Question of the Day

Seeing as how we need a championship caliber point guard

2nd most points scored of any Blazer all time, only Clyde scored more. Providing us with instant leadership, poise, defense, and made the big shots.

He’d show the kids a thing or two about offensive rebounds.

Enough said, next question…

He was a Blazer, after all, if only briefly. Lever makes good sense too-he’d probably eventually be that triple-double threat he became as a Nugget.

Valuable expiring contract. Actually the only one exblazer since I´m a blazer fan (I´m a “post-Oden´s era”).

Not to take away from our team’s historical greats, but in a more modern perspective, I would love to have back either Ime Udoka or Freddie Jones. I thought we got rid of these guys waaay too early & like the potential they were showing. Too bad.

I like him, but I wonder if he could have sat behind aldridge. I suspect we’d have needed to trade him, but we should get some good from it.

Moses Malone was also another good one.

Also… I believe Hollins was the point of the ‘77 blazers? I’d take him.

We don’t really need another superstar, we need someone with high IQ who knows what to do with the ball. I also like the ability to run the fast break because I think that Oden will help us in that area as well.

different, Dave Twarzic (sp?).

Double, double and a great role model.

Let see we need a point guard. Hollins, good defender check, good passer check, great speed check, great at getting his team into a fast break. He’s left handed, thats a plus. I would have said Buck Williams but I think L.A. will be better.

I think for a short time he was the best Blazer point guard ever.

The first name that popped up was Buck Williams – the 1990 version. Buck would provide the interior defense, rebounding and toughness this team could currently use a bit more of. He would also be a great fit next to Oden. However this creates a bit of a problem with LaMarcus. I personally feel that could be solved by playing Aldridge at 3 some. He’s start, with Williams coming off the bench. Buck would get starter’s minutes by Aldridge logging some time at SF.

The second name that came up was Sabonis. Any team you add him to suddenly becomes better. I swear that most basketball fans have little or no appreciation of how good he was, even during his NBA days. Most focus on the fact he wasn’t the player he used to be and missed seeing just how good he still was.

But then it came to me. Our own Terry Porter. The player that plays the one position most here believe is Portland’s shortcoming. Porter is the perfect fit. I’d even take the version of TP from his post Blazer days.

Other former Blazer’s I would be happy adding:

Kersey – after the top three, he’s be next. In fact a Porter/Kersey combo added to Roy/LMA/Oden might be even better than the original version with Clyde/Buck/Duck.

Scotty Pippen – I’d given up Travis & Martell for Pip. Between him and Brandon, Portland wouldn’t need a PG.

Ime Udoka
Victor Khryapa
Danny Ainge
Mario Ellie
Cliff Robinson
Greg Anthony

and least we all forget

Drazen Petrovic – In fact he perhaps should be right behind Porter as the most obvious choice or at worst, pushing Sabas hard from the 3rd spot. Drazen was everything we hope in our wildest dreams Rudy will be. It would be questionable that Roy was the best SG on the team if Petrovic was to come aboard.

I WANT COACH MUSS BACK.

I always believed that was a huge key behind the way the successful Blazers team that overachieved in ‘99
proceeded to melt down and turn into a bunch of bad character guys.
Except for Rider, all that Jail Blazer stuff started hitting the fan after Musselman passed away
late in the 1999-2000 season; when he was here, the players kept in line and played as a TEAM.
And it was working! It translated to wins, to playoff success, and to a Blazers team we could (and did) cheer for.

And then he was gone, at the start of the 2000 playoffs. The team carried through deep into those playoffs,
partly in Musselman’s honor (I remember Sheed in particular just worshipping his memory),
and then after that, the wheels came completely off, both on and off the court.
He was that team’s Cus D’Amato, and the Blazers with-vs-without him bear a striking resemblance
to Mike Tyson’s with-Cus to without-Cus change in success in the ring and his character outside of it.

I want Bill Musselman back.

was like a lot of you – TP. We need a point guard and he was the best Blazer PG.

Then I thought of who I miss. I would have liked to see a young Audie Norris develop as a Blazer instead of heading to Europe. I miss watching Drazen get the ball at the top of the key, dribble to the left baseline, dribble under the net the whole length of the baseline and back to the key without finding a single shot or a teammate to pass to, always fun.

Finally, I mixed who I missed and who could help into one – Sabas. Yes, the Blazer Sabas was a lesser version than the young Russian we couldn’t get over here. Still, I consider him the second best Blazer Center (behind Walton, of course). I just imagine him taking Oden under his wing and showing him how to pass (even if your teammates seem as surprised to find the pass coming to them as everyone else), use his considerable body on defense and rebounding, propper footwork, a nice little hook shot, and how not to marry an alcoholic wife. That is what I see as helping the team the most in the long term and it would also

select Terry Porter by acclamation.

Who was our selection last year, Dave?

a deadly veteran sharpshooter

are awesome!!

He was just fun to watch.

the picks for center and PF … this year’s team has those positions covered.

Consensus is we need to upgrade at PG and SF. I think we need a consistent shooter more than anything else so I would have Kiki touched with the magic wand. Hollins or Porter would also both be excellent choices to give us what we want at the point.

Alaa Abdelnaby.

Maybe he wouldn’t fill our biggest needs since we have Aldridge, but he’s my all-time favorite player, even before Clyde. (It’s ok, I’m not crazy, I know he’s disapointed a lot of people and my point is not to rehabilitate him, I’m just answering honestly to the question, so let’s not turn this topic into a “Wallace is a jerk/No, he’s not but Canzano is…” one).

If we are going to ride our new center to glory and the finals, we will need a clutch SF who can go toe-to-toe with Lebron, Paul Pierce, or T-Mac as Gross did with Dr. J.

