The Blazer point guard situation was the topic of the town on media day. It seemed like every player heard 15 questions asking how they would mesh with Andre Miller. The fact is, nobody really knows how the Mexican standoff at the point will play out. Only time will tell in that regard. The point guards deserve a post all their own, and we will assuredly devote more space to this issue in the near future. For the time being, Andre Miller, Steve Blake and Jerryd Bayless all seemed none too pleased with the questions at hand. That’s fair enogh. I too would get tired of answering the same question reworded ad nauseam. However, that’s the profession I went into, so I am duly exempt.
Andre Miller - Excited to Hear Your Questions
Andre Miller:
- Miller starts it out by saying “we have a long way to go.” That means there are 82 games in a season. He’s a savvy veteran folks.
- Miller says adding veterans to the mix is crucial, but he isn’t trying to rock the boat: “They have their nucleus here, and we’re just coming in here and trying to add to it.”
- Nearly every question centered on the point guard competition, and Miller handled the questions rather deftly, actually. “Competition is a good thing, and anytime it’s really good competition it’s only going to make the team better.” Miller says no matter how it all shakes out, “we’re teammates.”
- Again: “I’m not going to get all caught up in starting and all that stuff.” He wants to fit in with the group (click here for audio).
- Asked about his chemistry with Roy. Miller wryly said there is no chemistry yet; they’ve just been playing glorified streetball.
- Miller is a realist. He isn’t going to make any assumptions about how he’ll mesh with a player. He did admit to feeling a bit out of sorts having to deal with possibly coming off the bench, but he says “nothing is guaranteed. Only a contract is guaranteed.”
- He says as a professional he hopes to bring “good habits” to the young guys, and that means just going about his work. He cited Wesley Person as an influential veteran who he learned from and watched his practice habits and how he prepared for a game as a Cleveland Cavalier.
Blake Is Anxious To Start Practice
Steve Blake:
- Steve said that after the surgery his shoulder feels just as good as it did before the injury to his rotator cuff, and he said his shot feels even better thanks to how much he shot the ball over the summer.
- Expect to see an improved left hand out of Blake. “For a long time, [working on my left hand] was all I could do. So instead of staying home, I figured I might as well work on something.”
- Blake said he was looking forward to the competition of training camp, and that he feels that nothing is ever a given in regard to earning the starting spot.
- On running more this year: “Yeah, I think I’ve said that going into every training camp (laughs), but if we start out running and it’s successful, then yeah, absolutely. I’ve played that style in Denver, and I’ve played it where you slow it down. So I’m comfortable going either way. I think we have the talent to do it, but the coaches have to decide whether that’s the best style for us.”
- Steve also said he’s looking forward to having Juwan Howard as a teammate, and that the younger players should “absolutely listen” to Juwan when he has something to say.
- Blake said that he did not train mixed martial arts this summer as he had a year ago (with Portland’s own Nate Quarry) because of his shoulder injury, but that he plans to train again next summer.
Bayless Was Curt To Say The Least
Jerryd Bayless:
- Bayless appeared irritated that he had to answer questions from the media. It could be that he was dreading the “where do you fit in now that the team signed Andre” question. Or maybe he was just having a bad day. But whatever it was, Rex was not in a good mood.
- He was tight-lipped with his responses. When asked what his expectations were for himself this year, he said he would “play hard, and whatever happens happens.”
-He’s been working on “everything” over the summer to “get better as a basketball player.”
- Jerryd said he was “fine” with the Andre Miller signing, although I’m not sure that’s the case.
- Bayless did say that he could learn from Miller by watching, just as he had learned from Steve Blake the year before.
- On whether he’s trying to be a combo guard or a pure point guard: he said that he was going to enter the season with a “free mind” and that he doesn’t know what his role will be on the team this year.