Blazer news: Steve Blake is back!

Photo by Keith Allison

I know, I've been a little lax on Blazer news lately, but the whole LeBron thing was happening.  Now that over, we can return to the reality of things in Portland.

The reality is this: STEVE BLAKE IS BACK!  This time, we're keeping him.

Well, at least for two more years.  The deal was similar to Kaman's though less in the money-department: a 2 year stint at $4.2 million.  It crucially filled a hole in the roster, which Mo Williams left even more open with his attempt to go sign for the Mavs.

Now, it looks likely that Williams will make a deal to move on to Dallas. In many ways he might be happier there, even if he doesn't quite get the money he was looking for, given that the Mavs will most likely resign Vince Carter and that might eat up some of the money they have to spend on him--though now that Houston is going to keep Parsons as well as get Bosh (DAMMIT CURSE YOU ROCKETS) that makes the Mavs situation unclear).  Williams has ties to the Dallas community and will most likely lead a less hectic life, in which he can go on to concentrate on a future in analysis and commentary (The Mo Williams Show was, hopefully, only the first glorious step).

Blake, however, is an excellent replacement for Mo.  He is consistent, he is reliable, and he can shoot threes with deadly accuracy.  He can play 1 or 2, and this will be especially exciting to watch with Will Barton next year trading places with him there. The most important thing, and the biggest upgrade for the team over Mo: he can play defense.  However frustrated people were at Mo's scattered shot-chart and his offensive inconsistencies, it was on defense that he harmed the team.  While he has active hands, and swipes away the ball a lot, and gives a lot on hustle plays, he relies too much on his quickness and proves jumpy.  More often than not, he'd be left staring at an opponent's back last year as he drove to the hoop past him.  With Blake, that won't happen.

And offensively, Blake can be more explosive and Mo-like than we may be willing to give him credit for.  He can really hit that three: he has shot in the mid-to-high 30% range most of his career, and even hit the 40's sometime.  I, for one, was always absolutely terrified of Blake on any other team when he played us.  In the crazy, thrilling game against Golden State a few months ago, he was devastating.  It wasn't so much the amount of points (he had 5), as when he put them up: he has that knack at hitting a three at just the right time, right when you need it.  And while Mo was clutch, and could occasionally prove devastating on this point, Blake seems more like what the Blazers need now--when we have clutchness already covered by Lillard.

Together with his ability to run the offense, he's a great addition.  Portland looks like it is focusing on being a smarter team next year, a more intelligent and efficient basketball machine.  It has energy in abundance.  Now, with Kaman and Blake, it will have that extra ability to make the right plays off of the bench which was lacking.

So while Cleveland gets a former player back, so does Portland!  Sure, the hype wasn't as big for this, but it's likely that the results will be satisfying.