As of Tuesday, October 20th, the 15th and final roster spot on the Portland Trail Blazers was up for grabs. Small forward Ime Udoka, who played for the team in 2006, and power forward Jarron Collins, accepted invitations to training camp, battled for the spot, and played wait-and-see. Both struggled in Tuesday night’s preseason game against the Jazz, and haven’t put up particularly pleasing stats during this exhibition season, but each had their strengths and appeared to be the only two candidates for the final spot, considering everyone else already had a definitive role on the team.

Then came this odd exchange between Udoka, Collins, and head coach Nate McMillan, as documented by The Columbian’s Brian T. Smith:

“Ime Udoka spent the last 15 minutes working on shooting drills. After changing sides of the court to shoot free throws, Udoka was then approached by Jarron Collins — who, like Udoka, is trying to win the team’s 15th and final roster spot. Collins, who was wearing street clothes, walked up to Udoka, whispered something in his ear, and then walked away. Udoka looked caught off guard by the conversation, as did the Blazers assistant coach working with him. Meanwhile, Collins walked off the court — head pointed downward — waved and walked into the team’s locker room. As soon as Collins left, Blazers coach Nate McMillan walked out, and said he needed to speak with Udoka. Practice was then closed.”

Udoka was told he wouldn’t make the team. Collins was told he wouldn’t make the team. Who did, then?

Patrick “Patty” Mills, an Australian-born 5′10″ rookie point guard out of St. Mary’s in Northern California, did. On the first day of practice in early July, during the evening session that was closed to the media, Mills broke his foot in the second of the night’s two sessions. The Blazers ruled him out of Summer League, and since that day, he hasn’t played. Then, how did he nab the final spot rehabbing while Udoka and Collins worked their tails off on the court?

Portland wanted to keep his rights, and the only way they could do that was by adding him to their 15-man roster; if they cut him loose, he’d be free to sign with any team. Mills is seen as an athletic, deceptively quick scorer with well above average ball-handling skills.

Here are some plausible reasons why Mills was added to their roster:

1. For sentimental reasons. Mills left college early, got injured, and didn’t have any chance to prove himself. Because of his injury, he wouldn’t have been able to play in Europe if cut, since their season had already begun. Not many other teams would have given an injured, undersized second rounder a chance. So, possibly, the Blazers didn’t want to watch his career end before it started, therefore deciding to give him the roster spot to allow him to rehab properly, practice once healthy, and get an chance to strut his stuff if the opportunity presented himself.
2. Maybe Udoka nor Collins were worth keeping. Both play positions that are already stacked with more talent (Travis Outlaw backs up LaMarcus Aldridge at power forward, and can play small forward along with Nicolas Batum, Rudy Fernandez, Dante Cunningham, and Martell Webster) and neither exactly blew the Blazers away this preseason (Collins averaged as many points per game as fouls, 3.5, and didn’t rebound particularly well, while Udoka shot 37 percent and scored seven points per game). So why not take a risk and give the spot to a 20-year old point guard who could potentially move up the ladder on the depth chart and make much more of an impact?
3. Their all-powerful General Manager Kevin Pritchard, a former point guard, wanted to keep Mills, so he did. In an interview with Blazersedge’s Ben Golliver on Media Day, he said “you can never have too many point guards.”
4. The Blazers, not just Pritchard, think highly of Mills and believe that he could learn the rules of the road from veterans Andre Miller and Steve Blake, and learn how the NBA-game works, then when ready, could move into the backup role or become the full-time starter.

I think it’s a combination of the four, but it starts and ends with Pritchard. The Blazers didn’t want to cut loose the wounded and possibly lose credibility in the process, he wanted a fourth point guard, and he believes Mills can turn into a great player.

Reportedly, McMillan wasn’t too thrilled about the decision. The Oregonian’s Jason Quick, on 95.5 The Game, said the head coach was “not happy” that the Blazers decided to add a very young point guard instead of the veteran presence of Udoka or Collins. That’s unfortunate, but he has to play the cards he’s dealt.

Mills’ signing only further clouds the future of Jerryd Bayless. It’s definitely not good when the team signs a veteran in Miller during the summer, keeps Blake, then signs a younger guard, especially an injured one who has participated in half a practice. Mills is going to miss a big chunk of the season, but once he is in playing shape, I don’t see how the Blazers keep Bayless. He deserves a chance to play, and won’t get that this year, and certainly not when Mills enters the fold.

If Portland does think the world of Mills, and didn’t make the move solely because Pritchard said so or because of financial reasons (they save 300,000 dollars and stay under the salary cap by inking him), this could pay immense dividends for both sides in the long-run.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 at 6:53 pm and is filed under Most Recommended, News Headlines, Portland Trail Blazers, Right Column, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.