sure, the team has to sort out some issues with two play-makers now, but we also have two play-makers now. That wasn’t the case last year. Wouldn’t it be much worse if we still only had Roy with the ability to initiate offense, and we had to watch the Blazers lose close games against key opponents as they double-teamed the bejesus out of Roy in the fourth quarter? With Miller, we not only have someone capable of taking the ball and making plays in those circumstances, we also have someone who’s expecting to do that and has been very successful in the role for an entire career. Yes, the pecking order still needs to be established. Yes, the two haven’t learned how to best utilize each other yet. Still, the team has something it didn’t have last year, and that "missing something" cost them the big games that separated a promising team from a true contender.

This is what I’ve been saying since Miller’s Philly team “double-teamed the bejesus out of Roy in the fourth quarter” last spring. Portland needed a 2nd “creator” to make the defense pay for the resulting 4-on-3 when they trap Brandon. KP went out and signed Miller to do exactly that. Now, Nate needs to put Brandon and Andre out on the floor (for more than 10-15 mpg) and let their non-verbal “chemistry” develop. We already know what Blake and Roy can’t do as a starting backcourt—and that’s win a playoff series. Let’s see what Miller brings to the dinner table, before we send him back to eat in the kitchen.

I’ll tell you right now that there’s about 26 NBA teams that would willingly swap their head coach for Nate McMillan. Sure, his lineups and rotations might seem risky (or even annoying) to some right now, but it’s a good thing to have a coach that has the backbone to challenge his team and try different combinations, no matter who might be irked in the short-term, with the ultimate goal of growth and increased win totals.

Ruh-roh, my BS meter just went off. There’s backbone, then there’s stubborness, then there’s inflexibility. When a coach says “the players will show me who should play” at the beginning of then he “rewards” the guys who showed up with lesser roles, that is "annoying and risky’ business. If for some reason the win totals don’t increase, will McMillian’s “challenge to the team” fall on deaf ears, inside the locker room and out in the concourse?

Who should start at this [SF ]position? Which player is the long term solution? Should one of them be traded to fill other needs and to solidify roles for remaining players?

Loaded, loaded, loaded… the Blazers have a host of talented players competing for that "pie" that is the minutes available in each game. Problem? I guess

More whistling through the graveyard. If all of the wing players remain healthy (which is becoming a bigger “IF” by the day…) Then KP needs to thin the herd. Beginning with Travis. Too many young vets and not enough PT (or veteran role players) may lead to diminishing returns when the playoffs roll around. 10 man rotations shrink to 8, somebody gets their feelings hurt, and (what do you know?) next June KP drafts 3

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The lack of a clear-cut backup PF means more court time for Joel Przybilla, who stands to lose minutes to Greg Oden at the center position. I can see Portland falling into a steady 3-man rotation at PF and C that mostly features Aldridge, Oden, and Przybilla. I think you’ll see more of the "twin towers" lineup as the season progresses, with Oden doing more on the offensive end (functioning as the PF of the two). Oden has even demonstrated an improved face-up jumper in preseason, which would make this lineup more feasible in the half-court game. Frankly, Przybilla knows that he would be a starter, or at least play "starter’s minutes," on most teams. The gap at PF means there will be more court time for Przybilla even in the face of a Greg Oden breakout. That’s a good thing. The Blazers need Przybilla, and he’ll be happier if he’s on the court, contributing.

Kick save—and a beauty! Just when the writer was descending into a tub of gooey drivel, he snatches a nugget out of the air before it falls into the Honey Bucket. Yes, by all means Nate should employ the “twin towers” lineup, whenever matchups dictate that the big guys can crush the opposition on the glass and not get run off the court or into “foul trouble jeopardy” in the process. I suspect McMilian will try this lineup twice, then retreat to small-ball lineups with Roy at the “3” and Travis at the “4” But at least the writer has the BBIQ and cajones to put this suggestion on the record.

Portland’s gap at the PF position isn’t a "bad problem" … it’s relatively easy to address. There are a number of veteran role players in the NBA that Portland could pursue in pre-deadline trades that would fill this need. In fact, I’ve spent many afternoon’s chatting with my Blazer-fan friends about possible pieces that they could acquire… You may think that reasoning is a bit of a "punt" on my part, but I do think it’s absolutely realistic that Portland could put together a mid-season trade to add some size and ferocity to their front court heading into the second half (and post-season).

Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner! Now, all it will take is for KP to get off the pot and make a mid-season deal instead of wringing his hands about how much the “roster upheaval” might affect the team’s chemistry. (Adding Mike Ruffin last February didn’t seem to hurt the culture, did it? O course not!) So, keep burning through those cell phone batteries KP and find Outlaw a new NBA home where he can burp up leaning jumpers to his heart’s content and I won’t have to scream a my TV set anymore!

Quick poll time

How are you feeling about Portland’s (3-4) preseason so far?

•I’m worried about the on-court chemistry (or lack of) between Andre Miller and his teammates (that he should be starting with)
•I’m afraid that Portland has too much talent and not enough minutes to go around
•I’m anxious that Nate McMillan’s shuffling of the starters will upset key players
•I fear that Portland is still missing depth in the frontcourt

All of the above