Portland Blazers Have A Shot Next Year, Here Are the Five Reasons

As the 2010-2011 NBA season begins to creep closer and closer, so does the anticipation as an NBA fan.

Depending on who you as a fan root for, you may either be excited, afraid, or both for this upcoming season.

I'm guessing if you live in New Jersey, you can feel nothing but relief and excitement towards next season, considering you can't possibly do any worse than last year. As a die hard Laker fan, all I can think of is "three-peating" next season and I know all of my fellow Laker fans would agree. But what about the fans in Portland? How are they feeling about their current situation with a change in office? Do the Blazers believe that this could be their year?

In this piece, I will be breaking down the top five reasons why the Blazers could contend for a title next season in no particular order. Hope you enjoy!

Veterans

With the addition of both Andre Miller and Marcus Camby, this young Blazer team has been strengthened. The biggest question with this particular Blazers' team has always been their age. The newly added veterans throw that argument out of the gym.

Lets also not forget about superstar, Brandon Roy. Roy may be one of the most underrated superstars in the NBA today. He is a great leader and a great player.

The Blazers have been through a lot in the last couple of years. With the overcoming of last season's injuries and even the drama between Andre Miller and Roy. However, I believe that the past is the past and with the newly added GM, this is a new Blazer team.

The advantage the Blazers now have is their once alleged weakness; age.

Solid Bench

With the newly added Luke Babbit out of Reno, Nevada, the Blazers could have a very solid second unit.

If Greg Oden can remain healthy for one whole season, it leaves the Blazers with a lot of fire power in the secondary unit.

I'd say Joel Przybilla, Nicolas Batum, Babbit, Jerryd Bayless, and Rudy Fernandez, would be a very dangerous squad by themselves. Every championship team has had a back up unit that could come in and provide energy. The Blazers could be in for one this next season.

Because the Blazers have many players who could either start or back up, this offers coach Mcmillan many options to find that perfect fit that he was looking for last season; as he was struggling to find five players who could consistently provide.

This group of guys won't be taken lightly.

Good Coaching

On every great team there is someone who is in control of the team's play, that someone is called a coach.  Without a good one, it is impossible to win a title.

It seems as though the Blazers haven't had much problems with the man in the suit as of late. This is a huge plus for any team because this really helps a team's chemistry and if the players like their coach, that usually means they will listen and apply what the coach wants in games.

Considering coach Mcmillan is a good coach, all the Blazers need to do is listen and follow what he says and they'll be just fine. Remember what Mcmillan did with a beat up Blazer' team towards the end of last years season and imagine what he could do with a healthier/more experienced team.

I'd say Phil's not going to have fun heading into the Rose Garden as usual.

Potential On The Defensive End

If the Blazers have improved in one area tremendously, it would have to be on the defensive end.

Aquiring former Defensive Player Of The Year, Marcus Camby, the Blazers have length, length, and a little more length.

Camby, Aldridge, Batum, Oden, and Cunningham all have length and defensive abilities. With the potential starting lineup including Camby, Aldridge, and Oden, this team could be the longest team in the NBA next season.

With the mixture of defensive coaching, natural ability, and length, the Blazers could be overwhelming on the defensive end.

New Man Above

Believe it or not, a team's GM could make a huge difference in a team's performance day in and day out.

The key word in this relationship between players and GM is trust. If a team trusts in their GM, they will give 100% every game, because they know at the end of the day, they will be both financially and mentally happy.

By mentally happy, I mean that they will have no worries with the "man above", and that makes a big impact on many players.

The addition of Rich Cho, former Sonics Leader, will definitely help in next years race for the title.

Watch out for the Blazers next year, they might as well be the dark horses heading into the 2010-2011 NBA Season.