According to Mike Barrett. So our draft review post will likely be up later tonight.

One interesting quote from Mike Barrett’s Blog ^[1] (for those of you who don’t know, Barrett’s one of the Blazers talking heads during the season, so he’s both in a very good place to give information, and at the same time presumably somewhat to be distrusted since he has to stay with the team’s agenda):

I talked to Kevin Pritchard this morning, in his office, and he once again stated that nothing has been guaranteed to anyone. So, that basically says the reports you’ve been hearing on ESPN are false. It doesn’t mean Portland won’t actually take Oden, of course, but no one has been promised anything in advance. Kevin was adamant about that, and said “don’t believe the reports you’re hearing.” He said he’s not ready to go public with anything yet. That’s still the correct strategy, and we’ll talk more about that tonight during our show.

He also said it’s been an extremely quiet morning around the league, as far as phone calls are concerned. It seems like everyone is in a holding pattern. We’ve seen this before, and we’ve also seen an explosion of moves and deals once one key deal happens. But, something tells me that is not going to be the case this year. Of course, if the Blazers simply end up with just the number-one pick, it’s still a fantastic day. History though, has shown us, anything can happen on draft day. Kevin did state that several times.

The deal it appears everyone is waiting on, is the possible three-way deal between Minnesota, Phoenix, and Atlanta. It’s unclear at this point how close that deal is to going down, but that likely explains why there is just no chatter right now. If this deal officially dies, it could also open the flood gates to other moves. One way or the other, something will have to happen before much else can happen.

So, what does this mean? Well, it’s clear from many reports that the Blazers are really pushing to get a second lottery pick, with it appearing they’re trying to get the #11 pick from Milwaukie. I’m sure they’d also love to move a big contract, like Zach’s, but the reality is that doesn’t seem to be in the cards today. That’s probably a late-summer trade, or else a mid-season trade. If Seattle gets Durant, they’ll be looking to get rid of Rashard Lewis, and though I don’t expect the Blazers to want to send Z-Bo up I5 to a rival who we see alot, that trade may be one that’s becoming more realistic.

There’s also talk about the lakers looking at Z-Bo since they’ve fallen out of the Kevin Garnett sweepstakes. I don’t expect that to happen, either. I think when Z-Bo goes, he’ll be headed east. Ultimately, I see our most likely trading partner being New Jersey, once the dust from the draft settles.

But as everyone waits for the three-way deal to go down, or else officially get rejected, the “holding pattern” is a bit disconcerting, I suppose. Not because a lack of draft-day trades is bad for us. Only because we’re expecting something exciting again, like last year.

Poor Kevin Pritchard may end up the victim of making too good a showing his first time around.

Anyway, here’s hoping for some excitement this afternoon, and at the same time here’s saying that even if we don’t pull off some awesome deal(s), walking away with Greg Oden is a very, very good day…