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Carlos Molina

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The poll question on the oregonsports.com front page asks “Will the Blazers have a new coach by the June 28 NBA Draft?”  In short, the answer is no, because they may not even have a General Manager by then. 

Rumors have increased their swirls in recent weeks as candidates’ names continue to pop up.  Since Rich Cho got fired late last May, Chad Buchanan has been the acting GM, but he’s never exactly gotten a vote of confidence in public from the organization.  A month ago, Chris Mullin rumors swirled when he called back to back Blazers games for ESPN.  Steve Kerr’s name seems to come up weekly, but people seem to be ignoring the fact that Kerr is very happy with his TV gig, and loves having the freedom to be a family man, which was something he didn’t have the opportunity to appreciate during his stint in the Phoenix front office.  Atlanta’s Rick Sund’s name floated out there a few months ago, and nothing came to pass. 

Then there’s Mitch Kupchak from the Lakers and Geoff Petrie from the Kings.  Kupchak seems unlikely, but apparently his relationship with the Buss family has frayed in recent years.  Geoff Petrie has history in Portland, and a rough situation in Sacramento, where the team doesn’t know where it’s going to play in two years now that the arena deal fell through.  He used to work for the Blazers organization, and it seems Paul Allen wants to go in a new direction, so his name doesn’t carry much weight in the rumor mill.

This past week, the search has heated up, with Paul Allen conducting an interview with an unnamed candidate last Monday.  Portland announced this was in fact the third candidate they interviewed, after Steve Kerr and agent/former assistant GM Noah Croom.  They have also received permission to talk to David Morway, the Pacers GM that has successfully built the team with the fifth best record in the league from bits and pieces he picked up in the late lottery/mid first round.  Sure, Larry Bird is the architect, but that’s some pretty good on the job training Morway has received.

Morway is the best candidate name that’s come up, with his track record of rebuilding a team that was in shambles after the Malice at the Palace by drafting in similar spots to where the Blazers will be drafting for a while.  With the Pacers’ playoff run still going, don’t expect to get an answer from him, or many of the other candidates they’re considering.  There won’t be an answer before the draft lottery at the end of May, when the Blazers will know if they have one lotto pick or two, which could sweeten the deal for any prospective employee.  In the end, if Paul Allen and company are going to handcuff the GM and make the draft decisions anyway, why bother hiring one before the draft?  Seems like the position could be open for at least a bit longer.

Carlos Molina

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Joined: 2010-08-13

Last week, Sportsland, Oregon did an NBA playoff preview, covering first round series, awards, and All-NBA teams.  Then, Mike ‘Stats’ Donovan came on for a second episode to go deeper into All-NBA teams. 

Here are the All-NBA teams, as I would vote for them:

1^st Team

F:            LeBron James

F:            Kevin Durant

C:           Dwight Howard

G:           Kobe Bryant

G:           Chris Paul

2^nd Team

F:            Kevin Love

F:            Dirk Nowitzki

C:           Andrew Bynum

G:           Tony Parker

G:           Dwyane Wade

3^rd Team

F:            Pau Gasol

F:            Carmelo Anthony

C:           Marc Gasol

G:           Steve Nash

G:           Russell Westbrook

This week, the playoff analysis continues, along with some Timbers, Derby, and Boxing talk from a great weekend of sports.  Check out Sportsland, Oregon here on oregonsports.com, recorded every Monday at 9 p.m. at Blitz in Portland's Pearl District.

Cliff Pfenning

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The awards for the Western Hockey League season were released Tuesday and they contained some startling results.

Actually, the startling point wasn't what the list did contain as what it didn't - there's no Portland Winterhawks listed. Anywhere.

Player of the Year, Goaltender of the Year, Defenseman of the Year, Executive of the Year, the Hawks didn't win one, or even finish second.

Of the 22 teams in the league, 14 got recognized within the 20 possible winners and runner-ups. The Hawks weren't one of them.

