There has been numerous rumors circulating about the draft and what the Blazers are going to do. The trade picks

for established players view, and the keep drafted players and sign some free agents view. Obviously this is all

conjecture on our parts as fans but i recently viewed the updated mock draft on draft express and was pleasantly

surprised and excited. The mock draft has the Blazers with the 6th and 11th pick in the first round and 10th and

11th in the second round. 1st round is Harrison Barnes6'8"; 223 lbs.(small forward) and John Henson6'11"; 220

lbs.(power forward/center), the second round is Kevin Murphy6'6"; 185 lbs.(shooting gaurd/small forward) and Kyle

O'Quinn 6'10"; 240 lbs(power forward/center). All of these guys seem like great fits for the team, if you look at their

stats they have all of the tangibles and stats that we need, Rebounds from Henson and O'Quinn and scoring from

Barnes and Murphy. From seeing this I think we should keep our draft picks and sign a few free agents and we are

golden for next year. resign Nicolas batum, sign a point gaurd either Jeremy Lin, Goran Dragic or Steve Nash. The

rest of the spots on the roster can be filled with smaller sigings but the core is theire. here is an example of the

lineup if this is the path that the Blazers choose.

PG - Dragic ; Nash / or other ; Nolan Smith ; Any one with talent

SG - Nicolas Batum ; Wesley Mathews ; Elliot Williams

SF - Harrison Barnes ; Luke Babbit ; Kevin Murphy

PF - Lamarcus Aldridge ; J.J. Hickson ; John Henson

C - Joel Freeland ; John Henson ; Kyle 'Quinn

Not sure if we will be able to resign Hickson but if not I think Henson will be just as good as the backup to Aldridge.

What do you think is this something that we as fans can live with or should we try the trade picks for established

players?

this is the link to the Mock draft on draft express:

http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-mock-draft/2012/

It's almost that time where the balls are dropped and the briefcases open the NBA LOTTERY is just around the corner here's to hoping it all pans out in the Blazers favor.

with the 6th pick in the draft I seriously hope Drummond is there he is big, he is athletic, he is explosive, he can rebound, he can score, he can play defense, and he is the fastest guy on the U-Conn team. The one risk factor that I feel is in everyones minds is that 1 he has questionable motivation issues and 2 we simply have bad luck when it comes to drafting centers. These are risks that I am willing to take, don't you think that it's about time for us to get lucky with a center in the draft and if 5 other teams pass up on him it's a no brainer...TAKE DRUMMOND. The basketball gods will look upon him and give him the gift of a ALL-STAR type career. Alongside Aldridge this kids game will only shine and improve because I believe he will have that drive to get better. He will also become a instant threat for our team by being able to rebound on both ends of the court.

Now with our 11th pick I think we should trade up to 7 by pairing it with Wesley Matthews. Matthews is good but he no longer fits with our team and honestly I feel he never really did. Golden State just might bite because they would still be getting a lottery pick and also a shooting guard that they despratly need. Keep in mind by this time Davis will have gone to Charlotte, T-Rob will have gone to Washington, Beal will be taken by Cleveland to be paired with R.O.Y. Kyrie Irving, Kidd-Gilchrist will have dropped to 4 in which New Orleans will gobble him up, and Barnes will be taken by Sacramento at 5, they already have Cousins and Hayes, and won't be willing to take the risk on Drummond who falls to us at 6.

With the 7th pick we should take Jeremy Lamb. In my mind he is the same style of player as Roy was just not fully developed. Most of us fans already want to bring Roy in as a player developement coach anyway. Lamb would flourish with his abilities if Roy is more then just a mentor to him. He has a wingspan of 7'!", that would give us 6 players with a wingspan of 7'+ (Aldridge, Drummond, Batum, Lamb, Hickson, and Przybilla). Lamb will be able to learn how to use his wingspan playing alongside Batum, he will be able to utalize his outside shot to open up the inside and if Roy is a players coach I don't see why he wouldn't be able to develop a slashing to the hoop style of game to go along with what I feel will be one of the most clutch jump shots that the league has seen in years.

