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May 8, 2003 The first round of the NBA playoffs are finally over and the second round is underway. The new seven game format has made the initial round seem longer than it needs to be. The Lakers emerged from a rough first-round tussle with the Timberwolves that pushed them harder than some thought. The champion Lakers are having to fight for every inch in this playoff season. Gone from the playoffs are the Utah Jazz and the Portland Trailblazers. There is speculation about major changes at each team. Will Karl Malone return? Or will he join John Stockton in retirement? Perhaps even end up on another team (he is a free agent this coming season). If so, the entire Jazz team will be different. Stockton and Malone brought a solid work ethic that is missing in most players today. The Blazers are the opposite, a team with many talented individuals who don’t seem to put out a solid effort on a consistent basis. Some refer to the Portland team as the “Jail Blazers” due to the fact that several of the team members have had incidents with the law including drug issues and domestic problems (including 15 arrests of various Blazers over the past few years). The head management hasn’t seem to mind what type of person a player was as long as he was talented on the court, but this approach has caught up with the Blazers. Although new coach Maurice Cheeks is probably secure (one newspaper notes he was recently given a vote of confidence), look for changes in the team composition for next year. In fact that change has already begun. Blazers president and general manager Bob Whitsitt resigned (reportedly force out) during the second round of the playoffs, a round Portland came up just short of entering. Both the Jazz and Blazers had a good run during the course of the past few years, and both came just short of the title at different points. Malone and Stockton took Michael Jordan and the Bulls to the edge before losing in a close one and it was the Bulls who stopped their other run as well. The Blazers almost took out the Lakers at the start of their championship run a few years ago, and toward the end of that first series it looked like the Portland team would blow out Shaq and company before a miraculous comeback by the Lakers got them to the first title of their current era. The Jazz without Malone and Stockton (should they choose to not return) will be a team without an identity. What emerges is anyone’s guess. Utah will need a definitive big man to shore up the front line. For Portland, the change could include the departure of several players. Whitsitt, who is also the president of the Seattle Seahawks, wasn’t afraid to take a flyer on anyone (would you hire Shawn Kemp?). The Blazers should become more stable if anything. The Blazers, owned by Microsoft co- founder Paul Allen, have had the league’s highest payroll ($105 million). Many Blazers fans were disgruntled with the fact that the Blazers traded away popular forward and team leader Brian Grant and got the unreliable Kemp in his place. Another questionable move was the departure of up and coming star Jermaine O’Neil, who is emerging as one of the top middle men in the league. The Blazers and Jazz have become familiar fixtures in the playoffs, putting together some of the most impressive consecutive playoff appearance records around. Will either team be able to make it back in the coming year? Will Scottie Pippen return? Will Arvydas Sabonis retire? What will Utah do about a point guard? It will be interesting to see which players the Jazz and Blazers put on the court the coming year. ------------ About the author: Dwayne Hines currently has 12 books selling in major bookstores and writes for major magazines such as Physical and FitnessRX. Email Dwayne Hines: dhines@3dinet.com Comment on this column in the forum. ------------ |
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