Last year, the Hawks were at least recognized a couple times, Sven Bartschi as runner-up for Rookie of the Year, and Mike Johnston as runner-up for Coach of the Year, on the way to the league finals.

This year, they're in the league final again, with no recognition from the league.

Ty Rattie? Player of the Week three times this season? Player of the Year?

If you look at the awards and don't see Portland there, that might give you the idea the team overperformed this season, which is not a bad way to look at the season.

Here's the award winners with Portland's top choices.

WHL Player of the Year, Four Broncos Memorial Trophy

Brendan Shinnimin (Winnipeg, MB), Tri-City Americans

RUNNER-UP: Emerson Etem (Long Beach, CA), Medicine Hat Tigers

PORTLAND: Ty Rattie or Sven Bartschi

WHL Rookie of the Year, Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy

 Sam Reinhart (Vancouver, BC), Kootenay Ice

RUNNER-UP: Tim Bozon (Cureglia, SUI), Kamloops Blazers

PORTLAND: Chase De Leo or Nic Petan

WHL Goaltender of the Year, Del Wilson Trophy

Tyler Bunz (St. Albert, AB), Medicine Hat Tigers

RUNNER-UP: Ty Rimmer (Edmonton, AB), Tri-City Americans

PORTLAND: Mac Carruth

WHL Defenceman of the Year, Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy

Alex Petrovic (Edmonton, AB), Red Deer Rebels

RUNNER-UP: Brenden Kichton (Spruce Grove, AB), Spokane Chiefs 

PORTLAND: Taylor Peters

WHL Most Sportsmanlike Player, Brad Hornung Trophy

Mark Stone (Winnipeg, MB), Brandon Wheat Kings

RUNNER-UP: Ryan Murray (White City, SK), Everett Silvertips

PORTLAND: Troy Rutkowski

WHL Scholastic Player of the Year, Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Memorial Trophy

Reid Gow (Killarney, MB), Spokane Chiefs

RUNNER-UP: Jimmy Bubnick (Saskatoon, SK), Calgary Hitmen

PORTLAND: Derrick Pouliot or Taylor Peters

WHL Coach of the Year, Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy

Jim Hiller, Tri-City Americans

RUNNER-UP: Pat Conacher, Regina Pats

WHL Executive of the Year, Lloyd Saunders Memorial Trophy

Bob Green, Edmonton Oil Kings

RUNNER-UP: Craig Bonner, Kamloops Blazers

WHL Humanitarian of the Year, Doug Wickenheiser Memorial Trophy

Taylor Vause (Calgary, AB), Swift Current Broncos

RUNNER-UP: Brendan Gallagher (Delta, BC), Vancouver Giants

 

WHL Marketing / Business Award

Moose Jaw Warriors

RUNNER-UP: Spokane Chiefs

Carlos Molina

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The NBA playoffs have begun, and Sportsland, Oregon presents A Belated NBA Playoff Preview Pod.  A few Game 1’s are in the books, so there’s a bit of an advantage in throwing out predictions after seeing how the series have started out.  Frankly, none of the weekend’s results have changed my opinion on how the series would end up.  Without further ado, here’s a preview of the Preview Pod.  How meta.  Or is it Metta?

WEST

Spurs – Jazz:  San Antonio rolled an over-achieving Utah squad in Game 1, and there’s no way they would lose to an 8 seed in back to back years.  Yes, the Spurs overachieved this year also, but in a less surprising way.  Spurs in 5.

Thunder – Mavs:  Dallas had a great chance to steal Game 1 against a young team without much playoff experience.  Then the Durantula stepped up.  Look for the Mavs to even the series after going home, but ultimately dropping their title defense in 6.

Lakers – Nuggs:  Speaking of overachievers, my surprise pick of the year got in as a 6 seed and had the unfortunate luck of running into the Andrew Bynum Wall 10 times.  The altitude will allow them to get one at home, but Denver doesn’t stand a chance in the long run.  Lakers in 5.

Grizzlies – Clips:  What I predicted to be the most compelling series of the first round proved true when the Clips needed a 28-3 run to close out the game and win by 1. This one will go the distance, unless this collapse psychologically ruins Memphis.  Grizz in 7.

EAST

Bulls – Sixers:  What could possibly go wrong with having your superstar albeit fragile MVP out in the last 2 minutes of a game that’s already been decided?  An ACL explosion, that’s what.  Bulls advance in 6, but their goal was a ring, and that’s not happening anymore.

Heat – Knicks:  What many expected to be a thrilling first round series featuring the two free agent superteams has the potential to become a clunker after the Game 1 rout the Miami laid down.  LBJ vs Melo will have to wait until Game 2 to Heat up (Rim Shot).  Heat in 5.

Pacers – Magic:  Orlando stole Game 1, but the overachievers from Indianapolis will prevail in the long run against a shorthanded Magic team, unless it’s a case of addition by subtraction for Dwight Howard.  Pacers in 6.

Celtics – Hawks:  I lied.  This is the only series where my opinion has changed after Game 1.  Rondo’s suspension after bumping a ref has doomed the C’s, who were experienced and peaking at a good time.  Now, the Hawks should be cruisin’ in the ATL.  Hawks in 6.

Check out an in depth discussion on the rest of the Playoffs on Sportsland, Oregon. 

Philadelphia vs Chicago Most would think this is your standard 1 vs 8 seed match-up. However the Bulls are an intriguing team, they’ve played well with and without Derrick Rose all season. I can’t remember a team winning the #1 seed after having their star player out for so long.

Now none of that changes things and the Bulls should make quick work of the 76ers.

Bulls in 5.

New York vs Miami Players might have changed but a New York/Miami playoff series still draws me in. Talk about star power you have 3 of the top 10 players in the league and 5 of the top 30. This is what you expect to see in the playoffs, just not normally in round 1.

The Knicks can pull out some games in the series but they’ll have to get great shooting performances from J.R. Smith and Steve Novak. Melo will do his thing but Amar’e needs to step it up and put on a consistent show each and every game. Even then it’s tough to envision the Knicks winning a series against the Heat.

Heat in 6.

Orlando vs Indiana Hmm well, I don’t think there’s much to say here. The Pacers are the strange team that you don’t think can win in the playoffs since their best player is Danny Granger, but they got themselves the best possible match-up.

The Magic are a deep shooting team based off Dwight Howard’s play, of course Howard isn’t playing so…not sure what they're going to do.

Pacers in 5.

Boston vs Atlanta Do the old/experienced, depending on your preference, Celtics continue their late season surge and move past the first round? Or do the surprisingly consistent Hawks, even without Harford, beat the vets?

I can see this going either way, but I think Pierce, Allen and Mr. tough guy want to show everyone that they’re not done yet.

Celtics in 6.

Dallas vs Oklahoma City A rematch of last years Western Conference Finals in team name only. The Thunder all seem to be there assuming Harden’s brain isn’t broken. The Mavs on the other hand are year older not as good defensive team and not as good at knocking down threes. But then again they seem to know what their doing in the playoffs. But, yes there’s a lot of buts, can you rely on Vince Carter? No you can’t.

Thunder in 6.

Utah vs San Antonio Ooooo, this could be a good one. The Spurs surprised everyone, not that anyone should’ve been surprised, with taking the 1 seed. They had the 1 seed last year but lost to the front line heavy Grizz. The Jazz well…have a great front line too. I like the Jazz, they have 4 real front line players, that’s 4 more than some teams.

The Spurs on the other hand, aren’t dumb and don’t tend to make the same mistakes more than once. I think they’ll learn from last year and won’t want to lose in the first round as a 1 seed two years in a row.

Spurs in 7.

Denver vs Los Angeles Lakers The Lakers are too old and they complain too much and they have a crappy coach and have an impact player out for the next six games. Denver is young and plucky and can score and can defend. Sounds like a miss match to me. Buuuuuuuutttt then again this are the Lakers with a huge front line and one of the most clutch players in history who despite playing what seems like 48 mins a game everyday for the last 10 years is playing like he found the fountain of youth.

Lakers in 6.

Los Angeles Clippers vs Memphis What? The Clippers in the playoffs? Oh yeah sorry that was my thought process the last 30 years of my life. Sure they went out and got Chris Paul and it paid off. They made the playoffs, too bad their going to get clobbered in the first round.

Memphis surprised a lot of people last year in the playoffs, but they were built for a slowdown playoff series. The difference between now and then, they added Rudy Gay back into the mix, giving them flexibility to play big or small or fast or slow.

Oh yeah, who’s Blake Griffin going to guard and not foul out?

Grizzles in 5.

It seems strange to be talking about Game 4 of a playoff series, but the NBA lockout has caused the 2012 regular season to bleed into what would normally be the middle of the first round of best-of-seven series. But that doesn't matter, what matters is today April 23, 2012 is the one year anniversary of the last great Trail Blazer moment and what would turn out to be the last great performance of one of Portland's all-time greats.

After a January knee surgery, Brandon Roy was regulated to minimal minutes and a bench role. The one time savior of the of Game 4 showed us what we all missed.

Thanks to Pinwheel Empire for the video.

Roy’s moment.

I listened to excerpts of Brian Wheeler's call today and couldn't help but get chills. This happens sometimes to sports fans, whether it's a timely Kirk Gibson home run or a Miracle on Ice.

After that euphoric feeling I thought, "Wait, that was only a year ago?" That seemed strange to me. Think about what has happened since then. Roy only played in two more games for the Blazers then retired after another proposed pillar of the franchise, Greg Oden, had his umpteenth knee surgery and was cut from the team to find room for trade-away castoffs. And then Nate McMillan was fired mid-season.

Not only has the team changed dramatically in one year, more upheaval is on the way.

It may be a long time before Blazer fans have something like Brandon Roy and and his fourth quarter again. Thanks Brandon.

Carlos Molina

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Joined: 2010-08-13

Left quad tendonitis, right knee tendonitis, right hip surgery, dislocated right shoulder, bronchitis, and family reasons.  No, this is not the injured list from your grandpa’s Boca Raton Bocce Ball team.  This is in fact the current state of the Tralblazers for the final two games of what can really only be referred to as a dreadful season.  These afflictions correspond to Nicolas Batum, Jamal Crawford, LaMarcus Aldridge, Elliot Williams, The Vanilla Gorilla, and Raymond Felton, respectively.  Not to mention, of course, the careers of Greg Oden and Brandon Roy. 

With a team shutting down people like that at this time of the year, you would not be wrong to be suspicious of a tanking franchise, but the Blazers are already locked into the 11th worst record, so tanking is pointless.  They can’t get any better.  Or worse, depending on how you look at it.  That sums up their season perfectly.  At the beginning of the year, they weren’t built to win the championship, and it didn’t look like they would be much worse than 10th in the West.  As we discuss on Sportsland all the time, stuck in the middle is the worst place to be.  Now, at the end of the year, they are trying to blow it and rebuild, and can’t even tank properly.  The 11th pick in a debatably deep draft is still the 11th pick, not exactly a place to find gems. 

With Raymond Felton starting through the injury, Portland opened the game with Matthews, Hickson, Babbit, and Thabeet.  On the one year anniversary of Brandon Roy’s 18 point 4th quarter against the Mavs in the first round, the brightest spot of the past 366 days is now over a year behind Rip City.  It’s time to look to the future, and build around Aldridge’s All-Star ability.  Tonight on Sportsland, we’ll discuss who’s audition for the future looked best.  It’s all Blazers fans have to look forward.  That, and the Brooklyn Nets’ pick. 

