After Eight Years, The Blazers Are Back - Page 2

The era of the Great Northwest crime wave appears to be over, and Portland once again has a team to give the city a reason to pack the Rose Garden. No matter what NBA preview you’ve read, the basketball brains are all saying one thing: The Blazers will be a force from the opening tip till the first round of the postseason, and possibly beyond. In the toughest conference across the sporting world, one of the youngest teams in the game’s history should find itself hosting an above-.500 record, a Rookie of the Year — not necessarily named Oden — and a playoff game or two.

But it’s not just the fact that they can, technically, ball. Any team can with shoelaces and some leather can find net. The reason my eyes glint while talking about the Blazers is because these are guys who could hang out with your Mom, guys you would want to watch your kids, guys who wouldn’t say no to a neighborhood potluck. These are amiable, affable, and downright approachable people, all of whom are proud, right-minded citizens of a proud, left-minded city. Channing Frye wants your advice on artwork, Travis Outlaw drives around in a Neon-Hulk Impala, and Greg Oden has diversity that only Philip Seymour Hoffman could rival.

See? You can’t help but smile, can you?

You know, there’s a reason that NBA commissioner David Stern claimed, after shining Clay Bennett’s shoes, that the Blazers were the team he’s looking forward to the most.

Portland may not take the scepter, crown, or throne this year — it’s only fair that we let Madman Artest and his gang of Houston misfits get a shot — but the next decade will be ours. Behind Roy’s acumen, Aldridge’s deftness, Rudy’s YouTubery, and the Tower of Oden, the Blazers’ reemergence will surprise no one, yet astound everyone. Our future is mind-numbingly open for success, bright in ways that on Stephen Hawking could imagine.

And yes, the bandwagon will be up and running — Sonics fans automatically get the front seat — but feel free to join the likes of Magic Johnson, J.A. Adande, and the whole Sports Illustrated gang when the postseason winds its way through an Oregon trail.

And this time, I promise, it'll be different.

This time, we’ll beat LA.

Article Author: Casey Michel

Casey Michel is a student at Rice University who, despite a Pacific Northwest rearing, somehow found himself in Houston. He bleeds Blazers black and Mariners blue, and likes to think his teams are always just ONE player away.

Visit Casey Michel's author page — Casey Michel's Blog