Oh, yeah, there was basketball, too. I don’t claim to be a professional scout or even a really knowledgeable fan. I have followed the Blazers for twenty years or so and here are my thoughts on what I watched last night as Portland took on the New York Knicks.

     First of all, my vote for the best three Blazers on the court, in order: 1) Travis Outlaw. 2) Sebastian Telfair. 3) Ha Seung Jin. Following closely on Ha’s heels (as it were) I would probably call Martell Webster. For those of you who expect Webster to be the starting two guard this year, I’m afraid, based on this one game, that you better look elsewhere. Webster has a sweet shot, there is no doubt about that. Unfortunately, he can’t seem to move without the ball, he’s a terrible dribbler, and the game is way too fast for him at this point in his career. For the sake of comparisons, I’d say he’s a lot closer to Tracy Murray than to Clyde Drexler. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but he isn’t ready to start. To be fair, he did seem to be limping very slightly, but I don’t believe it was slowing him up too much.

     Travis Outlaw, however, is dynamite. This kid will play in the NBA for a long time. I’m not certain he couldn’t start at the two. If it happens, don’t be surprised.

     The real surprise for me was Ha. I have read that he was out of shape, but if so, he hides it well. He played a serviceable game, fouling out fairly late, and showed amazingly soft hands and good free throw form. He also didn’t look quite as “dangerous” as he did at times during the regular season.

     Telfair looked like Telfair. He was amazing at times, and at other times

appeared just a bit lost. He also threw at least one pass that his teammate didn’t expect and had no idea what to do with. I think Telfair could start in the regular season, but I’m not convinced he’s really ready.

     The guy who isn’t ready is Nedzad Sinanovic. He seems to have some skills and some basketball smarts, but almost no athletic ability. I doubt he can jump as high as Randolph, remembering that Randolph is still basically on one leg. I just don’t see this guy as being more than a fifteenth man on the roster.

     Pleasant surprise: Ebe. I doubt this guy will make the roster, but he plays some good ball. There was one play where the ball squirted away from NY and was headed to the sideline. Both Ebe and Webster ran for it, and Ebe yelled, “I got it, go, go, go!” Webster changed course for the basket, caught Ebe’s pass and made a nice breakaway dunk. My point? I don’t believe Webster saw the play as it developed, but Ebe definitely did and acted on it perfectly.

     Pleasant surprise number two (and revealing moment): With ten seconds on the clock, Portland sent a Knick to the line. The game really wasn’t in doubt, but the Blazers needed to execute properly regardless. Telfair started to walk away from the crowd and Outlaw grabbed his jersey and forced him back to the key where he (Outlaw) got the Blazers in a huddle to discuss the coming play. When push came to shove, as it were, it was Outlaw who showed the leadership.

     Revealing moment number two: Jerrett Jack didn’t play, but, if I’m not mistaken, was sitting on the bench. If that was Jack, he took part in every huddle. This has to be a good thing, yes?

     The matchup of the night was Telfair against Nate Robinson. Both men can fly, Telfair on the ground and Robinson in the air, and both managed to make the other look silly at least once diring the game. Nate Robinson is another player who I believe will be around for a while in the NBA.

     For those who insist on keeping score, the final was Portland 93, New York 89. Telfair had 18 points, 9 boards and 10 assists in 35 minutes and Outlaw had 32 points 5 boards and two blocks in 34 minutes.

-Ken Fuller, aka krf

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