Is KP added Bayless, Batum and Diogu in exchange for Jack and McBob so i would say he made the team better!

Bayless on some teams would be ruined in the first year (not accounting for his heart though) and on this team is another solid asset to win more games.

Bayless and Oden, Blake and Oden, Roy and Oden, Rudy and Oden, Sergio and Oden are all awesome and that is just the beginning with LMA and each of those guys also awesome. (Note: I am attributing Sergio with average or better shooting % this year).

This team reminds me of a gatling gun in its ability to score. Got to love it!

I believe that Bayless fits extremely well with the players we have, and the system Mac wants to use. Mac wants Roy involved in the offense, and wants the ball in his hands in the 4th quarter. The Blazers, as such, wanted a point guard in the mold of Tony Parker, who averages only 6 apg, as opposed to a Nash or Kidd, who average 9 or 10. The Blazers want an excellent passing team, not merely one player who does all the passing. I believe Bayless will prove to be able to fill the role the Blazers have repeated on three or four occassions that they want him to play. He will learn to bring the ball up the floor and will just as often pass it off to Roy who will run a play in which Bayless then goes in motion, or he will to pass it himself. He will be expected to execute pick and rolls after giving the ball off to Roy, as well as to drive and dish. And, he will guard the opposing PG. In essence, when he’s on the floor with Roy, they will expect the PG duties to be as much Roy’s responsibility as Bayless’s. This emphasizes the strengths of both players. Bayless is clearly an offensive force and will only improve with practice. After all, he’s still 19. After 40 games, he’ll have the equivalent of another college season under his belt. And, as KP said, after 40 games, he’ll have it figured out. I happen to believe that KP was being perfectly out front when he said they always had Bayless pegged as the 4th best player, just slightly below Mayo. He also said very early on that he felt that there was not much separation between the 5 to 15. And, this clearly indicates that he thought there was separation between the top 4, including Bayless, and the rest of the players in the draft. And, given what we’ve seen, we have no reason to dispute this.

As far as like-ability, I’m always a little mystified by these comments. The first requisite of teams, after all, is winning. If Bayless is a solid contributor to winning, how could anyone “not” like him. After all, I imagine we could just love a bunch of teddy bears, but they’d also lose a lot more games. And then, I suspect we wouldn’t love them so much.

The very good players always bring something other than athleticism to the table. Bayless appears to have that extra something. Maybe his intensity, drive and determination put off some people, but when you start playing for championships, you’re going to need that to win. So, if that’s his biggest rap – I’ve already forgiven him.