guy hasn’t had the best attitude in the past.

And how does this bad information get out there? Is KP cold calling opposing GMs to tell them that Miles is a cancer? Or by “Portland” do they mean all the negative stories from the Portland media? Sounds kinda like other GMs putting in a pot-shot to tarnish Portland’s image, but I’m admittedly very biased.

So far KP has run a tight ship, I’ll believe this crap when something is substantiated.

by shralpster on Oct 26, 2008 10:48 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

here's a scenario

GM thinking of siging D.Miles calls Portland beat writers:
Unknown GM: “Hey, Writer. We are thinking of signing Darius. What can you tell me about him off the record”
Writer: “Well, to be honest, he was never a hard worker here. While rehabbing, he would skp games and go do other stuff instead. His attitude was terrible at times.
GM: Thanks, appreciate the insight.”
—————————————————————————-
Same GM later talking to GM of LA, Utah, or NO:
L*ker GM: “Hey, you should really sign Darius. I hear he can still play, and his Doc and Danny both say his attitude has been steller. Besides, that would really screw Portland over, and they are going to be scary good already.”
GM: “Yeah, we looked at that, but we don’t like all the stories we’re hearing coming out of his past years in Portland. I think we’ll go a different route”.
L*ker GM: “Don’t believe all that stuff. You really should sign him – he can play! And besides, don’t you want to hurt Portland’s cap?”
——————————————————————————————-
L*ker GM, off the record to press:
L*ker GM: “Gee, it’s really too bad Portland is going around badmouthing him like that. The poor guy deserves a fair chance to play. I can’t believe Portland would do that just to hold onto some cap relief. They are going to be good enough already, they should just give him a fair shake.”

Rule #1 of nitpicking is to get it right.

by douglast on Oct 26, 2008 10:57 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

BRIAN HENDRICKSON rehashes a few Miles related points in the Columbian:

If Miles can still play, then why did an independently appointed doctor determine that Miles’ knee injury was career ending? Is this going to lead to some conspiracy theory about the Blazers paying off doctors?

If Miles can still play, then why were the Blazers willing to eat more than $26 million in salary? Sure, there are salary cap benefits for getting Miles out of Portland the way they did, but it was more than a year away. Would it have not been more beneficial to trade him for an asset they could use in the meantime? Perhaps one that also had an expiring contract?

And if Miles can still play, and is the “nice kid” that the quoted GM claims, then why wouldn’t the Blazers want to keep him around and give him a chance? Kevin Pritchard does not exactly have a bad reputation for talent evaluation. And if he can spot potential after a major injury in a guy like Shavlik Randolph after only three weeks, could he not see it sitting on the sidelines of the practice facility for more than a year?

And finally, if you’re a rival GM and are watching a young GM build a team in only three years from a league-worst 21-61 to a franchise positioned to be a dominant player in the league for several years, receiving rave reviews for his work, and gaining $18 million in salary cap space because of a certain move with a certain player, would you not feel some motivation to speak poorly of the move and the player?

by shralpster on Oct 26, 2008 11:01 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I'm tired of this issue, I consider my perspective on this whole Miles affair already validated. But to be the devil's advocate:

(1) Honest people may differ. If he truly had a “career ending” injury, how was he able to compete in game action for Boston?

(2) The Blazers mentally wrote off that player and that contract. They managed to get insurance to pay the tab and take it off the cap books in one fell swoop. It is much more valuable for them for insurance to pay the tab than the dubious value of a DMEC.

(3) People can change. Miles burned his bridges with the Blazers, but who is to say that he can’t adjust attitude elsewhere?

"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex

by timbo on Oct 26, 2008 12:04 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

love ya timbo, n I don't wanna go trounce where I shouldn't, so tell me if I'm gettin out of line here=)

1. did he really “compete” in game action? He was on the floor, but the product of the “recovered” miles sure as heck didn’t compare to the “pre damaged miles”. would a d league team pick him up long term?

2.Damaged-goods Miles Expiring Contract? what value does that have?

3. His actions spoke volumes more than his words, I like most humans am fairly judgmental about how things are, were. And how things are, and were always count when I think about how something/someone is going to be…..(in the future) dispite any rave’s about how changed they may be.

I wanted him to do well, I wanted him to be able to preform. I was desperate for some sort of validation of my rants and raves about how darius was going to “save” portland….I suck at expectations.

Now I know better. (not much better, but I’m thinkin some) anyway, yeah….that’s what I think.

The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)

by faith on Oct 26, 2008 12:20 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

on that same note

It’s worth considering that some injuries are not career ending, some are clearly so, and some may be a bit more ambiguous. Miles has at this point demonstrated that he’s still has at least borderline ability to play, and in your eyes, timbo, why does that necessarily condemn the Blazers management to having behaved shadily?

