But what is the point?



Patty seems to be a really loyal guy, a commodity rare in the NBA these days. He has turned up to Summer league, and training camp, he has put in 100 percent, and its pretty clear from all the pictures and the video that he loves being around, and all the other players and staff love having him around. However, in the cold light of day, where is he going to be after camp winds up? The roster is full, and its clear now that if any roster move is going to be made its to bring in a back up center. Now for Patty, the noise around league sources is that 4 teams are interested in adding him to their rosters for this year when Portland do the inevitable. New Orleans, Orlando, Houston and Sacramento have all had internal discussions about Mills. Patty knows this, his management know it, for all we know Portland do to. So I ask the question, why is he still here? Portland staff are on record saying aside from his playing attributes, speed, outside stroke, one of the main things that endears him to the Blazers is how much of a good guy he is to have around. If by some twist of fate Patty ends up on the roster, he sits another season on the bench so deep people may mistake him for an energetic fan. At all those other ball clubs, Patty stands a reasonable chance of seeing more than 3 minutes every 10 games. We need to do the right thing by a guy who has done nothing wrong and waive him and let him chase his chances else where. Surly there is no point in him staying and at least give the kid a chance to learn a system before the year kicks off.