Portland Trailblazers 2006-07 Preview  

 The Blazers have plenty of growing to do but have a nice young core of players in Zach Randolph, Brandon Roy, Martell Webster, Jarrett Jack and Travis Outlaw.

The Blazers will need years to undo the team's mismanagement during the Bob Whitsitt era, where talent was gathered at the expense of character. Even before their decline, they weren't an easy team to root for

Of the 15 players on the roster, eight are new, including 6'10" forward LaMarcus Aldridge, the No. 2 pick out of Texas, and 6'6" shooting guard Brandon Roy, the sixth choice from Washington. One of the holdovers is 25-year-old power forward Zach Randolph, a double double threat whose off-court activities have been all too reminiscent of Jail Blazers past

-----------Article Continues---------

This appears to a be a very competitive roster for a team that only won 21 games a year ago. The youth at point guard and the uncertain future of Randolph and Miles will probably hinder the team's growth initially, but a more important gauge of Portland's success will be the development of the team's young players (on and off the court).

With a solid head coach and some young talent, the Trail Blazers should improve this year, if they can keep the off-court shenanigans to a minimum. But it is a long road for Portland back to respectability. It seems unlikely they’ll repeat last season’s last-place league finish, but a last-place division finish would surprise few