Rome Wasn't Built In One Day!

While this article is a bit after the fact. It has given me time to reflect on exactly what this season was for the Portland Trailblazers. 

The question is now, where do we go from here? The Blazers in the lead up to this season were working on building a franchise, developing their players and becoming a force within the league... however nobody expected it to come with the gusto and bravado that ended up becoming the 2008-2009 season. 

This off season is where Kevin Pritchard is going to have earn his paycheck. He has done a fantastic job at landing Aldridge, Roy, Rudy, however I think that now is the time where he is going to have to make some tough decisions about the supporting cast that makes up the team. 

Here are five things the Blazers need to do: 

1) Get rid of Travis Outlaw. Travis, while a great individual needs a lot of shots to get going. I have no doubt that Travis will flourish on another team, however with the amount of shots he needs, it doesn't fit into the flow of when Blazers play their best basketball (i.e. taking horrible shots with 15 seconds left on the shot clock). 

2) Sign Ron Artest. He can provide the defensive support and toughness the Blazers lack in a playoff environment. He respects the Portland team, and especially Roy and I believe that he personally thinks that if he was on a team like Portland would have a better chance at winning a ring than sticking down with a Rockets team that constantly seems to be breaking down physically. 

3) Play Jerryd Bayless. Everyone knows that he can score. We just need to know that he wont turn the ball over. Tell me how Steve Blake gets more PT then a guy with more athletic ability in his little finger. The thing with Bayless is that he needs to get a bit bigger know when to pick his spots and run the offense. It was far too clear at the end of the year that Brandon had no other choice but to take over the point and direct the game because he had no faith in anyone else getting the job done. 

SUGGESTION: Hire Terry Porter as an assistant coach to do one thing, and one thing only... develop Jerryd Bayless. TP is a perfect example from back in the day of what Bayless could become. Completely fearless to take important shots. Draw enough of the defense to allow Clyde and the rest of the team to get open looks. And also penetrate to get guys like Aldridge, Oden, and Pryz open looks around the basket. Not only will this help everyone else, but it will also increase the longevity of Brandon's playing career to not take those hard fouls from constantly going to the rim. 

4) TRUST in Oden. This dude will be the real deal. He is goofy, he is awkward, he has let to understand how the NBA game works, and that is all well and good. The best thing about Greg and what is going to make him a great player (eventually), is that Portland doesn't need him to be great. They need him to learn, get more intelligent by staying out of foul trouble, and not get bogged down by the nay-sayers. 

5) As much as I hate to say it. If the opportunity arises... Draft Tyler Hansborough. Personally I am not a fan, but he is a winner, he works hard, and I think that where Portland are positioned with their picks, they might be able to steal him late first, early second. 

We are on the right track. Lets continue to work hard, and not settle for what we have already achieved.