Living on the Edge
By Jim
Posted onWed Jan 16, 2008 at 08:59:17 AM EST

In preparation for tonight's game I got in touch with Dave from Blazers Edge. His feedback was in depth, informative and will be seen throughout this preview. Make sure to check out site as well. You will learn something. Meanwhile, let's start with a primer on the Blazers:

"--Brandon Roy is the heart and soul of this team.  Forget the stats, his leadership and poise make all the difference.  He refuses to let this team give up and that's given Portland more wins than they probably deserve.

--Lamarcus Aldridge is the multi-purpose scoring machine.  He needs to have a good night for Portland to win easily.

--Martell Webster and James Jones are the outside gunners.  When other Blazers penetrate the defense usually collapses.  This leaves one of these guys open on the wing.  Jones has the highest three-point shooting percentage in the league.

--Travis Outlaw becomes an unstoppable one-man wrecking ball in the fourth quarter.  He can hop out of the gym and seems to take a perverse pleasure in hitting shots you wouldn't attempt playing HORSE.

--The other guard spot is either manned by Steve Blake or Jarrett Jack.  Blake is steady, can hit the three when open like Webster and Jones, but basically sets other players up.  Jack is a wide-body who drives the lane, draws fouls, and converts.

--The other big men are Joel Przybilla and Channing Frye.  They couldn't be more different.  Przybilla has a limited offensive game but shuts down the middle and rebounds with energy.  Frye has no inside game on either end but can hit a jumper like a guard and also rebounds." - Dave from Blazers Edge .

I have to admit that I have been following the Trailblazers from afar all season and I am impressed by a lot of what is going on in Portland. For example they have one of the slicker, more sophisticated looking websites in the NBA. Two aspects stand out:

  1. I like the select a player feature , although I don't have any profound reasons why. It's just cool.

  2. News of Greg Oden's season ending surgery took the Internet by storm. It set off a round Sam Bowie comparisons and "They should have taken Kevin Durant" stories. In case you forgot Henry Abbot compiled a list of Oden related stories. Since then the Blazers' frequent winning has turned fans' attitude around. But even before the Ws started to pile up Blazers organization came up with Oden's Rehabilitation Blog . Can you think of a better way to get fans up close to the team's number one pick while simultaneously making him a positive presence and salvaging a possible lost year in regards to increasing the team's following? I say no.

Meanwhile, the Blazers are likable for a number of other reasons as well:

  • It is the youngest team in the NBA . For years people have been saying that young teams can't win. Maybe Portland can't win it all. But the squad is certainly proving critics wrong.
  • Not only are the Blazers winning but people, myself included, are not entirely sure why. Thankfully I can at least ask the right people: