4 Bold Predictions for the 2011-2012 Portland Trail Blazers

While the news of two-time All-Star and Northwest icon Brandon Roy's retirement and another setback in Greg Oden's rehab were both crushing blows to the Portland Trail Blazers, there are still some positive things that occurred this offseason that have the potential to offset the sting of Roy and Oden's injury troubles.

Those things were the addition of young, fast point guard Raymond Felton, who promises to keep the Blazers at an up-tempo pace, just as he did last year in both New York and Denver, where he averaged 15.5 points per game and 8.3 assists per game.

Joining him in the backcourt will be the 2009-10 NBA Sixth Man of the Year, Jamal Crawford, who had been a huge part of the success the Atlanta Hawks have experienced the past few seasons.

The addition of these two and rookies such as Nolan Smith from Duke should help the Blazers recover from the loss of Roy and Oden for an indefinite amount of games.

With this in mind, I have four bold predictions for this Blazers squad: Let's get started.

Jamal Crawford Will Win the NBA Sixth Man of the Year

Last season, the Blazers' first player coming off the bench, or the sixth man, was usually either forward Nicolas Batum or guard Rudy Fernandez. While they did a good job and Batum figures to be a big piece towards the team's success this season, neither of them come close to impacting a basketball game like Jamal Crawford can.

Just two seasons ago, Crawford averaged 18 points per game and was seventh in the NBA in three point field goals. Those numbers earned him the 2009-2010 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award and helped the Atlanta Hawks to the second round of the playoffs. 

While his average dipped to around 14 points per game last season, expect them to get back up near the 20s this year, as Raymond Felton will push the ball up the floor quick and Crawford should get plenty of minutes. Wesley Matthews is a solid off guard but doesn't provide the experience Crawford will.

All this, combined with the fact that last year's winner, Lamar Odom, was traded to the Dallas Mavericks and has to adjust to a new role, should lead to Crawford's second Sixth Man of the Year award.

Greg Oden Will Play in at Least 10 Games This Season

Anyone who knows anything about the NBA is aware of the constant injury troubles the 2007 NBA Draft's No. 1 overall pick, Greg Oden, has experienced during his time in Portland. It started with microfracture surgery that sidelined him the entire 2007-2008 season and has since continued with new injuries seemingly occurring almost every other month. 

The most recent major injury was all the way back on Dec. 5, 2009 more than two years ago against Houston, when he fractured his platella, and he has not played in a game since. He was expected to make his return early this season, but it was reported a few weeks back that he has suffered a "setback" in his rehab process. 

While he may have had a setback in his rehab process, I still see him coming back for at least the last month of the regular season. That gives him four or five months to heal up. Something has to go right at some point for this guy soon, right?

Nate McMillan Will Win the Coach of the Year Award

Just a few years back, Nate McMillan was thought to become the next great coach in the NBA. With major injuries to two of the main pieces in the Blazers puzzle out consistently with injuries since then, McMillan has still led the Blazers to the playoffs the past few years.

With that being said, he expectedly hasn't quite been able to bring Portland to the heights of success that was thought to come during these last few years.

Expect different things this year, though, as the Blazers have brought in Felton and Crawford and are returning very important pieces such as LaMarcus Aldridge and Gerald Wallace. Nate seems committed to running a more up-tempo offense that should equal more success for this fast and athletic team.

Those things should add up to a very successful season for the Blazers and have them exceeding expectations, which should lead to the first NBA Coach of the Year award for McMillan.

This Blazers Team Will Finally Get out of the First Round

The Portland Trail Blazers still haven't been out of the first round of the playoffs since 2000, when they suffered a heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Since then, they have made the playoffs six times, but have lost in the first round every time. 

What makes this year any different? Teams like the Spurs, Lakers and Mavericks are getting older, and the Blazers have young, athletic talent that can handle the rigorous test of 66 games in less than five months time. With someone like Felton running the point and electric scorers like Aldridge, Crawford and Wallace leading the way, there is hope for the Blazers to win a round in the playoffs this year.