Portland Trail Blazers: How Should The 2010 NBA Early Season Rotation Be?

One problem that most teams would love to take from the Blazers this season is that of seemingly having too much talent.  

In recent years, generally good drafting and smart moves in free agency have made them into one of the NBA's deepest teams.  The proof for this was on display last season, as they were able to win 50 games despite a string of unfortunate injuries that would have ruined the season for most teams.

Nate McMillian did a good job of getting players to play hard and take on changing roles in the midst of all that uncertainty, but this season, reason says that injuries will not take the same toll.  That brings with it a new challenge, namely, how do you distribute a game's worth of playing time among a roster of competent players that goes more than ten deep?

To begin the season, at least, the starting five will include Andre Miller, Brandon Roy, Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Marcus Camby.  All are established NBA veterans, and, if healthy, all should expect to play a lot of minutes.  The one exception could be Camby, who's minutes will decrease once Greg Oden and Joel Pryzbilla return from injuries.

On any playoff team, the starters should play the bulk of the minutes, and the Blazers will be no exception.  However, in cases where the difference between two players at a given position isn't great, the disparity in minutes played shouldn't be large, either.  

For instance, at shooting guard, Roy will probably average somewhere between 36 and 38 minutes per game, and rightfully so.  The same goes for Aldridge at power forward.  Batum and Miller will probably earn around 30 minutes a game, maybe slightly less for Batum, while Camby should start out playing slightly more than that.

As for the bench, this is where things are slightly more complicated.  Jerryd Bayless gained a permanent place in the rotation last season, and figures to play 15 to 20 minutes a game this season, primarily as the team's backup point guard.

Rudy Fernandez, the primary backup at the 2 spot last year, may or may not be with the team this coming season.  If he is, I doubt he will play much, and for the sake of this article, we're going to assume that he leaves Portland before the season.  

New addition Wesley Matthews will likely inherit most of the backup minutes when Roy is on the bench, and will also see time at small forward.  Elliot Williams is a rookie who will see occasional minutes at the 2, but probably not on a consistent basis.

Dante Cunningham and Jeff Pendergraph are two second year players who showed a lot of progress last season, and played key roles in keeping the team afloat when injuries kept the older, more experienced players out.  They didn't see much playing time during the post season, but seem ready to contribute even  more this year.

I see Cunningham getting 10 to 15 minutes a game backing up Aldridge and possibly Batum or Camby at times, with Pendergraph getting most of his minutes early in the season, while Oden and Pryzbilla are still out.

Luke Babbitt is a rookie who's playing time will depend largely on his ability to take advantage of the small opportunities that he gets.  If he's able to perform well in limited minutes as a backup forward, I see his role increasing as the season progresses.  If not, he may be stuck on the bench this season.

As mentioned in the title of this article, these roles will change as the season progresses.  When (and if) everyone is back and healthy, rookies and second year players won't see as much time, with the exception of Matthews.  

Trades may also change the look of things, with the Blazers looking to improve to the level of a perennial contender for the championship.  All in all, it looks to be a good season for them, if they can develop a strong chemistry with the current roster and stay relatively healthy.