Official Portland Trailblazers Thread - 100% Hedo Free!!

Well, looks like the streak's over. They just couldn't make it into 2008 with it. Still, it was a great run, and now they are in playoff talks. Its also a good thing Utah finally wins a game. I'm not sure if they will make it to the postseason this year.

It is still a great December record, and I think their confidence right now is high even if they lost. Looking forward for a great year for them. I can't even imagine how good they are now with Oden in the line up..

I can't wait for next season so I could witness how good the Oden-Roy combo would be.

Nate McMillan is a sadistic genius that makes his players fight in practice. I like it. I wonder if he did that in Seattle.
(If the link requires you to register, just click that you're from outside the US)

The article is 3 pages long so here are parts of it.

Coach Nate McMillan knew that Dec. 1 practice had a chance to be memorable. Tired of seeing his team play with a stagnant offense and a soft defense, McMillan implemented two practice rules that day. There would be no switching when screens were set, forcing the defender to fight through picks. And there would only be one dribble allowed by the ballhandler, a tactic designed to instigate more movement by the offense to get open.

"The practice was basically set up for a fight to happen," McMillan said. "We were talking about pressuring. We were talking about being physical. We were talking about grabbing. And . . . we got into a fight, a couple tempers flared and a couple of other things happened

"You could tell guys were tired of losing," Blake said. "And you could sense guys were about to take their frustrations out on each other

Added Roy: "You could tell guys were upset. We were tired, and tired of losing, and it so happened that day that it was one of those days were nobody was in a mood to back down."

"I'm telling you, that was one of the most intense practices I've ever had in my eight years in the league," Przybilla said. "We got at it. And we got after each other."

The first sparks were ignited early in the practice, when the team was in the midst of executing a three-man weave against defenders. Przybilla, the rugged, veteran center, set a pick on Webster, the third-year player out of high school. Webster cried foul, saying Przybilla set a moving screen. Przybilla, who later said he was in a foul mood that day, shot back and asked Webster why he complains about everything.

Flustered, Webster retorted with, "Why don't you make a dunk for once?" inciting Przybilla's bad mood.
(:lol:)

With tempers simmering, the drills moved to a four-on-four format. Webster made a hard drive to the basket, where he was met by Przybilla. The center caught Webster in the air, bear-hugged him and threw him to the floor.

"That's when your pride comes in and some ego gets in the way," Webster recalled. "I started yelling at him, telling him, 'If I get a shot at you . . . ,' and I remember this: While I was arguing with Joel, I looked at coach, and he was just sitting there smiling. He was looking at me like, 'Well, get into it then. Show me something.'

"And you know what, it seemed to ignite everybody, not just for me and Joel, but for everybody. The intensity of the whole practice changed."

Soon, Frye said he was "talking trash" to his teammates. And the normally stoic Roy was cussing and snapping at the teammates guarding him. And Blake got so angry that he kicked a chair, prompting McMillan to chastise him in front of the team.

"We were there as guests, that was not our furniture," McMillan said. "So I told him to pick up the chair."

Blake did pick up the chair . . . only to hurtle it through the air again. (Blake's a bastard)

"There was this tense energy," Frye said. "Dudes were . . . frustrated, and we needed to get everything off our chests. I started talking trash, (Jarrett) Jack started yelling, Blake started throwing chairs, everybody was about to fight. . . . It was like the ice had been broken. We had finally pushed each other to the limit."

When McMillan finally ended the practice, he huddled the team and released some of his own frustrations. He told them he liked what he saw during the practice, but he was tired of seeing this only in practice. He couldn't understand why the team would go at each other so hard, yet treat the opponent with such passivity.

'I don't know what more I can do, or how many more times I need to say it.' And Channing stepped up and said, 'You don't have to say it anymore, coach. We are going to do it for every game now.' And that was big."

"He said what I was waiting to hear," McMillan said. "Someone other than me on the team had to say it."

Frye, who at the time was enduring a spell when he wasn't playing, said he had nothing to lose.

"What was coach going to do, bench me?" Frye said, chuckling. "But you know what, I don't think it mattered that I said it, because you could feel we all had realized it. We were like, 'Why are we doing this to each other? Why don't we do it to other teams?

Since that Dec. 1 practice, the Blazers have become more physical, playing a brand of defense that McMillan calls "good." That defense mixes an active zone with the Blazers' bread-and-butter, a man-to-man defense that is predicated on keeping opponents in front of them.

Meanwhile, the offense has come to life. In 10 games just before the streak, the Blazers were averaging 87.3 points a game. During the 12-game streak, the Blazers are averaging 103.2 points. It can be said that the Dec. 1 practice, during which players had to run and fight through their grabbing teammates, while the ballhandler had to look for an open man after taking just one dribble, led to a more fluent and team-oriented attack. In the streak, the Blazers are averaging 24.2 assists a game.

It has all come together to form the second-longest winning streak in franchise history, trailing only the 1990-91 team, which won 16 in a row. And it all started in a practice where chairs, insults and elbows flew freely.

Damn..

What a good read!

Thanks =)

Martell Webster with 24 third-quarter points.

Well... The Blazers can still pack it in and get something out of this season by tanking the rest of the way. I don't see them making the playoffs in this crowded Western Conference unless 2 of the top 9 suffer major injuries that push them out of the playoffs. Even then, they might not make it with the Kings on the rise. I just don't think getting 9th or 10th place is worth it when they can still get a top 10 pick in a great draft.

Well... The Blazers can still pack it in and get something out of this season by tanking the rest of the way. I don't see them making the playoffs in this crowded Western Conference unless 2 of the top 9 suffer major injuries that push them out of the playoffs. Even then, they might not make it with the Kings on the rise. I just don't think getting 9th or 10th place is worth it when they can still get a top 10 pick in a great draft.