And doesn’t the judgment of an independently appointed doctor pretty much make the desires of the Blazers less relevant? Lets say KP and crew really wanted to get rid of Miles in this manner. I’d say the doctor’s appraisal validates their belief that Miles can no longer play, unless you believe in a conspiracy in which the league, doctor, and Blazers were all conspiring.

In the end, even that doesn’t make any sense, because if Miles is fully of capable of still playing, he’s free to keep all his money from Portland and tack on another contract from another team. If the Blazers thought that was likely, they would have nothing to gain from the medical retirement. Finagling to have Miles medically retired when he’s still NBA caliber just leaves too many logical holes, and if anything, KP has proven himself to be a smart guy. Why would resort to unethical means to squirm into a lose-lose scenario?

timbo, if feels like you’re taking an adversarial position based on a perception that many Blazer fans have reached a knee jerk conclusion that Blazer management would do no wrong. I’m sure you don’t agree, but it’s strange you already feel validated even though Miles has demonstrated very little so far. Even if he makes a roster and gets PT, I don’t think that condemns the Blazer’s behavior… it mostly just means that multiple doctors were wrong.

Oh well. At least we can agree on one thing. Go Blazers.

by shralpster on Oct 26, 2008 12:58 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

while I'm at it, here's how I see the logical outcome of timbo's argument:

1) Blazers want to get rid of Miles and get his salary back because management doesn’t like Miles for personal/attitude/image reasons but NOT because he’s incapable of playing.

2) Blazers manages to conspire with league to have doctors declare the injury to be career ending. (<— this step would be clearly unethical and seems to be the basis of timbo’s argument)

3) Miles is now free to try out for other teams and still gets all the Blazer contract money.

4) Since Miles is capable of playing, he gets a contract somewhere else.

5) Miles laughs his way to the bank, pulling in two paychecks at once.

6) Blazers manage to rid themselves of Miles, but salary hits their cap, they lose the option to play a capable player, and they lose the option to trade his contract for some value when it is expiring.

7) Finally, Blazers risk their reputation by acting unethically. If people connect the dots (i.e., timbo) or someone inside the conspiracy speaks (i.e., the doctor), sanctions are possible and a media backlash and tarnished image is likely. This is exactly the kind of image KP has been trying to avoid with the new look Blazers.

——-

The only way I see timbo’s argument as panning out would be if Miles just decided just to go away once medically retired even though he could still play at an NBA level. That seems very unlikely, and a risky bet if you’re Portland.

Wanting to have Miles gone is not shady. I won’t argue that the Blazers didn’t WANT Miles to be medically retired. Actually acting unethically to have this happen is shady, however. And if the path laid out above is foreseeable, why not just cut Miles if the Blazers want him off the roster?

timbo, where do you find the flaw in the sequence of steps above? Do you think that KP wouldn’t have anticipated this sequence?

by shralpster on Oct 26, 2008 1:27 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

when somebody is trounceable, you should trounce them

good job.

by Bust a Bucket on Oct 26, 2008 1:18 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Two things:

One piece of info left out…
I will try to find the quote so there is a source…

I remember KP referring to the nature of the injury along the lines of if he injures it again, he would be unable to walk without replacing the knee. From that, I get that he can still move around and maybe even play but the Blazers did not want to risk him losing his knee just to play basketball for them. This is different than he has an injury that makes him unable to play at all.

Secondly, you are using the classic argument of “who benefits” to reach your conclusion without considering the risks that shralpster already brought up. Sure they benefit now, but if what you propose is true and it is proven at some point, this risks what they are building here in Portland unnecessarily. You don’t need to save the $ and you don’t need the cap space more than you need to not have a scandal of that proportion while trying to build a championship team.

PTB Liberation Day - 2/10/04

by tssbro on Oct 26, 2008 3:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Tribune

"The doctors had actually said…‘if you were my son, I’d never have you pick up a basketball again,’" Pritchard told KPAM 860 early Monday evening. "I’m the kind of GM (that) I wouldn’t want that on my head that he ever had to have knee replacement."

PTB Liberation Day - 2/10/04

by tssbro on Oct 26, 2008 3:20 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

That is the money quote in this whole discussion

When playing basketball becomes hazardous to your ability to live a pain free life, then you shouldn’t play basketball anymore.

I don’t know how many people here have heard about a former NFL linebacker named Reggie Williams. He had multiple knee surgeries while playing in the NFL, including a microfracture surgery before it was call microfracture. Here is what he says about his knees today:

“I don’t think there’s any amount of money that I could have imagined as a viable trade for the pain that I’ve endured to keep my leg”

“My focus now has to be at peace with this knee,” Williams said. “My goal is to walk with dignity and no pain.”

by tingeyga on Oct 27, 2008 8:53 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Miles didn’t really play. He was on the court sure but he played terrible, and spent his time on the side lines riding the bike.

