So I was talking with Trail Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard the other day... OK, OK, let me clarify. I had my first conversation with KP last week when he appeared on a local talk radio show - which was interesting in itself because it was not a typical sports venue, but actually with a local conservative talk show host. Pritchard came on as the "lunch guest" and stayed for more than the allotted noon-1:00 format. I thought I had a good question, so I phoned in. I was the first caller on the show and ended up on the air with him for over 5 minutes. Pretty cool, I thought. My core question centered on young-talent retention. The team just recently exercised the team options for the young players, retaining them through next season (2008-2009). Then what? When other teams come calling, are they ALL really going to want to stay in Portland? Oden, Roy, Aldridge, Sergio, Webster... all of them? I really liked the essence of Pritchard's response:"If they're the right fit for this team, we'll do what we need to do to keep them in a Portland uniform."
Now that's what I like to hear. Cap space, playing time, etc. Those are details. If they're the right fit, the team will keep them around. Simple enough. Now I'll stop fretting...until their contracts really do expire...
(First picture is of KP when he was a college basketball stud, winning a national championship at Kansas - I know I probably shouldn't expose him like that, but you know, I can rib him now and then, since we're friends and all).
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