(realy though, I’d take Porter to help us get there in the first place)

There are a lots of guys in the “we traded them and then they got good” category-Fat Lever, Drazen Petrovic, Jermaine O’Neal, Anthony Mason, and I’m sure there’s an example at SF somewhere to complete a starting five of missed opportunities. (Ime maybe, though I’m not sure he’s better this year than last-just on a better team).

If we name one of these-I’m thinking specifically of Fat, as he fills a need (and I agree that TP has been selected too many times)-do we have to assume that they fail to improve?

And if we do have to keep the player in a time machine, then I’m tempted to grab the 2002-03 version of Z-bo, when he was one of the best dang garbagemen in the league, before becoming a sullen ballhog who thought he was the man. That version of Z-bo couldn’t play defense either, but was happy to come off the bench and clean off the boards, and damn if he didn’t almost beat the Mavs by himself. I certainly liked that Zach better than any of the later vintages…

I just always liked that guy. He’d make a pretty good back-up 2 guard.

But the best answer is pretty clearly Terry Porter. I can’t really see it going any other way.

Although D. Miles would be interesting if we got him at JUST the right time. Didn’t he score 30 and push a triple double in his first game of last season? I’m actually serious about that, which makes it scary…

He added alot of heart as a blazer and would be a great influence on all the young guys

Steals, rebounds, toughness, hustle, diving for loose balls, jumping for opening tip-offs, running the break, shooting from outside, almost beating Jordan in the slam-dunk contest – that guy did it all. He was the glue. Terry Porter would be my second choice.

Hey, maybe he won’t get injured this time.

From a pure talent standpoint, the correct answer is Moses Malone. Even though Luke and TP are my two favorite Blazers of all time, the correct answer is Moses Malone. You would have to be completely insane to suggest anyone else (again, purely from a talent standpoint, at the time that he was a Blazer).

From a needs standpoint, I think I’d still take Moses (the three headed monster with Oden and LMA would be unstoppable), but I suppose you’d want to go with either a true point guard (Porter is the best choice, although Kenny Anderson or “The Train” would be nice too), a deadeye shooter (Petrie, or Drazen), or an all around guy at the 3 (no obvious choice here, Kersey or Gross would be great, although I’m a little partial towards the mortician, A.K.A. Calvin Natt, myself).

Steve Colter and Darnell Valentine say hi

Just for a contrarian view. He could play the 3 and back up Roy at the 2 and would be an upgrade to Webster.

Otherwise…Porter and Sabas would be my real first picks, in that order.

He left the team on not-great terms—in particular, he was miffed about losing his starting role to Clyde Drexler (in retrospect, he had nothing to complain about), but he was a fine player when he was here.

In a B-Roy-plays-the-point scenario, Paxson would be the perfect off-the-ball deadeye to pair with him.

Just don’t let him (or his brother) run the franchise

Bowen had nothing on this guy. The ” plastic man ” would be the true kobe stopper these days, plus it would be nice to have seen this guy play kobe when we take over the West in the future. He was one of my personal fave’s prob the most underated Blazer of all time !!!! and would of fit in with our new blazer culture like the true cool dude he was off the court .

to see what could have been.

Porter is the obvious pick, he’s an all-star PG who would play perfectly along with our guys.

If Arvydas counts because he was on our team “technically” when we drafted him in the 80s, he’s the best center if not the best player in the world, so I’d take him above anyone. If the technicality counts.

Rasheed would be an incredible pick too. His biggest problem here was being afraid to be the man when he was the best player. Now that we have Brandon Roy, I could see him deferring nicely, and those two being one of the most amazing 1-2 punches in the NBA. Hell, he could teach so much to LaMarcus too. To turn non-crazy Rasheed Wallace into Rasheed Wallace, it would help to have crazy Rasheed Wallace Rasheed Wallace him. Did that make sense? Rasheed Wallace.

Many of the people on here have picked fairly obvious players, that definitely held their own in their day. The problem is it isn’t their day anymore, the game is faster and stronger. The only reason I am choosing this player is because aside from a couple minor incedences he was a fun player, and fills our need at point guard. Damon “Mighty Mouse” Stoudamire or “the little general.” He was rookie of the year, (not with us but still he is that good), and I feel like he was a great player if you set him loose. If I had to pick a season I would say 99-00 was the best season as a blazer, good shooting moderate in assists, minimal turnovers. He in his Blazer prime would still be a valuable asset. And as I was saying before, these players of old would be playing in a league that is new and different. He is already proven in this league, no not chris paul deron williams or whoever you fancy, but can hold his own none the less.

Uncle Cliffy played good, if not great D (ok memory a little fuzzy, maybe just good D). He could post up or shoot from outside. Played all three front line position, but early in his career he was a solid SF. Stayed very healthy, in his first 9 years in the league he only missed 14 games!!! Now how solid is that! He’s a career 35% 3pt shooter. This would be the ideal pick to complete our starting 5.

Second pick would have to be TP, but that’s getting over played right now.

(Wally Walker for those younger folks was drafted onto a championship team and the fans had never heard of him- hence the name Wally Who.)

My vote is for Lionel (Train) or Terry. Lionel was perhaps the better defender and Terry the better outside shooter. Either would be dynamite in this lineup.

We must have a young crowd in here. Moses Malone is such a blatantly obvious choice. The Blazers dumped him at age 21. Over the next 14 years, he average 23.0 points, 13.4 rebounds, shot 49.4% from the field, and 76.6% from the free throw line. (OK, only 1.5 blocks, but who cares with Oden).

Worst. Trade. Ever. But nobody notices because of Walton, Lucas, and the championship in ‘77.

Bucky Buckwalter is cringing every time you pick someone else (although maybe not Sabonis, since I think he had a hand in that one as well).