Our next 2 picks come in the second round this is another trade scenario that I would like to see is packaging both of those picks with "The Rhino" to move up into the late first round and with that being said I would take Scott Machado. I know I may sound crazy but the guy is legit leading the NCAA in assists back to back years, he will be a beast. I only saw one of his games last year (BYU) I was astonished by his play. He will be a star point guard if not better in this league. He reminds me of a better Westbrook type player. Yell at me if you want thats just my opinion.

With these 3 players we will fill up 3 different needs through the draft and if it all pans out the way I think it will we will be legit contenders next year. My prediction for next year is that we will draft these 3 players and win our division with the 3rd best record in the NBA only behind OKC and Miami in that order. Granted we will still have to do some work in F/A like resign Batum, Hickson, and Przybilla.

In this situation I think it would be smarter to bring in Brooks cause he can either start and Machado can come off the bench or he can be the sixth man that many of you think he will be. I would also go after Roy Hibbert to a contract that lasts just as long as Drummonds and keep whoever is better. (Protection from the bust.) I would also try and get Rudy Gay or sign O.J. Mayo.

The team would look a little something like this:

First Unit: Roy Hibbert, LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum, Jeremey Lamb, Aaron Brooks

Second Unit: Andre Drummond, J.J. Hickson, Rudy Gay/Luke Babbit, O.J. Mayo/Elliot Williams, Scott Machado

Third Unit: Joel Przybilla, Kurt Thomas Keep in mind the Mayo/Gay scenario is one or the other not both.

What do you think we should do with all our draft picks and cap space?

As always GO BLAZERS and Thank You for reading. Have a GREAT DAY.

As followed is the complete list of Kevin Pritchard, Rich Cho, and Chad Buchanan.

The following transaction history of our GM's are organized by month/day/year. Their first [only] season is listed first. While their last [only] season is lasted last. The transactions that occurred per. season are organized by: Starting with their last transaction for that season is listed first to their first transaction for that season that occurred is listed last during that season or time.

Kevin Pritchard transactions go as the following:

• Season 2007-2008

April 14 2008
Waived forward Darius Miles.
February 21 2008
Traded guard Taurean Green to the Denver Nuggets for guard Von Wafer.
October 29 2007
Exercised the contract options on guards Brandon Roy, Sergio Rodriguez, Jarrett Jack and Martell Webster and forwards LaMarcus Aldridge and Channing Frye through 2008-09.
October 23 2007
Waived forwards Chris Ellis and Brent Petway.
October 15 2007
Waived guard Danilo Pinnock.
October 1 2007
Signed guard Danilo Pinnock and forwards Chris Ellis and Brent Petway.
July 13 2007
Signed guard Steve Blake.
July 10 2007
Waived guard Steve Francis.
July 2 2007
Signed guard Taurean Green, forward Josh McRoberts and center Greg Oden.
Draft 2007
Selected center Greg Oden (1st overall pick), forwards Josh McRoberts (37th overall pick), Derrick Byars (42nd overall pick) and Demetris Nichols (53rd overall pick) and guard Taurean Green (52nd overall pick).
Traded guards Fred Jones and Dan Dickau, forward Zach Randolph and the draft rights to forward Demetris Nichols to the New York Knicks for guard Steve Francis and forward Channing Frye; traded cash to the Phoenix Suns for the draft rights to guard Rudy Fernandez; traded the draft rights to forward Derrick Byars and cash to the Philadelphia 76ers for the draft rights to guard Petteri Koponen.
May 29 2007
Named Tom Penn assistant general manager.