A career ending injury does not mean you cannot physically pick up a basketball and put it in the hoop. It just means you should stop playing professional basketball. If Miles was looking so good why did Boston fans see his cut coming from a mile away. Why did he get cut to develop young talent? I thought he was a young guy with huge upside. So why is it that they kept Brian Scalabrine around or one of the other centers/guards they don’t need instead of taking a chance on Miles?

Miles can change but that doesn’t change the way he acted here.

by Bskey on Oct 26, 2008 6:24 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Miles was good enough to get a non-guaranteed contract with Boston at least...

………………………. in other words, he was EMPLOYED playing basketball in the NBA. No one said well, or well enough… But he was at least good enough to get that deal.

He has not fulfilled the technical requirements of coming back yet; his salary remains insurance-paid and the Blazers have thus far dodged the cap hit. Which is neither here nor there unless your name is Paul Allen or you are a Blazer exec — in which case it matters very much. But really, how many WEEKS has it been since he was ruled to have suffered a “career ending injury”? And he’s THAT close to coming back THAT soon?!?! Like I say, honest people (doctors) may differ about whether his injury was truly “career ending”… The judgment of the doctor who made the ruling may or may not be ultimately validated by a failure to come back — but it’s very clear that he is CLOSE.

I’m tired of this subject, I’ll leave it there. I’ve made my feelings clear before.

"It's not a joke -- it's not a game." — B-Rex

by timbo on Oct 26, 2008 9:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Teams committing actions speak louder than journalists writing words

It’s coming from a writer of the Boston Globe. So it shouldn’t have more relevance than a report from a writer for the Oregonian or Columbian.

The Blazers once liked Darius enough to give him a huge multi-year contract, but did not like his rehab progress enough to keep him around after his injury was deemed career ending. Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers liked Miles rehab progress enough to offer him a spot in training camp and play him in preseason games, but not enough to give him a guaranteed contract. If another GM is convinced enough of Darius to give him a guaranteed roster spot for the season, he will do it. If not, it’s all talk.

Odenied: If you're given lemmings—make lemming-ade (Bow4Meow)

by Norsktroll on Oct 26, 2008 11:15 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs

"Everyone" loves a conspiracy theory

"Brandon Roy a une énorme confiance en lui et un niveau de maturité assez impressionnant, et en plus c’est un vrai leader" - Nic Batum

by G_dubs on Oct 26, 2008 11:35 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Hype

Funny thing about all of this is you don’t see any of the GMs fighting to get in line for Darious…I think the ten game suspension really hurts him at this point, especially when it becomes time for ten day contracts. And to think KP must be a Jedi if his “bad mouthing” really makes a difference all these guys run smoke screens and they all know it. Silly article.

by runanjum on Oct 26, 2008 11:50 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Funny this article was in the Boston Globe

Who’s to say, this GM wasn’t their very own? Or that this paper got this info from Danny boy at the very least? Danny has plenty of motive to bad mouth Portland after getting screwed out of the #1 pick, (in his mind), and taking on Telfair and company which led to the draft pick(s) that helped Portland turn their franchise around.

This is big money talking, millions are at stake for each team, this does not suprise me, nor would it actually suprise me if Portland really is bad mouthing Miles. If I was Paul Allen I would do the same to get that cap relief, and I think we are all a bit blind if we think it is above KP, Nate, or PA to do so with so much money riding on it. Money rules this world unfortuately.

by usmcr3049 on Oct 26, 2008 12:29 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

"the Blazers have been bad-mouthing the free agent forward "

So who are “the Blazers”? And when was this “bad-mouthing” going on? and what exactly was said that was interpreted as “bad mouthing”? And who is calling it “bad-mouthing”?

Too many unanswered questions for it to be a story in my opinion.

""I'm going to coach this team the best way I see fit. You can't rush it. You can't force it. When you force it, you end up losing, and I think you slow the growth down even more. There's a good chance we're going to go through rough times." - Nate McM 10/25/08

by jorga on Oct 26, 2008 3:24 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

r we blazers?

do we do the bad-mouthing? mmm…. :)

The faith (and I'm a guy) perverts. :)

by faith on Oct 26, 2008 4:16 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Rec for the headline.

Also, this is one of the best (and least heated) threads about Dr. Darius in quite some time. Kudos, Blazer’s Edge.

Jerryd Bayless has two emotions: Kill and Win.

"I think it’s going to be very beautiful game next year."
-Nicolas Batum

NorrisHopper30: "someone injure pubert jones"

by rockingharder on Oct 26, 2008 7:59 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

now that we see him as less threatening

we’re backing off a bit.

I don’t know if that is Kudo worthy, but it is what it is.

by Bust a Bucket on Oct 26, 2008 9:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

well

If by “portland” they mean Canzano I agree that he hates him. But those GMs that act smart should stop talking and start doing. Like sing Miles if he is so good. Yeah Miles is so good that nobody wants him.

by RipCity on Oct 26, 2008 10:15 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs