I swear, the Tyrus love around here is fueled by blind rage sometimes. I merely think we would have done better with Roy or Aldridge, but that doesn’t mean you have to take your TT posters down.

However, I’ll gladly eat my words if it means that Tyrus suddenly transforms into a “young Shawn Marion”… Good luck with that magic trick! Especially the part where he starts hitting threes at close to 40% while averaging 21 points a game like he did from 01-03… His third and fourth year in the NBA by the way.

While you’re at it do you think you can get Aaron Gray to start plaing like Amare?

He’s gotten love for so far being a bust. A million voices crying excuses and welcoming home the prodigal son. He’ll get hate if he somehow turns it up, 18 or 20 points a game and expects to be paid more than the MLE in a couple years.

just to prove he can build a champion with that constraint.

And I do agree, the Pritch-slap term is annoying. I’ve commented on Blazers Edge that it was funny the first five or ten times I saw it there, but now I and a bunch of other BEdger’s are tired of it and think it makes Blazer fans sound arrogant. You know, like Laker fans.

I know very little about TT other than what I’ve read on BE about the TT/LA comparisons we do and you do. We’re high on Aldridge (and beer) and I’m glad that some of you Bulls fans are beginning to appreciate him, too. Regarding Thomas, I’m wondering if his situation is somewhat like the one we have had with Travis Outlaw. Tons of raw athleticism, emphasis on the raw, and a low basketball IQ. Outlaw (finally) had a breakout year last season, winning some close games for us in the final seconds with his hops, ability to get his shot off, and a surprising fearlessness about taking a Big Shot at the end of tight games.

What happened to get Outlaw to that point? First, the team has been patient with him. It’s not easy for a lot of teams to do that. Chicago was expected to contend for the Eastern Conference crown at the start of last season, and the pressure was on Thomas to perform now. A lot of young players are going to wilt in that situation, maybe he did a little? Outlaw joined the Blazers when they were on the downhill portion of the Jail Blazer era and never faced huge expectations his first few season. He gets a lot of sympathy from Blazer fans because he’s such a sweet, quiet kid and he was on a team of older, crusty troublemakers. Small wonder he didn’t grow much. That changed when Kevin Pritchard took the reins and brought-in young, good-character guys like Roy and Aldridge. I think it did wonders for Outlaw’s confidence and comfort level.

Second, the Blazers found a way to communicate better with Outlaw. It turned out that a different method of teaching worked much better for him than the typical way they worked with players. He suddenly began absorbing information a lot better and it’s been reflected in his play. He still has a lot of holes in his game and he has a lot to learn, but now we’re seeing steady improvement. It’s a great success story. Maybe there’s a lesson there for the Bulls with Thomas.

Finally, Blazer fans have had to learn and are still trying to learn not to worry about personnel decisions in the past. Those of you who feel bad about not taking Aldridge or Roy should note that we could have had Chris Paul instead of Martell Webster. (FYI, Kevin Pritchard, who was on-staff but under then GM John Nash, lobbied hard for Paul but was overruled. He is a smart guy…) The thought of a Paul-Roy backcourt in Portland makes Blazer fans weak in the knees.

Yet if we had drafted Paul, we probably would have been a better team the following season and consequently had a lower draft pick, which means we would not have lucked into the Greg Oden sweepstakes (yes, I know he hasn’t done anything yet, but trust me, your eyes will soon be wide open in astonishment). It’s the same situation with your team. A better season last year would probably have meant no Derrick Rose, so it’s all good, regardless what happens this season with Thomas. Keep the faith, and maybe in two or three years the Bulls and Blazers will meet in the NBA finals.

I thought you were referring to Aldridge and Curry playing together.

Though I was confused because you’re calling Aldridge a low-post scorer.