• 2008-2009

May 18 2009
Named Tom Penn vice president of basketball operations.
February 18 2009
Traded forward Ike Diogu to the Sacramento Kings for forward Michael Ruffin.
October 31 2008
Signed forward Martell Webster to a contract extension.
October 25 2008
Exercised the contract options on guards Sergio Rodriguez and Brandon Roy, forward LaMarcus Aldridge and center Greg Oden.
October 23 2008
Waived guard Luke Jackson and center Steven Hill.
October 17 2008
Waived forward Curtis Sumpter.
September 25 2008
Signed forward Shavlik Randolph.
August 27 2008
Signed guards Luke Jackson and Jamaal Tatum and center Steven Hill.
July 22 2008
Signed forward Nicolas Batum.
July 9 2008
Traded guard Jarrett Jack, the draft rights to guard Brandon Rush, forward Josh McRoberts and cash considerations to the Indiana Pacers for the draft rights to guard Jerryd Bayless and forward Ike Diogu; signed guard Jerryd Bayless.
July 7 2008
Named Joe Prunty assistant coach.
July 1 2008
Signed guard Rudy Fernandez.
Draft 2008
Selected forwards Brandon Rush (13th overall pick) and Joey Dorsey (33rd overall pick), center Omer Asik (36th overall pick) and guard Mike Taylor (55th overall pick).
Acquired the draft rights to forward Darrell Arthur from the New Orleans Hornets for cash; traded the draft rights to forward Darrell Arthur to the Memphis Grizzlies and traded the draft rights to forward Joey Dorsey to the Houston Rockets for forward Nicolas Batum; traded the draft rights to center Omer Asik to the Chicago Bulls for two future second-round picks; traded the draft rights to guard Mike Taylor to the L.A. Clippers for a second-round pick in 2009.

• 2009-2010

June 25 2010
Fired as general manager. Draft 2010
Selected guards Elliot Williams (22nd overall pick) and Armon Johnson (34th overall pick).
Traded forward Martell Webster to the Minnesota Timberwolves for forward Ryan Gomes and the draft rights to forward Luke Babbitt.
June 21 2010
Traded the 44th overall pick in the 2010 draft and cash to the Golden State Warriors for the 34th overall pick in the 2010 draft.
June 18 2010
Exercised the contract option on director of NBA scouting Michael Born and director of college scouting Chad Buchanan through 2010-11.
April 20 2010
Signed center Marcus Camby to a contract extension.
March 16 2010
Fired vice president of basketball operations Tom Penn.
March 3 2010
Signed guard Travis Diener.
February 16 2010
Traded guard Steve Blake, forward Travis Outlaw and cash to the Los Angeles Clippers for center Marcus Camby.
January 8 2010
Signed forward Shavlik Randolph to a 10-day contract.
January 6 2010
Waived forward Shavlik Randolph.
December 30 2009
Signed forward Shavlik Randolph.
December 29 2009
Waived forward Anthony Tolliver.
December 17 2009
Signed forward Anthony Tolliver.
October 22 2009
Signed forward LaMarcus Aldridge to a contract extension and waived forward Ime Udoka and center Jarron Collins.
October 16 2009
Signed guard Patrick Mills and exercised the contract options on guards Rudy Fernandez and Jerryd Bayless, forward Nicolas Batum and center Greg Oden through 2010-11.
September 25 2009
Signed forward Ime Udoka.
September 17 2009
Signed forward Juwan Howard.
September 15 2009
Named Hersey Hawkins player development director.
September 8 2009
Signed forward Jeff Pendergraph.
August 21 2009
Signed forward Dante Cunningham.
August 6 2009
Signed guard Brandon Roy to a contract extension.
July 24 2009
Signed guard Andre Miller.
July 10 2009
Exercised the contract option on head coach Nate McMillan through 2010-11 and signed forward Paul Millsap to an offer sheet.
Draft 2009
Selected forwards Victor Claver (22nd overall pick), Dante Cunningham (33rd overall pick) and Jon Brockman (38th overall pick) and guard Patrick Mills (55th overall pick). Traded guard Sergio Rodriguez, the draft rights to forward Jon Brockman and cash to the Sacramento Kings for the draft rights to forward Jeff Pendergraph. Traded the draft rights to guard Nick Calathes to the Dallas Mavericks for a future second-round pick.

