Portlandia Pre-Season Presser

[kucoach7]

GM Kevin U. Coach VII, making his first public appearance in five years:
Welcome to the Blazers pre-season press conference. I apologize for my absence these past few years. I've been. . . uh. . . busy. These past couple of years have been a real journey for me. The league is changing and I've had to adapt my strategy. Unfortunately I've been slower than most to evolve. I'm going to walk you through the last leg of this journey and then I'll bring the team out for questions.

Flash back to early last season. We were 13-12 and looking like we had the potential to make a run at the playoffs. I made what looked like a good move by trading off a pick we weren't too excited about for Ervin Johnson, who filled our obvious need in the post as we prepped for our long-awaited return to the playoffs. As you all know, that was an absolute disaster. We went on to lose 17 in a row and 23 of 24. Hindsight is 20/20 though. It was obviously dumb looking back but at the time it was a solid move.

We positioned ourselves well for this very excellent draft but opted instead to trade Manu, Horry, and a pick we would have used to draft Tyson Chandler for Shaquille O'Neal, the most prolific player to ever play in Portland. We were sorry to see Horry and Manu go but we are ecstatic about our future, with Dirk and Shaq terrorizing defenses for years to come.

dirk-shaq-rose.jpg (24.96 KiB) Viewed 3302 times

Then we traded the Knicks pick that we received as part of the Bradley deal and that cancerous punk Strickland for Doug Christie. Christie also brought along his buddy Darrell Armstrong.

armstrong-Christie2.jpg (24.36 KiB) Viewed 3302 times

We rounded out the roster with Kukoc and Sealy, who provide some nice defensive depth and veteran leadership. Needless to say we have high expectations for the team this season and moving forward. The Western Conference is tough but there is also no clear best team. We expect to compete for the Pacific Division title and have home court advantage in at least the first round of the playoffs.

We'll bring out the guys and open things up for questions.

[WigNosy]

There was some noise around the league when you picked up Kukoc. How were you able to convince him to come to Portland and what do you see his role being for this team?

[Xist2Inspire]

Random Reporter: You're already over the cap, and both Nowitzki and Mobley are due for new contacts soon. Not to mention, Christie is 31. How long will this particular squad remain together? Is there any pressure to make the most of this season, before tough decisions have to be made?

[42PhD]

Dr. Rocker from the Cleveland Rocker: Is Fisher the answer at point? Those bigs and Christie need the ball to score, or so I'm told.

[Darth Vegito]

Tim Cowlishaw - The Seattle Times

The Pacific was already the toughest division in the league, what are your thoughts on world-renowned GM Darth Vegito taking over the Sonics? And do you think you've done enough to claim the Pacific this year?

[NickMalone77]

Nick Melon; Charlotte Observer: Do you feel that the risk of acquiring a dominant center like Shaq and a wing like Doug Christie will put the Blazers over the top and into a position where the Blazers can reach their first division title or a deep playoff run?

[kucoach7]

There was some noise around the league when you picked up Kukoc. How were you able to convince him to come to Portland and what do you see his role being for this team?

We really wanted to bring Kukoc in because he fits nicely with our goal for a 9 man rotation. We expect he'll be putting in quality minutes at the 3 and 4. He is definitely different from the types of rotation players we've brought in in the past. In previous years we've gone after young one trick ponies but this year we tried to bring in veterans with developed all-around skills.

[kucoach7]

Random Reporter: You're already over the cap, and both Nowitzki and Mobley are due for new contacts soon. Not to mention, Christie is 31. How long will this particular squad remain together? Is there any pressure to make the most of this season, before tough decisions have to be made?

Honestly, at this point, the only way we can field a competitive team next season is just to bring everyone back and foot the bill. Our other option is to make some trades to make salary work next season but I can't see that happening without downgrading.

[kucoach7]

Dr. Rocker from the Cleveland Rocker: Is Fisher the answer at point? Those bigs and Christie need the ball to score, or so I'm told.

We'll be up front in saying that we really like Fisher and the fact that he is still on the roster is proof of that. However, a Magloire+Fisher package is on the table if we can upgrade at PG.

[kucoach7]

Tim Cowlishaw - The Seattle Times

The Pacific was already the toughest division in the league, what are your thoughts on world-renowned GM Darth Vegito taking over the Sonics? And do you think you've done enough to claim the Pacific this year?

When I first came into this league I was very skeptical of Darth's wheel-and-deal mentality but I've come to respect him as a GM. I was very impressed with what he has been able to make out of nothing up in Seattle. I hate the fact that he went out and got to bigs to match with Shaq and Dirk but I think we have the advantage at other positions and that we will come in either second or first in the division.

[kucoach7]

Nick Melon; Charlotte Observer: Do you feel that the risk of acquiring a dominant center like Shaq and a wing like Doug Christie will put the Blazers over the top and into a position where the Blazers can reach their first division title or a deep playoff run?

Absolutely. As long as Shaq is on our roster we are in win-now mode and as long as he is on our roster we have a chance. Our slow rebuild was going along nicely but when the right opportunities came along, I had to say to myself, I'm here to win championships and history has shown that you need serious talent and an aggressive GM to win a championship.

[NOLa.]

Do you feel the #1 seed in the West is not only a hopeful goal for your team, but an expectation as well with the core trio of Shaq, Dirk and Christie?

[coltsguy510]

Do you feel that any team can compete with your frontcourt? What do you expect Dirk to average with Shaq now on board?

[ballsohard]

Christian Great, 50 shades of great; 2 years ago it was heavily rumored you were in talks to acquire Shaq but pulled out due to wanting to stick with your rebuild. Now with a lot less tread you decided to mortgage your future in order to take on shaq. What changed for you to give up on what was considered the best rebuilding job in the league?


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[RPF]

Chris Christie, The New Jersey Buffet; How will this team respond to the pressure they will have now with getting Shaq in the Bucks trade?

[kucoach7]

Do you feel the #1 seed in the West is not only a hopeful goal for your team, but an expectation as well with the core trio of Shaq, Dirk and Christie?

Not quite. We're still an inexperienced team and that could cause some problems for us.

[kucoach7]

Do you feel that any team can compete with your frontcourt? What do you expect Dirk to average with Shaq now on board?

The Jazz and the Sonics both have front courts that scare the living day lights out of me. . . For now. Our guys are younger so give us a couple years. Dirk averaged over 20 a game last year. We expect that to jump to 25.

[kucoach7]

Christian Great, 50 shades of great; 2 years ago it was heavily rumored you were in talks to acquire Shaq but pulled out due to wanting to stick with your rebuild. Now with a lot less tread you decided to mortgage your future in order to take on shaq. What changed for you to give up on what was considered the best rebuilding job in the league?


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I actually didn't pull out. The Rockets turned down essentially the same offer the Bucks accepted. We started to have some reservations about Manu as well, which is why we offered him to both the Rockets abs Bucks.

[kucoach7]

Chris Christie, The New Jersey Buffet; How will this team respond to the pressure they will have now with getting Shaq in the Bucks trade?

We're embracing them. After three disappointing years we're ready to start meeting expectations.

[Conroy]

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, with only 9 players on the roster and 4 of them listed as Centers is depth a big concern in Portland? The talent is obviously there in the starting 5, and Kukoc is as versatile as they come, but is getting up there in age. Will Magloire be ready to be a 3rd big on a big time team?

[IamQuailman]

Will Maukie,BucksNation.com: Can you tell Shaq we miss him?

[IamQuailman]

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