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Slaying the giant Portland moves forward with a single purpose
The Portland Trail Blazers had one of the best teams in the NBA last season, but they fell short in the Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. So in the offseason, the Blazers made significant personnel changes in hopes of changing those results this year. ATLANTA (CNNSI.com) -- Call it the NBA's version of a "power trio." Three of the league's top power forwards (Rasheed Wallace, Shawn Kemp and Dale Davis) were brought together with one goal in mind -- to slay the giant Shaquille O'Neal and conquer his Lakers. "We have a lot of guys to throw at him, and if you can wear him down," said Davis, "I think in the long run you'll be a lot better off." Portland already had one of the NBA's best power forwards in Wallace, an All-Star who led the team in scoring and minutes per game last season and was second in rebounding. He'll now get help from another All-Star in Davis, who did nothing less than average 10 points and 10 rebounds and play tremendous defense for Indiana last season. "I'm really not going to get you 30 points a night," Davis says. "But I'm a guy who can go out and do the little things. I can come up with a blocked shot when needed. I can come up with the rebounds when needed, and I can play defense when needed. I can score when I get the opportunity. So whatever is called upon for me to do, I'm all willing to do to help my team win." Rounding out the threesome is the former dunking force known as the "Reign Man," Shawn Kemp. His explosive, slashing style was grounded by a big weight gain last season in Cleveland. Yet he still played in every game for the Cavaliers, averaging nearly 18 points and nine rebounds a game. "It's going to be a rebirth for my career from the standpoint of how I look at the basketball game and how I approach it," said Kemp. "You'll probably see me smile a little bit more than you have the past few seasons."
Just having someone like Kemp on his roster is enough to bring a smile to the face of head coach Mike Dunleavy. "Shawn's ability to play offense will help us in that regard," Dunleavy said. "There will be times to have another guy that we can go to as 'go to' guy and have the ability to play both four [position] and five [position]. I think that will be helpful." However, Portland's wealth of talent at the four spot may also bring back a familiar problem for the talented Blazers -- finding playing time for everyone. Arvydas Sabonis is recovering from foot surgery, and he should see fewer minutes this season as Dunleavy tries to get the most out of his center's 35-year-old legs. While that will free up some playing time for Wallace, Kemp and Davis, Dunleavy still needs to juggle three power forwards who each averaged 28 minutes a game or more last season. "The last time I counted, there are only 96 minutes for four guys," says Dunleavy. "The bottom line is, everybody's going to have to sacrifice for the opportunity to win a championship. We did a pretty good job of that last year, and I'm sure with the people we have -- not only from a talent standpoint, but just who they are, their personalities -- that's going to be their focus." "I have an opportunity to play with some great players here," Davis said. "Playing time is not going to be important, because anytime you're competing with guys of this caliber at the same position, that's a plus for your team." Wallace, Kemp and Davis give the Blazers three big bodies who can run, bang, score and play defense. It's a triple threat Portland is counting on to neutralize the league's most dominating force in O'Neal and the Lakers and make the Blazers the most powerful team in the basketball.
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