Today he is now the director of player personnel for the Pacers.


Rich Cho's transactions go as the following:

• 2010-2011

April 12 2011
Signed center Earl Barron for the remainder of the season.
March 14 2011
Signed center Chris Johnson for the remainder of the season.
March 11 2011
Signed center Jarron Collins to a second 10-day contract.
March 8 2011
Signed head coach Nate McMillan to a contract extension.
March 1 2011
Signed center Jarron Collins to a 10-day contract.
February 24 2011
Traded forwards Dante Cunningham and Sean Marks, center Joel Przybilla and and conditional first-round picks in 2011 and 2013 to the Charlotte Bobcats for forward Gerald Wallace.
January 24 2011
Signed center Chris Johnson to a 10-day contract.
November 6 2010
Signed forward Sean Marks.
October 30 2010
Exercised the contract option on guard Rudy Fernandez and forward Nicolas Batum through 2011-12.
October 25 2010
Waived forward Jeff Pendergraph and signed center Fabricio Oberto.
October 23 2010
Traded guard Jerryd Bayless to the New Orleans Hornets for a conditional first-round pick and cash.
October 20 2010
Waived forward Raymond Skyes and center Steven Hill.
October 15 2010
Waived guard Seth Traver.
October 11 2010
Signed center Steven Hill.
October 4 2010
Waived guard Dwight Lewis and forward Eric Williams.
September 24 2010
Signed guards Dwight Lewis, Patrick Mills and Seth Tarver and forwards Eric Williams and Raymond Skies.
August 12 2010
Named Bill Branch and Steve Rosenberry assistant general managers.
August 2 2010
Signed guard Armon Johnson.
July 26 2010
Named Bernie Bickerstaff, Bob Ociepka and Buck Williams assistant coaches.
July 21 2010
Signed guard Wesley Matthews.

Today he is general manager of the Charlotte Bobcats.




Chad Buchanan's transactions go as the following

• 2011-2012

March 21 2012
Waived center Mehmet Okur and signed forward JJ Hickson.
March 15 2012
Traded center Marcus Camby to the Houston Rockets guard Jonny Flynn, center Hasheem Thabeet and a second-round pick. Traded forward Gerald Wallace to the New Jersey Nets for forward Shawne Williams, center Mehmet Okur and a conditional first-round. Waived centers Greg Oden and Chris Johnson. Fired head coach Nate McMillan and named Kaleb Canales interim head coach.
February 27 2012
Waived guard Armon Johnson and signed center Joel Przybilla.
December 20 2011
Waived center Earl Barron.
December 17 2011
Waived guard Seth Tarver, forwards Marshall Brown and Ben McCauley and center Jeff Foote.
December 15 2011
Signed guard Jamal Crawford and forward Craig Smith and waived guard Brandon Roy.
December 11 2011
Signed center Kurt Thomas.
December 10 2011
Signed guard Seth Tarver, forwards Marshall Brown and Ben McCauley and center Jeff Foote.
December 9 2011
Re-signed center Greg Oden and signed guard Nolan Smith.
December 7 2011
Named Larry Greer assistant coach and Dan Dickau player development assistant.
June 29 2011
Exercised the contract options on guard Elliot Williams and forward Luke Babbitt through 2012-13 and tendered qualifying offer to guard Patrick Mills and center Greg Oden.
June 27 2011
Traded the draft rights to Tanguy Ngombo to the Minnesota Timberwolves for a future second-round pick.
Draft 2011
Selected guards Nolan Smith (21st overall pick) and Jon Diebler (51st overall pick).
Traded guard Rudy Fernandez and the draft rights to Petteri Koponen to the Dallas Mavericks and guard Andre Miller and a future second-round pick to the Denver Nuggets for guard Raymond Felton and the draft rights to Tanguy Ngombo from the Dallas Mavericks.


