Draft the ‘Stache?
Everywhere you look in Blazer-land, it’s all about “Draft The ‘Stache.”
The ‘Stache being Adam Morrison, the unfortunately mustachioed former Gonzaga Bulldog and current fan favorite of every Portlander, despite not even being on the team yet.
Morrison gained notoriety during the NCAA Tournament, when he demonstrated a tenacity and a determination that made people swoon. Few will forget the anguish he displayed after Gonzaga got eliminated from the tourney; some chalked it up him being a big wuss, but most recognized it for what it was — a player who cared alot who’d just been crushed by a loss.
Which is probably what excites Portland so much about him. When you look at the current Blazer roster, you can’t help but think that these guys are just happy to take their paychecks and run. “CTC,” as Sheed used to say. None of us can forget about how the players were reported to often end losing games laughing in the last couple of seasons, and few of us can contain our disgust at that level of apathy.
A player like Adam Morrison, then, is the panacea that we all crave.
Morrison is a guy we all know will leave it all on the floor. Morrison is a guy we can cheer for. Morrison is the basketball Jesus P-town’s been looking for.
One problem: Morrison’s not quite NBA-ready.
Don’t get me wrong, Morrison’s a good player. But he’s all offense and no defense, and on a Nate McMillan team in particular that equals a bench player, until he can develop himself into a quality all-around player.
Can that happen? Who knows?
But if we draft the ‘Stache, we need to make sure we’re doing so with an honest awareness that he’s not the impact player to help us improve next year. He, like so many of our other wunderkinds, is at least a year away from really hitting the floor hard as a starter.
The main quality I see in Morrison is that he won’t be satisfied being an also-ran. And he won’t be a Randolph-esque follower. These are qualities we need on our team. But he won’t be a leader, either, at least not until he proves himself, and he won’t get that chance next season.
Draft the ‘Stache? You can, if you want. For my money, we need a quality small forward. But I’d rather see us take Brandon Roy, who’s been identified by so many people as a NBA-ready college senior who would fit well into the McMillan scheme.
Besides, I’m willing to bet the ‘Stache won’t be available at number 4. I wouldn’t trade too much to move up to get him; not with Roy likely available where we are already (which, as mock drafts go, is currently a safe play). I think in 10 years Roy will prove to be a more suitable, and successful, all-around player (like Dwayne Wade) and the ‘Stache will be another Tracy Murray or, worse, Christian Laettner.
I guess we’ll see…
The whole “Draft the Stache” campaign is just a thinly-veiled, racially-motivated ploy from the frat boys at 1080am-The FAN and The Oregonian. I stopped listening to them two years ago because I couldn’t tolerate Ian Furness’ blatent slurs and ignorance toward blacks and international players. Frankly, I’m surprised he’s still employed. Also, Canzano has been outed by Miles to be ‘scared’ of him. Maybe the cornrows are ‘too black’ for Portland…
They want someone they can feel comfortable interviewing, not someone that actually merits a Top 4 pick. I would GLADLY take Morrison at the 30th or 31st pick, but he has been so overhyped that I fear the Blazers will drink the kool-aid. They guy is 6’6″ without shoes! Wait until he has to go up against REAL forwards in the NBA. This ain’t University of Portland competition, pal.
It’s Brandon Roy or bust, as far as I’m concerned.
Forgot to note…
If Portland ends up with Morrison and he turns out to be a bust in two years, I hope the Jason Quick, Canzano, and the clowns at 1080am are man enough to fess up. By that I mean, they shouldn’t be able to say “Oh look, another failed Blazer move…” without stating “But honestly, we kinda bullied the town and the Blazers into taking him. We’re sorry. We’ll never pin our hopes on another Great White Hope or ‘the-next-Larry-Bird’”
TK:
While I don’t disagree with you that Furness can be off-base and ignorant (hell, so can I), as can many of the press-types in Portland, I don’t agree with you that the “Draft the ‘Stache” campaign is a “racially-motivated ploy.”
Now, I’m not saying that race doesn’t play a part in it at all. I certainly don’t feel qualified to psycho-analyze the 1080 staff, Furness, or Canzano and say that some, all, most, or even none of them is on the Morrison band-wagon primarily because of race. Personally, I don’t think that race is the factor driving this bus, but we can agree to disagree on that.
Besides, the guys have shown themself to be comfortable interviewing anyone that would talk to them (the big name popping into my head is Damon) and Furness is a known Zach Randolph apologist, so take that for what it’s worth.
All that said, I agree with the “GLADLY take…at the 30th or 31st pick” sentiment and everything that follows. Certainly, coming out of the conference that Gonzaga plays in did nothing to hurt this guy, and did little to expose his weaknesses. For every Pooh in the conference, there are a hundred “Who?”‘s. Brandon’s the man. Let’s start a “Roy’s our Boy” campaign (“boy” not meant in the racially derogatory way…just the only thing that’s popping to mind that rhymes with Roy…).
TK:
Got your second thought up while I was still responding to your first one…
I agree whole-heartedly with your second point.
By the way, how come we never hear any black players discussed in “the next Larry Bird” terms? I’m sure this has been discussed ad nauseum elsewhere, I’m just too busy (or lazy) to look, but is Larry Bird famous because of his game alone, or because he had his game and was a whitey? I’m sure most would agree that it’s the latter. If that’s the case, shouldn’t we be beyond that sort of discussion at this point in time?
Rusty-
The Larry Bird comparisons fall into two categories: They’re either ridiculously off-base or they’re a manefestation of a burning desire to have another good white player in the league. I’ve actually heard people compare Morrison to Bird, which is a gross disservice to both players. It’s lazy and it most definitely raises expectations that Morrison is a franchise ‘get’.
Does anyone actually think Morrison is the type of player you build around? If you objectively look at his skills and what he brings to the table in the NBA, he’s an inspiring role player at best. The “Draft the Stache” campaign seemingly sees that pick as a PR move more than one of actual substance. Get a passionate white player and the white season ticket holders from Tualatin will come back! Well, I say bullsh*t. People seem to forget that the real Jail Blazer teams from the late 90′s and the 2000 season had solid attendance because (gasp!) they WON GAMES. What about the Salt Lake City hotel incident with Kersey and Cliff back in the heyday? Again, when you’re winning, no body cares if you’re caught speeding in front of Embers.
Our media has lost all perspective…
yikes. what a pathetic line of reasoning. the race card is a weak move here for so many reasons. uggghhhh.