"It has been reported that the sticking point on Roy’s contract extension is the All-Star guard wants a player option on a fifth and final year. If that’s the case and I’m Portland’s general manager, I’m just fine with that. Here’s why: Though maximum salary figures aren’t known until the salary cap is set each year, this year’s figure is at $13.4 million. If we use that as a starting point for a five-year Roy extension that would begin with the 2010-11 season, and give him the maximum 10.5 percent increase, it would get him to about $19 million the fifth year in 2014-15. In any market – and right now the NBA market is a combustible one – that’s a lot of clams. Yes, Roy is the face of the Blazers, a good guy and the player most responsible for their upsurge. But in 2014, he’ll be 30, with a lot more mileage on knees he has had trouble with in the past. Can you see why the Blazers might be at least a touch reluctant to make such a commitment?" "The recent yahoo.com report, by the way, suggesting there is a "wedge" between Pritchard and coach Nate McMillan, is baloney. Pritchard doesn’t agree with every bit of McMillan basketball philosophy, but that’s typical in a GM-coach relationship. Pritchard has basically allowed McMillan to run the team the way he sees fit, and there is a mutual respect that has worked well for the two so far." ""If there are two kids in the world I want to take care of, they’re Brandon and LaMarcus," Pritchard says." Good piece of writing by Kerry Eggers.