Now when we analyze their time in portland we see that Kevin Pritchard was very successful drafting players and setting himself up for success during times of the draft. While effectively trading players for what we have needed. Rich cho did never had the opportunity to draft, his best transaction that year was when he got Crash and a conditional 1st round pick in 2011 and 2013 for Dante Cunnigham, Sean Marks and Joel. Chad best accomplishment was to set us up, creating cap relief, for the coming summer and to get us the best possible draft picks that we can. Their success compared to KP could be a result of their short time as GM in portland. But We can see just how little Cho really did for us and was not a good fit for us in portland. He clearly wanted to go a different direction with the franchise, while trying to please everyone. Chad has done an amazing job though setting us up for this year. However, it is clear that from this year that we need a GM who knows what he is doing, for if we are wanting to have success we are aiming to have this summer and are wanting. Chad has done well, but would you want to depend on him this summer with all we have to do this off season? Or would you rather have someone who has experience and has an established resume and history?
With the large task we have to do this off season, I personally would rather have a new GM. Though Chad has done well, perhaps you could say he has earned to be the official GM. I still rather have someone who has a name - they have a "name" for a reason.

But the great thing about the NBA is if a team has the right leadership in the front office they can go from the outhouse to the penthouse in 1 season. Boston showed the league one way by bringing in aging stars who were hungry for a title and they got 1 but there window was only open for a few seasons and it looks like their team next year will be quite diffrent.

Now about our Blazers and their future: I am not talking about the draft pick from NJ yet because if they get in the top 3 they keep the pick.The big thing for the Blazers is to get Batum to sign so that they can get in on some of the restricted FA out there who would look good wearing a Blazer uniform next season. I think the Blazers made a big mistake by not signing Batum during the season and it's going to cost them more in my opinion. The Kings have not been shy about how they feel about Batum and you can bet that they will put a number out there of at least 10 million per season for about 5 years. In my opinion that's overpaying for him but that's what free agency is all about. Will the Blazers match any team's offer..................YEP they have no choice.

In my opinion our biggest holes remain at Center and more important at PG. While a lot of fans would love for Steve Nash to play in Portland ( and I use to be on that ban wagon myself ) next year and he would be a great pickup for this team. The problem is his age and his back problems and Nash is going to be very expensive and if you are lucky you might get 2 good seasons out of him........maybe. I think the Blazers should look at 76er's PG Lou Williams who is not a pure PG like a Rondo or Nash but this kid is young and can be lights out with his jumpers. Portland only low post option is LA so that forces the team to be a jump shooting based offense that can beat any team in the league when they are hitting BUT win the Blazers are off they lose to teams like the Wizards who was the worse team in the league this year and I would debate maybe ever and they beat us in the Rose Garden. There is also Jeremy Lin and D Williams who are probably long shots at best to sign with Portland.

The big men in FA are actually pretty good this off season with the likes of Roy Hibbert who Indiana would have to be crazy to let go. There is also Ersan Ilyasova who played for the Bucks last season...........I know some of you might be like who in the hell is this guy: Ilyasova is not a center but he is 6'10 and about 235 and could still put some weight on but this guy has some talent, he averaged about 13ppg and 9reb this season and can shoot with any bigman in the game. This season he shot over 45% from 3 and would be a perfect pick and pop player to pair with LA. There is also Javale McGee who has some mental lapses sometimes but has some talent. This kid is big, young and can run like a deer and jump out of this world. McGee is better than DeAndre Jordan who signed a contract last season that has him as one of the most overpaid pro players in any sport. Hibbert will be the prize in FA this year but if you compare Hibbert and McGee's numbers are almost identical. Hibbert was at 13ppg, 9reb and 2bpg while McGee avg 11pts, 8reb and also 2 bpg.

Blazer fans I can only hope that team mgmt brings in a quality GM who can pick his coach and return this team into a contender again because this team has some talent and could do special things. Every "expert" will tell you that OKC is the best team in the west and they might be but, the Blazers gave them everything they could handle this season. This off season will make or break the future of this team so we will have to wait and see how it unfolds.

