Update on Pooh

Joe Freeman of the O talks about Pooh's chances. Just paraphrasing what he said:

Possible he makes the Blazers roster, too early to tell. Only will extend him a training camp invite if he has a realistic shot at making the roster. They don't want to jerk him around. SBlazers are interested, they liked what they saw in him, and so did a lot of other teams. Pooh really helped himself a lot this summer... has a chance to make the league with the Blazers or somebody else.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/blazers/2009/07/wrapping-up-blazers-summer-league-mp3.html

Pooh is mentioned throughout, but the real Pooh talk starts at about the 22:30 mark.

Just read that the Blazers are on the verge of putting an offer in for Andre Miller; if that goes through (and barring a trade of Bayless) I'd say the chances of Pooh getting a camp invite just got a little slimmier...

DaTruRochin wrote:Just read that the Blazers are on the verge of putting an offer in for Andre Miller; if that goes through (and barring a trade of Bayless) I'd say the chances of Pooh getting a camp invite just got a little slimmier...

Dwight Jaynes broached this subject in His blog a day or two ago.

He thinks if Miller comes, Bayless goes, leaving Patty Mills or Pooh as the third guy.

It makes sense to me, and would allow them to bring another quality player in a need position. Bayless was considered a steal at the 12 pick (or whenever he went, I'm too lazy to look it up), is young, and could fit in nicely for another team looking for a player brimming with potential (who isn't exactly expensive because of the Rookie salary structure).

He isn't going to want to come off the bench, well at least not without getting 2nd string minutes at minimum and his PG skills are shaky at best so I could see how him being limited in that regard. BUT, at the same time, in the 4th quarter is a "pure" point guard even really that necessary?? The ball isn't going to be in their hands (Number 7 has that job locked down as long as he dons the red and black). When blake went down, Bayless' #s skyrocketed. The kid has the athletic ability and determination to potentially be a pesky defender, epecially against the now in vogue small/quick PG. I mean did anyone else watch the Aaron Brooks destruction of Steve Blake?? I'm fairly certain Raef Lafrentz made a more stout defensive contribution in that series.

I don't know I guess the team needs to decide how they want to handle things. Andre Miller for his career has been a solid PG, runs an offense well BUT he is an atrocious deep shooter, along the lines of, cough, 21%, cough for his career... Is that really the answer? He may be the best FA out there, but is he really the answer?? And no I'm not alluding to The Answer, but I guess Andre Miller, at age 33, represents a stop gap measure. And with so many teams primed to be better right now (LA, Boston, SA, Cleveland, Orl, I want to say Hou but poor Yao...) is a stop gap the right idea, or should we be focusing on the future 2-3 years down the road. I mean we can take the division, Utah is broken, Minny and The Team that Must Not Be Named are young and growing and Denver, well I'm not sure what to make of them. But the NBA championship isn't gonna happen with LA being as stacked as they are, and a healthy Spurs team is capable of taking it all.

I guess the thing is, do we trade Bayless now and cash in on his potential? Do we grind it out and risk having him never pan out? Eek, this is why GM's get paid the big bucks, not an easy task, especially with the fickle fan base (and lest we forget bald headed goons dissecting every move in hopes to dredge up enough controversy to promote our sham of a reporting career... Wait, no, I'm making that last person up ) Anyway it's late, I'm ranting, and to be honest I could probably overload the server with my drivel so I'm gonna call it.... for now....


Haha, oh I forgot, GO POOH! WE LOVE FREE THROWS!

Phew, what were you drinking last night???

Surprisingly no....

DaTruRochin wrote:<Rant>
Haha, oh I forgot, GO POOH! WE LOVE FREE THROWS!
</rant>

*ahem*

That bald-headed goon was America's top sports columnist last year, or so says the Big O.

Who exactly determined he was the best or what methods were used is another issue...

Now Dwight thinks it's all a done deal.

Miller and Bayless, that is....

http://www.dwightjaynes.com/andre-miller-a-blazer-within-24-hours

And... the first shoe drops.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/07/blazers_to_sign_free_agent_and.html

Countdown to au revoir Jerryd begins I guess...

Nah, I don't see it as a done deal.

The Blazers aren't going go to just give him away. If he's going to sit on the end of the bench and sulk, fine. He should know that nothing will be handed to him - either he earns his minutes or he doesn't.

As Khan would say... he is in no position to make demands and the Blazers really aren't in a position to give anything either, especially considering Bayless' trade value is likely quite low right now.

Star Trek 2 reference? Anyone? I'll be here all night...

I thought you were talking about David "2 PG" Kahn... But yeah I agree, I wouldn't be surprised if we hold on to him for a while and wait out until the less financially solvent teams start to panic and sell their assets below value as the season drags on... and then there's next summers FA market...

Did they sign Miller to the same kind of contract that they signed Turkoglu and Milsap to?

Also, I don't follow the NBA much, but didn't Andre Miller once play for the Clippers (which begs the question, has anyone ever left the Clippers and been good) and isn't he like 50 years old?

No, Yes and Yes.

DaTruRochin wrote:No, Yes and Yes.

and no