It's two months into the Portland Timbers second MLS season and the first eight games have left much to be desired. Portland is currently last in the MLS’s Western Conference and is the only team in the West with fewer points (7) than games (8).

Here are five reasons why the Timbers have struggled, and how they might be able to turn their season around.

1. Injuries

Every team gets injured, but the Timbers have dealt with the injury bug early and often. This season has seen injuries at every position, from players that have never played in Portland (Jose Adolfo Valencia) to some of last year’s stalwarts (Futty Danso, Kalif Alhassan, Rodney Wallace, David Horst, etc). So far, the Timbers haven’t been able to catch a break.

There isn't much solution to staying injury-free other than making sure players aren’t rushed back too early and sustain more long-term damage.

2. Where is Nagbe?

While second-year player Darlington Nagbe showed glimpses of his immense talent last season, his rookie year was marred by injuries and a slow start to the year. This season, Nagbe has already bested his scoring mark from last season with three goals. All three goals came from when Nagbe was playing in the center of the field. Despite Nagbe’s success in the middle, he has started three games at outside midfielder.

Ten minutes into the Timbers match vs Real Salt Lake, John Spencer moved Nagbe off the wing and into an attacking center-mid role. All Nagbe did was score two first-rate goals and play his best soccer as a professional. Despite this, Nagbe hasn’t played in the central of the midfield since.The best solution would be to stick Nagbe underneath the strikers and let him create. This would also make it easier on either Jack Jewsbury or Lovel Palmer, as they are better when playing a holding midfield position.

3. The play of the backline

The Timbers ended the 2011 season with some very stout defensive performances and gave up just eight goals in their final ten matches. However, the beginning of 2012 bodes no resemblance to the end of 2011 having conceded 13 goals in the first eight matches. Consistently poor positioning, lack of marking near the end of matches, and ball-watching have led to numerous goals that could have been prevented.

While the fullback position has been justifiably criticized by media and fans alike, the centerbacks have also been at fault on multiple goals this year. Eric Brunner has shown outstanding leadership and has had to cover for poor play on the outside, but he has also not shown the domination in the aerial game that he had last season. The budding partnership between Brunner and Hanyer Mosquera looks promising, but only clean sheets will prove the pair’s worth.

4. Late game debacles

In all but one game this season, the Portland Timbers have entered the 75th minute with a tie or a lead. Despite this, Portland has only been able to get positive results in three of those seven matches. Portland has given up six goals in the final 15 minutes, which leads the league. One reason for the late-game struggles, seems to from needless late-game substitutions. On multiple occasions this season, a second half sub has been at fault for an opponent’s goal. One of those players, James Marcelin, was waived last week to make room for Steven Smith.

One way to fix the problem is to make sure players understand their late game roles. Players such as Diego Chara have seemed to be unsure of what position they are meant to be playing in at the end of matches. Another problem, which might be harder to overcome, is changing the belief of the team at the end of the matches. It's hard to hold a lead when everything in your brain is telling you that you are going to concede a late goal. It might be easier for attacking players to continue their attacking ways instead of trying to overload the defensive half. In fact, Portland is one of just three MLS squads without a goal in the final 15 minutes of a match.

5. The Timbers just aren’t as good as their opponents

The 300-pound elephant staring the Timbers in the face is a scary one. Despite the acquisitions of Kris Boyd and Mosquera, Portland is simply not playing as well as it did in the second half of last season. It's completely possible that the majority of MLS teams have gotten better, while the Timbers have stayed the same or gotten worse.

Since opening night, only Nagbe and Boyd have scored goals. The midfield has provided little in the attack and hasn’t been able to close down on opponent midfielders away from the ball.

In almost every match, the opponents have gotten production from their bench, while the Timbers haven’t gotten much (other than Nagbe’s goal).

The lack of depth in the bench has been easy to see while teams such as Chivas USA, Real Salt Lake and even expansion Montreal have had subs be key parts of goals. In-season acquisitions of Mike Fucito and Smith might provide some much-needed support for Portland, but it still waits to be seen if the Timbers face a “talent issue.”

