It's not official yet and the Portland Trail Blazers could still opt to draft forward Kevin Durant with the first pick of the 2007 NBA Draft, but most believe they'll select center Greg Oden. With that in mind, Portland has a lot of options on how to improve its team. They'll likely try to build around Oden and 2007 Rookie of the year Brandon Roy.
Coach Nate MacMillan is notorious for being a hard-nosed, defensive coach who doesn't stand for players' crap. He's the reason Zach Randolph improved so much last season. The previous year, Randolph complained and was out of shape for most of the season, so MacMillan sat him on the bench. When it was clear to Randolph that he wasn't going to make MacMillan budge and whining more would not earn him minutes, Randolph hit the gym and returned in great shape. He finished with a strong season, averaging 23.6 points per game and 10.1 rebounds per game. Still, there have been murmurings that the Blazers might look to trade Randolph to help add depth to the roster. Also, with the late emergence of rookie LaMarcus Aldridge, the Blazers might lean on him as their future power forward instead of Randolph.
The Blazers do have a slight hole at the small forward position. Darius Miles was injured all season and has been an off court headache for the team for quite a while and Travis Outlaw, while athletic, is still very raw.
Jarrett Jack and Brandon Roy had excellent seasons in the back court, and Martell Webster showed signs of improvement as well. Still, the Blazers need more scoring and especially a boost with outside shooting. Trading Juan Dixon for Fred Jones helped bring some depth to the perimeter, but didn't help with their outside shooting. They'll be searching for someone to spread the defense to help Oden maneuver in the paint next season.
Even if Joel Przybilla is healthy this season, Oden is a great fit for the Blazers. His offense should continue to improve and he will be able to step in and anchor the team's defense right away. With a lineup of Greg Oden, Zach Randolph, Travis Outlaw, Brandon Roy and Jarrett Jack, with a bench that includes LaMarcus Aldridge, Joel Przybilla and Martell Webster, the Blazers have a lot of pieces to make great improvements next season.
If the Blazers surprise and draft Durant, which isn't completely out of the question given GM Kevin Pritchard's track record of going against the grain, look for the Blazers to move Darius Miles.
