Aldridge’s extension corresponds nicely with this column from earlier this month at CBS Sports, where contributor Dwight Jaynes detailed just how much talent the Blazers have. Hint: a lot of it:
Portland’s Talent Pool Continues To Run Deep
The Portland Trail Blazers won 54 games last season and tied for first place in the Northwest Division. By just about any measure, they’re a team on the rise, not only because they have a solid nucleus of three players — Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Oden — who may someday play together in an All-Star Game. No, it’s not just that.
[…] But aside from them, Portland has Nicolas Batum, a budding star who was a solid contributor for France’s national team last summer in the European championships. He’s a player the Blazers believe has potential to be a dependable scorer and lockdown defender who came out of nowhere at the age of 19 to claim a starting spot last season after an injury to Martell Webster. […] .
And don’t forget Rudy Fernandez, the charismatic Spaniard who averaged 10.4 points per game and set a rookie record for 3-point field goals last season. […]
Oh, and shot-blocking and rebounding specialist Joel Przybilla, free-agent power forward Juwan Howard, point guards Steve Blake, Andre Miller and Jerryd Bayless and sixth man Travis Outlaw. These are players who would be in just about any team’s rotation.
See More:
