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It's that time: time for preseason grades. "But wait Favrefan," you say, "the Blazers still have two more preseason games."  Well, yes, you'd be right.  However, if the NFL can close it's Pro Bowl balloting with three games to go and the NBA can determine it's season All-Stars a full three months before the conclusion of the season, certainly my readers (all three of them) won't begrudge me jumping the gun.  Also, I don't work another graveyard until next Tuesday, and I'd rather spend that summarizing the season opener against the Lakers.  Thus, without further ado, my preseason grades for each Blazers player (alphabetical order):

Lamarcus Aldridge- B+

Got better as the preseason went on.  Struggled with his shot early but began connecting in later games, and has tons of open looks thanks to Greg Oden.  Looks like he's as good as advertised and is either the #1 or #2 scoring option on the team with Brandon Roy right now.  Also seems to have developed a solid pick-and-roll chemistry with Roy, something that was lacking last year.

Nicolas Batum-B-

This is a tremendous grade for Batum.  If it was going against expectations it would be an A, but in terms of overall performance it's a B-.  This is a guy that was destined for the D-League after a completely nondescript summer league, and now he may well be starting.  His shot is, in a word, bad.  However, he's a natural defender and hustles for boards.  Going from D-Leaguer to starter over the course of a preseason is impressive.

Jerryd Bayless- D

Where did he go? He's had one good game this preseason, and it was when the Blazers rested their four best players.  When any quality players are on the floor he frustrates them with indecision.  His poor decisions, poor shooting, and the emergence of Sergio Rodriguez has likely relegated Bayless to 3rd string both at the point and at 2 guard.  Wasn't this guy a hot commodity in the draft?  Oh right, this is preseason...I shouldn't get carried away.

Steve Blake-INC

Was hurt for all but one game thus far.  In his one game he was his typical solid but unspectacular self.  He will be the starter at the open of the season, at this point it looks like he should be able to keep it, more due to a lack of competition than anything he's done particularly well.

Ike Diogu- C-

With Frye back much sooner than expected, Diogu will just be a spot player due to foul trouble or blowouts.  He had every chance to prove that he deserved rotation minutes, and he's done nothing with it.  Diogu strikes me as the token forward who travels teams' benches throughouts his career.  I expected little out of him, and that's what Portland is getting.

Rudy Fernandez- A-

His shooting is better than advertised, his passing is better than advertised, his defense is better than advertised.  My only area of complaint with him is his ball control.  Three turnovers per game is far too much.  Still, he is quickly becoming the gem of the Blazers' prized second unit, and his three point shooting will help deaden the pain of losing Martell Webster.  Looks like a contender for both ROY and 6th Man.

Channing Frye- INC

Like Blake, has only played one game this preseason.  He looked like his usual sweet shooting, scared-of-the-paint self.  He was supposed to miss up to a month of regular season after surgery to take care of some bone spurs in his ankle, and instead is already close to 100%.  I like him as a player, but he needs to get agressive in the paint.   The Blazers already have a good shooting PF who could add some weight in Aldridge.  What they need is a bruiser.  As such, I have a bold prediction that Frye will become trade bait at some point this season, even though he is something of a fan favorite in Portland.

Steven Hill- C

Has the inside track for the 15th roster spot, more by default than anything else.  Hill is basically Oden's tackling dummy in practice, and Portland mainly seems to want to hold on to him for that reason.  Why risk injury to Joel Przybilla?  It's also usually a good idea to have another big stashed on the bench behind a rookie in case of foul trouble/fatigue/injury.  If the Blazers pick up a 15th man, it will be Hill.

Luke Jackson- F

A local favorite who has done nothing.  Jackson graduated from local University of Oregon, and that's basically all he has going for him.  He's an outside shooter who can't shoot (25% from 3).  That more or less sums it up.  He's not making the roster.

Greg Oden- A-

His minutes have gradually increased throughout the preseason, and he's responded nicely.  Everything he does looks good.  He forced somethings early in the preseason, and rebounds flat-footed too often, but still looks like a 16-11 guy if he gets his prescribed 30-35 mpg, and that is honestly better than I'd hoped for.  Also, Oden is a beast that demands double teams, freeing up all sorts of shots for Aldridge.  I wouldn't be surprised if Oden's impact on Aldridge is similar to Shaq's impact on Amare' in terms of increase in production.

Travis Outlaw- D+

Looked good in the last game, but basically played himself out of the starting rotation.  When Martell Webster went down with injury Outlaw became the heir apparent to the starting SF spot, and proceded to shoot under 40% as a starter.  He's been a black hole, which is okay if you hit your shots, but he hasn't been (under 33% from the field thus far).  I know this is preseason, but this is second consecutive season he's had every chance to start at SF and blown it.  He operates well in the second unit so long as he doesn't take shots from the other players, but I boldly predict he will be gone by the trading deadline.

Joel Przybilla- B

Defense and rebounding.  It's all he does, and he does it well.  Joel looked like his usual self this preseason, and is surely among the better backup centers in the game. Joel is a perfect complement to Frye in the second unit and is a perfect backup for Oden.  I really like him on this team.  He's even shooting well from the line (80%) and field (77%), so while he will never be mistaken for an offensive threat, he seems at least capable.