Nbadraft.net has us taking Bradley Beal and Kendall Marshall in the lottery as of right now. As Blazer fans, would you feel like we had a succesful draft if we picked up those 2? We would still need to find a veteran point guard to bring in, but could use the FA money to throw at a couple bigs. Resign Batum and Hickson and we have a good mix of youth and experience, now lets hope we find a coach and Gm this year.

In a chat with the newspaper "L'Equipe" from France, Nicolas Batum answered a question about his future with the Blazers.

"I am a free agent on the 1st of July. i will take a look at the market, i have to. I will watch the offers available and if one interest me, outside of Portland, I will think about it. If I don't find anything, i have the possibility to stay in Portland. I am ready to stay in Portland, if Portland matches the offer. They gave me my chance and the fans are great. If i have to stay, it's fine. It could be worse.

An other question was asked about the best crown in NBA.

"Outside of Portland? I have no idea. There's nothing better then the Rose Garden. It's 48 minutes of noise. They cheer whatever the result is. This season, despite the bad resultats, they were still here. At the last home game, last minute, they gave us a standing ovation despite our elimination.

Oklahoma, Utah or Boston could be noisy as well.

Sorry for the translation...

Does anyones else find it funny that teams like the Lakers and Miami, who obviously just expected to walk right to the championship game, are now whining and blaming teammates for their teams struggles? Its classic to me that these teams leaders/best players dont really seem to take responsibility for their teams performance on their own back. Sometimes, criticism of your teammates can backfire and make them play even more poorly. If Kobe came out and said over and over, im the leader, its on me to lift my team in stead of making excuses and blaming Pau, then Pau might actually play better instead of looking over his shoulder. Wade freaked out on his coach and they had to cancel practice the next day! What is the deal? Did these guys just think they were going to waltz their way into the championship game?

Now, I havent brought myself to watch any of these games, Ive only been reading the headlines, watching news clips, espn post-game interviews but I gotta say, its kinda cool to see these teams that thought they were gonna win it all facing major adversity. Also, I gotta give credit to OKC and IND(as much as I hate to) for coming out with a great game plan, implementing it, following through and playing great defense! It seems as much as the Lakers and Heat have psyched themselves out, the opposite is true for their opponents, theyve continued to get even better!

Of course, I wish it was the Blazers out there kicking the Lakers butts or the Heats butts, but its just good to see someone kicking their butts. It also goes to show that you can have assembled on paper the greatest team ever, and yet put them on the court under pressure and they break!

Anyways, I cant wait until we are back in the playoffs. Hopefully, with this offseason, we can assemble a great roster that will grow together, and become the team weve all wanted all along. A team that can challenge anyone, hang with the best, and become the best!

I just can't say goodbye to Roy. I feel like there's so much more he can give to the game of basketball and the Blazers. I recognize that he can't (shouldn't) play the game again, but does he posses the teaching ability to impart his winning ways onto young players? Would he be willing to be a coach?

I've read articles about how Roy has been working out with future NBA players like Wroten and Terrence Jones, teaching them a few things and dispensing advice. If he has the desire, I'd like for the Blazers to explore a coaching position for him. He's an All-Star with street-cred. He's not long from the game, so he knows the players, coaches, and refs. He may not have the knees to play an entire season, but I'd bet he could school the youngsters during practice sessions. Since we're moving to rebuild again, what better source of experience could we get for the new players than the R.O.Y. that brought the Blazers back to respectability.

I realize that hanging out with players and handing out pointers is a far cry from being a developmental coach, but if Roy has the desire to become one, he could be great. There are two players in the draft that I'd love to see him teach the game: Jeremy Lamb or Austin Rivers. According to DraftExpress.com's most recent mock draft, both players would be available with our 11th pick.

