After scoring down low last year despite double teams, LaMarcus Aldridge will have a chance to step outside. Greg Nelson/SI

Fast Fact

Once an elite running team, the Blazers finished last in the NBA in fast-break points (645) for the second straight season, though they raised their average fast-break points from 6.3 in '06-07 to 7.9.

Last Season

Record: 41-41 (10th in West Points scored: 95.4 (T-27th in NBA) Points allowed: 96.3 (8th)

A shooting guard is the one shining light for a franchise in the midst of major rebuilding

LaMarcus Aldridge, a 6-foot-11 power forward, finished up a recent postpractice workout as he had many others during preseason -- with a barrage of threes. So are they going to be part of his repertoire this season?

"A lot of them were going in, right?" asked Aldridge, smiling. "Coach [Nate] McMillan told me if I worked on [my three-point shot] and gained confidence, he would let me shoot it -- if I'm open, that is."

In Greg Oden's absence Aldridge developed a solid back-to-the-basket game last season -- despite his size, he had always been more comfortable facing up and either driving or making his move. "I could dribble real well even when I was young," says Aldridge, 23, who came to the Blazers in a 2006 draft-day trade after being picked second out of Texas by the Bulls, "so my coaches let me play outside. I actually ran point guard as a senior in high school." He smiles again, before adding, "Not that Coach needs me there. We have enough of those."

Perhaps if he did become the league's tallest quarterback, Aldridge would command more attention. Blazers brass insist that he is part of the team's Big Three along with Oden and guard Brandon Roy, but Aldridge is often a forgotten man. He still stews quietly (stewing loudly is not his style) about the TV commentary at the June draft, which included mentions of several of his teammates, but not him. "I'm comfortable just being a part of the Big Three," Aldridge says, "and I know which part I am. It goes Brandon, Greg, then me. But my coaches and teammates know what I bring to the table." This year, that could include a long-distance game. -- Jack McCallum