Shavlik Randolph- C

If someone other than Hill take the 15th spot, it will be Randolph.  He had one great game (19 and 11 on 9 for 9 shooting), but Portland is already very deep at forward.  He's played well enough to at least have a chance at making another team this season, but I'd be surprised to see him in Portland next week, unless the Spurs pick him up.

Sergio Rodriguez- B+

Sergio has been the biggest surprise to me this preseason, and that includes Batum.  I'd completely written him off (http://www.fannation.com/blogs/post/269195), yet he's clearly the 2nd best PG on this roster and is largely what makes the Blazers talented fun-n-gun 2nd unit go.  His chemistry with fellow countryman Rudy Fernandez is that of seasoned vets, not rookies.  Sergio clearly worked on his defense and shooting to a degree I did not give him credit for.  It seems I was wrong about him, and I look forward to seeing him play.

Brandon Roy- A

Roy is Roy.  He's the unquestioned leader of this team and seems to be just as good or better than last year.  Though he recently had knee surgery, he showed no ill effects thus far.  His preseason numbers are great (63% from the floor and from three, ast/to ratio close to 4) and seems to have truly embraced his leadership role.  

Jamaal Tatum- F

He's already been cut.  Not impressive at all.  Moving on.

Martell Webster- INC

Poor Webster.  He was undeniably the best player in their preseason opening rout of Sacramento, and broke his foot.  Now he's likely out until January.  If what he showed against the Kings (15 points, 6 boards in 26 minutes) is the real Martell, he's another young talented player coming into his own for Portland.  Whenever he comes back he'll be the starting SF, which is important because there is no spot up deep shooter in the starting lineup without him.  He will be missed until then.

Also of note:

Darium Miles has been waived by the Boston Celtics, meaning he'll likely have to sign a series of ten day contracts to play this year.  This means that the Blazers have dodged an $18 million bullet for now.  Since Miles was waived from Portland due to an injury that was deemed career ending by an outside doctor, his salary (roughly $9 million each of the next two years) doesn't count against Portland's cap.  However, if he plays ten games in either of the next two years the money is back on Portland's books. 

So, here's my thinking: Portland's potential for a bright future is undeniable.  Why not try to limit it if you're an opposing GM, especially in the West?  Miles is suspended for ten games for taking diet pills, but if he plays he'll only play for the veteran's minimum (he still gets paid his $18 million through insurance).  Why doesn't some team like the Jazz or the Lakers pick up Miles and sign him to a couple ten day contracts?  Let him serve his suspension, then put him in to limp around for ten seconds a game for ten games.  Suddenly Portland's cap space takes a major hit and limits what trade whiz Kevin Pritchard can do.  It costs Miles' team practically nothing since they pay him the minimum and he doesn't play significant time, and it costs Portland $18 million over the next two years.  Or does this make too much sense?  Not that I want it to happen.

Token non-Blazer thought:

What is with the Cowboys?  Wasn't this supposed to be the Super Bowl favorite?  Sure, they've had some injuries, but who hasn't?  Their defense is just pathetic, and it's an understatement to say the Adam Jones experiment backfired.  But most importantly, what's with Tony Romo?  It's a freaking pinky.  Why didn't he get to play if he suited up?  I'm not calling him a wuss by any means, because he clearly wanted to play.  I don't think he would have done much worse than Brad Johnson.  Could you imagine if the Colts didn't let Manning play in that situation?  If Romo can suit up he should play.  If Brett Favre can play 11 games with a broken thumb on his throwing hand and lead the NFL in touchdowns, I think Romo can at least play enough QB to keep the Cowboys above water.  Let him play!!!  Oh wait, I hate the Cowboys.

Looking ahead:

The Blazers close the preseason with road games against the Clippers and the Jazz, with most starters expected to rest or receive very little time as Nate McMillan works out his 2nd team and scrubs.  I'd expect Oden to be the only starter to play anything over 15 minutes in either game, just to keep him in game shape.  Then it's the season opener in LA against the Lakers in a game that will renew a once-intense rivalry.  The teams match up well against each other, going 2-2 against each other last year with both teams sweeping home court.  Oden vs. Bynum could be the next great big-man rivalry, and then Gasol vs. Aldridge, Roy vs. Kobe, two super benches, and two young teams.  These two teams could be the biggest rivalry in the NBA in the next couple of years.

Parting thought:

The biggest question for Portland right now is the SF rotation with Webster out.  It seems now the frontrunner for the starting spot is super-green rookie Nicolas Batum, ahead of other candidates Outlaw and Fernandez.  I like Batum, but I don't think he's better than either of the other guys, and yet I would still agree with this manuever.  For one, Batum is an NBA-ready defender and for two, keeping Rudy and Outlaw on the bench keeps the solid 2nd unit together.  The bench lineup of Sergio, Rudy, Outlaw, Frye, and Przybilla will be the best in the game and a fastbreaking spectacle to complement the methodical starting unit.  How many teams can say they start a super-raw rookie just to keep the BENCH together?  I also don't see Batum hurting the starting unit, since nearly all the shots will go to Roy and Aldridge with the leftovers going to Oden and the spot-up shots taken by Blake.  All Batum will have to do is defend and rebound, which are his two strong point at this point.