One positive for the club is the season is only a quarter of the way through. However, if the Timbers can’t turn their early season woes around soon, it will be a long season at Jeld-Wen Field.

Mike Donovan is the Portland Timbers beat reporter for oregonsports.com and he tweets at twitter.com/TheMikeDonovan. Donovan, along with oregonsports.com publisher Cliff Pfenning, host the weekly web series, No Pity City, every Tuesday night at 8:30 pm.

Cliff Pfenning

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Joined: 2010-07-01

SECOND OF FIVE PARTS

Since 1940, teams from the Portland school district have represented the city well at the championship level in football.

Grant, Jefferson and Benson have all won at least one state title and Wilson and Lincoln have played in a championship game.

When Benson went unbeaten and won the Class 4A state title in 1988, the Portland Interscholastic League regularly had two teams win at least one state playoff game. Leagues from downstate and the Portland suburbs were still stronger on an annual basis, but numerous Portland programs had long-time coaches and programs that made playoff success a possibility.
From 1985 through 1990, the PIL went 17-19 in state playoff games.

Then, it all stopped.

Beginning in 1991, the PIL won just seven of 54 playoff games into 2002, and none of the schools won two games in a playoff season.

That's 7-47 in 12 seasons.

Other sports were competitive, especially boys basketball. From 1985-2000, PIL schools won seven state titles and had five teams finish second. Damon Stoudamire and Terrell Brandon both graduated from PIL schools, went to Arizona and Oregon, respectively, and had long careers in the NBA.

The rivalry between the basketball programs at Benson and Jefferson was so intense that games in 2001 and 2002 were moved to the 5,000-seat Chiles Center and fans packed the arena.

Track teams did well, baseball teams did well, there were individual athletes throughout the district who competed at the highest level in most sports.

But, football struggled to win at the state level. Society changed with the advent of the internet, expansion of cell phones and cable television. Even marketing, powered by Nike, promoted a style that the traditions the PIL had long established and adhered to such as playing the entire nine-game, regular-season schedule within the league (10 schools, nine regular season games). There were doubleheaders at Civic Stadium because half the league didn't have a home field or one with lights.

A football team could be a center of a community throughout the fall, but if the team didn't play within its community or at an appropriate time, how could it accomplish that? Without strong community interest, how could a program raise funds for items for which the district continually lacked funds?

By the turn of the century, parents at Lincoln had an answer and delved into the solution: get a turf field.

Tomorrow, communities that can do and success follows.

PART ONE - Football is the key to Portland getting a bond measure passed.

Carlos Molina

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Joined: 2010-08-13

It’s a weird time of the sports year in Portland.  The Blazers have five games left and nothing really to play for, so much so it looks like they’re shutting down some key guys.  The Beavers and Ducks just opened up spring practice, but there’s nothing really to follow there.  Sure the diehards want to see how some of the new signees that manage to get there early do, or who’s going to fill in at any positions vacated by guys leaving for the draft or graduating.  In reality, there are no scores, and there’s no news to really follow, and so much can and will change between now and when the season opens that people really only follow it to have something to follow. 

College baseball is underway, and the WHL playoffs are underway, but the fanbases for these are much more limited.  And then of course there are the Timbers, but they don’t have the built in excitement of an inaugural season to carry the interest of the casual fan.  Couple that with their struggles this year, and even the excitement of early season soccer and the Army’s antics aren’t enough to maintain interest or make it enjoyable to be a Portland sports fan.

But never fear, the Sportsland, Oregon crew can find sports stories from across the country to make things interesting.  From the NBA playoff picture developing, to the NHL playoffs providing their usual excitement and even more fights than ever, there’s plenty to follow in the world of sports.  And of course, don’t forget early season baseball.  All that and more on this week’s episode of Sportsland, Oregon.