Portland Trail Blazers – NBA Season Preview
The Blazers long odds got a lot longer recently when they learned that they would be without the services of star guard Brandon Roy. It was a sad day when he informed the organization, and the rest of the world that he would be forced to retire with degenerative knees.
Odds to win:
Title : 60/1
Conference : 25/1
Division : 5/1
But there is still plenty of talent on this roster. It’s just hard to compete at the same level when you lose your leader, and best player just two weeks before the season gets underway.
The Blazers quickly went to work replacing Roy with probably the best two guard that was actually left on the market in Jamal Crawford. Crawford enjoyed two very successful seasons in Atlanta, but when the Hawks gave Joe Johnson his huge contract, it was only a matter of time before the 6-foot-5 guard was out of the door. When Roy retired, this was a natural fit.
Nevertheless, the roster coming back is very solid even without Roy.
Portland still has one of the best power forwards in the league in LaMarcus Aldridge, while perennial performers Nicolas Batum, Marcus Camby, Wesley Matthews, and Gerald Wallace will also be back for the Blazers. Without a doubt, this will be one of the deepest teams in the NBA, but the problem is without Roy they still just don’t have that star player that can takeover when the game is on the line. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The Blazers also added more than just Crawford this offseason. They added another guard in Raymond Felton. He will likely be inserted into the starting lineup immediately with the departure of Andre Miller. Then they added the journeymen big man — Kurt Thomas. He may be the oldest active player in the league now, but he is still a very effective player on both ends of the floor.
Then you of course have the wildcard. Every team has that one guy in which you do not know exactly what you are going to get from him, but his contributions could be huge.
That guy for Portland is of course none other than Greg Oden. The former number one pick has been crushed by injuries in his first few seasons in the league, but when healthy he has shown what a force he can be.
If they can get any kind of consistent play from him, this team has a definite chance to make some noise in the West.