I disagree....I think that's a disgrace to say such a thing....the Blazers should & will play every game until season is over, whether that's the 82nd game of the season or in the playoffs....it doesn't matter if the team falls one game short of the playoffs or misses out on a tiebreaker, the city & its fans deserves this team to continue putting effort in every night....besides, a top 10 pick isn't worth it....a pick in the 8-10 range won't be much better than a pick in the 12-14 range....it's not like we're talking a top 5 pick here....

Blazers have enough young guys as it is.....

Anyways, they won't tank. Every guy on that team is fighting to stay in the league every game/playing for a better contract. Nate McMillan would probably quit before he was forced to tank.

Well... The Blazers can still pack it in and get something out of this season by tanking the rest of the way. I don't see them making the playoffs in this crowded Western Conference unless 2 of the top 9 suffer major injuries that push them out of the playoffs. Even then, they might not make it with the Kings on the rise. I just don't think getting 9th or 10th place is worth it when they can still get a top 10 pick in a great draft.

I disagree....I think that's a disgrace to say such a thing....the Blazers should & will play every game until season is over, whether that's the 82nd game of the season or in the playoffs....it doesn't matter if the team falls one game short of the playoffs or misses out on a tiebreaker, the city & its fans deserves this team to continue putting effort in every night....besides, a top 10 pick isn't worth it....a pick in the 8-10 range won't be much better than a pick in the 12-14 range....it's not like we're talking a top 5 pick here....

Absolutely, that's not the kind of culture they should be encouraging. If they come up short, they'll still have a chance in the lottery and given that the team with the best odds doesn't necessarily get a top three pick let alone the first overall selection, there's no reason for them to call it a season in February (not that they'd be able to get the best odds even if they did tank). Far better to continue to put in the effort and play to the final buzzer. They've got a lottery pick coming their way next season anyway in Greg Oden.

tanking is not a guarentee, looked what happened to the celtics. then again that a bad example now isnt it?

Perhaps the Celtics from 1997 would be a better example.

Perhaps the Celtics from 1997 would be a better example.

I'm glad they missed out on Duncan....nobody likes a tanker....then they missed out on Van Horn too, who was suppose to be their consolation prize....the funny thing is that they got a stud in Chauncey Billups at 3, but weren't patient & he was traded within a year....I guess they also got studs like Joe Johnson, but were quick to give up on him too....but all that suffering is over, the C's are back on top....a lot of pain in between though....

Fitzy will also no doubt remind us that they gave up on Ron Mercer as well, picked sixth overall in that same Draft if my memory serves me correctly.

Hindsight is always 20/20 though. They wouldn't be the first team to give up a young player in favour of a more established one or not count on a player becoming a perennial All-Star.

I'm glad they missed out on Duncan....nobody likes a tanker....then they missed out on Van Horn too, who was suppose to be their consolation prize....the funny thing is that they got a stud in Chauncey Billups at 3, but weren't patient & he was traded within a year....I guess they also got studs like Joe Johnson, but were quick to give up on him too....but all that suffering is over, the C's are back on top....a lot of pain in between though....

...and a lot of pain to come when KG, Pierce and Allen starts to decline Enjoy the next 2-3 years Celtic-fans!

A championship window of 2-3 years is better than a decade mired in mediocrity though.

A championship window of 2-3 years is better than a decade mired in mediocrity though.

I definitely agree, but when you look at how bad the Miami Heat sucked before the Shaq-trade you can't help worrying about their future as well.

i dont know, if all 3 leave at the same time then the celts could be so bad that we might end up with a top player via draft. still, if we win the ring this season i will be willing to suffer for awhile longer

I definitely agree, but when you look at how bad the Miami Heat sucked before the Shaq-trade you can't help worrying about their future as well.

It's only one game but they looked pretty good against the Nuggets yesterday, even in defeat. They had a few years around the top of the league and got their ring in 2006, which is more than 26 teams can say this decade and around half the teams in the league can say, period. They've got a couple of stars in Wade and Marion, some upcoming players in Dorell Wright and Duane Cook and some solid, if unspectacular, players in Udonis Haslem and Mark Blount (though Blount is 32 so he's not a long term solution by any means). They're down at the moment but it's not all doom and gloom.

the funny thing is that they got a stud in Chauncey Billups at 3, but weren't patient & he was traded within a year

Not really. He sucked with horrible FG% the first 4 years of his career and was with 3 teams in 4 years before landing to Minny and becoming decent, before going to Detroit.

i dont know, if all 3 leave at the same time then the celts could be so bad that we might end up with a top player via draft.

Or Kevin McHale still sucking at his job that Al Jefferson will request for a trade because of the team's losing ways, eventually going to be traded back to the Celts.

Here are some things I can´t understand regarding the blazers?


Is Darius Miles done?

LaFrentz and C Frye wont´get no better?

Will sergio rodriguez become a good player?


I thank you people for some answers.

Supposedly Miles is still on the mend but intends to return this season.

Here are some things I can´t understand regarding the blazers?


Is Darius Miles done?

LaFrentz and C Frye wont´get no better?

Will sergio rodriguez become a good player?


I thank you people for some answers.

mostly, I agree & yes

Man. Last season (and the one before), if I wanted to catch a game, I could just go online and buy the ticket the night before. Or the morning of, sometimes.

Now they're sold out like 2 weeks in advance in some cases. Even the cheap seats. Stupid semi-decent record making other people want to go to games!

Any believe that we can make the playoffs?

I'll give us a 0.5% chance..