During a rebuild, the best way to return to greatness is to develop your talent internally. Other than coaches Bayno and Canales, what coaches did we have that really elevated the play of the young players?

This is several steps down the "things-to-do" list for the organization, but sometimes I wonder if it's even on their list at all. This might help them:

1. Hire GM.
2. Hire Head Coach with solid offensive and defensive philosophy (see Greg Popovich).
3. Hire lead assistant coach that compliments head coach.
4. Hire assistant coaches (developmental coaches) for Post, Wing, Back court.
5. Draft BPA only.
6. Create the ultimate NBA Player Development Training Course to train the mind more than the body. Fill it with: 1. Classroom and video training (position and team concept specific). 2. On-court walk throughs in advancing speeds from slow to in-game. 3. Weight room activity to build strength and explosiveness. 4. Yoga/pilates to build body control, balance, and flexibility. 5. Meditation to calm the mind and body. 6. Visualization to mentally repeat each lesson hundreds of times perfectly in the mind before attempting them with the body. 7. Individual player training sessions to focus on specific areas of need (ie. cross-over, catch and shoot, defensive movements, etc) 8. Positional training to expand on walk through lessons. 9. Taped scrimmages, where players implement lessons in simulated game situations with developmental coaches making notes and having video reference ability. 10. Positional Post Scrimmage Review with developmental coaches meeting with each position to review their notes and video. This should happen after the players have cleaned up and prepared to leave. It should include what was supposed to happen, what actually happened, and how things should be done differently in the future. 11. Homework is downloaded onto an IPAD for them to spend about 30 minutes viewing video of plays, situation testing, or simply visualizing free throws.
7. Develop an intense practice environment that is more intense than a real game.

As you can see, my thoughts on player development and its importance to the team's future are extreme. I believe players are only being given a fraction of the training they need and could uptake because 90% of training should be mental. The time when they're not sweating is when their brains should be exercised about the game, diet & nutrition, appearance, media, medical situations, personal conduct, finances, etc.

These players are high priced investments that deserve the best we have to realize their ultimate potential, and getting developmental coaches that they'll respond to is a key piece in making that happen. Is Roy a good option? What options are out there to help develop Wings & Bigs?

We all know Paul Allen wants a GM who he can get along with and at the same time be the front person for the organization. KP stopped getting along with Paul and Rich Cho was not a media guy. Brent Barry can do both easily and has the basketball IQ that is desperately needed within the Blazer Brass. Chad has done a good job but lacks the clout to make executive decisions. Barry can look Larry Miller and Paul in the eye and tell them he knows what it takes to win a championship and knows what an organization like the Spurs do to keep winning over and over again. Barry has Oregon ties with his playing days for the Beavers and has Bay Area ties along with Brian Shaw, who would make a natural choice for coach. I know he doesn't have the executive experience but he has the knowledge and ability to judge talent which he demonstrates on NBA tv on a regular basis.

I know its a long shot, but the Blazers need fresh leadership.

As bummed out as so many of us are about how this past season went for the Blazers and as concerned as a lot of us are about the future direction of this franchise, I am reminded that things could be worse.

I'm not watching the playoffs closely, but I have watched some of the OKC/L*kers and Indiana/Heat games. It must really suck to be a Heat or L*ker fan right now. Long time Blazer fans have been there and we know how excruciating it is to watch a team that we thought had a real shot at winning it all crash and burn. I remember the pain and disappointment of seeing the Blazers lose to the L*kers in 2000. It was devastating. I felt the same way when we lost to Detroit and Chicago a decade earlier.

That's the problem I have with sports. It's personal. I always want to win it all and anything short of that is totally unsatisfying. I want excellence all of the time, from the top of the organization to the bottom. I don't think we've seen that from the Blazers for quite a while, and I HOPE that we will see it again beginning with a great new GM and HC coming to town and with high quality picks in the draft and judicious trades.

In the meantime, I'm just glad that I don't have to suffer the pain of watching my team lose in the playoffs.