Freeman: Luke Babbitt Not Worried About Future With Blazers Despite Recent Benching

Portland Trail Blazers forward Luke Babbitt has been on the outside of the rotation looking in since coach Terry Stotts recently elected to expand the role of rookie forward Victor Claver.

Joe Freeman of The Oregonian reports that Babbitt is taking his Did Not Play - Coach's Decisions in stride and that he doesn't believe the demotion reflects on his future with the team.

"I really don't put a whole lot of thought into it because my minutes have been really inconsistent all three years I've been in the league," Babbitt said. "This really isn't anything different for me. I think I bring something that we need. So that's just kind of what I try to do. After that, I don't really put much thought into anything else. I try to do what I do and control what I can control, and that's what I've done so far and that's what I'm going to keep doing."

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"You can read into it," Babbitt said, responding to a question about what his diminishing role says about his future with the Blazers. "I don't read into things. I didn't play my first two years and that wasn't an indication (of my future). So I just go game by game. I don't think about anything because things change very quickly in this business. I don't really consider things too far down the line."

Babbitt, 23, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He's averaging 4.0 points and 2.4 rebounds while shooting 35.3 percent this season.

-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter