April 12, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Andre Iguodala (9) reacts with guard Andre Miller (24) in overtime against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. The Mavs beat the Nuggets 108-105. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Nuggets were officially eliminated from playoff contention on Thursday in a disappointing loss to the Golden State Warriors. No player has more reason to be disappointed than one time Blazer point guard, Andre Miller. In his 14 years in the NBA and 9 playoff appearances Miller has never won a series. Every year since 2004 (with the exception of 2007 when he was traded to the 76ers mid-season and missed the playoffs entirely) his team has been eliminated in the first round.

Miller captured my heart before Portland traded him for the much maligned Raymond Felton, and I wanted so badly to see him succeed. The Nuggets finished the season with a franchise best 57 wins and 25 losses; surely this was meant to be his year! Alas, it was not in the cards and Stephen Curry’s Warriors kept Andre’s tradition alive; which is really too bad, from my selfish standpoint. It’s not that I wanted to see the Warriors loose, as a matter of fact, I’m glad they’ve climbed their way out of the NBA doldrums, but I just wanted one of the best facilitators of our time to taste a piece of playoff success while he’s still around to be appreciated.

Miller is 10^th All-time in assists and is set to pass another Blazer great, Rod Strickland, next season. I’m crossing my fingers and hoping as he moves up in history he’ll move up in the playoffs. Just once; that’s all I ask. There have been many excellent players to retire without a ring, but how many of such caliber have never advanced to round 2? Even in the ‘Rise With Us’ years of Brandon Roy, Andre came up short. It’s not for lack of ability. He has been criticized here and there for slowing the tempo too much, but you’d be hard pressed to find a team that wouldn’t take him. Now, if only a team could take him further.

@davidmackaypdx | @ripcityproject | davidmackaypdx@gmail.com

Apr 20, 2013; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks point guard Raymond Felton (2) reacts on the court against the Boston Celtics during game one of the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports

Raymond Felton will always have a special place in my heart; that hidden corner that secretly wants people to trip when they’re balancing groceries or park their Mercedes near a flock of incontinent pigeons. It’s somewhere behind the aorta, I think. It seems strange to me now, that just two seasons ago I had absolutely no opinion on the man. He was just another decent point guard in a league overflowing with good ones. But that was then, and this is now.

As you likely know, the Raymond Felton I grew to despise spent an infamous year in the Rose City out of shape, out of touch, and out of his mind. He played with the decision making of a young Russell Westbrook and the charisma of an inflamed hemorrhoid. He was poison. Felton’s prima donna antics inevitably contributed to the release of then head coach, Nate McMillan. I’m well aware that the Blazers needed a change, but after years of valuable service, it shouldn’t have happened like that.

But back to present day. Nate is gone, Felton is gone, as are a slew of other players. So why can’t I let this go? Raymond is back in New York, where he wanted to be, but his heavily contested 20-footers still haunt my dreams. I guess I’m just bitter that such a brat could ride into town, muddle our comforters, and then land back in his dream role while we remake our bed for what feels like the thousandth time.

But, you see, I’m conflicted. The Boston Celtics have long been my least favorite franchise of the sporting world (sorry Celtic fans). There’s something about their swagger that makes my Blazer blood boil. So what do I do when they face off with Portland’s ghost of failures past in the first round of the playoffs? Do I stand behind my specter or swallow my pride and side with the Pierce, Rondo*, Garnett axis of evil? I find myself torn between the ugly colors of resentment and loathing. There’s just no winning.

Luckily, the champion is not decided in round 1. It all boils down to what I’d like to see in the long run; Miami-New York, or Miami-Boston for the conference title. Of course, these matchups are no guarantee, but foresight has never shared hindsight’s 20/20 vision. Personally, a Miami-New York rematch would warm my heart (even that shady part where Felton lurks). It looks like I’ve got a long road of compromise ahead of me, and that’s ok. I just can’t help but feel unclean.

Felton has been considerably better in New York than he ever was in Portland, although it seems that each of his positive contributions is an eyelash away from catastrophe. It’s a good thing he has the NBA scoring leader in Carmelo Anthony to make him look adequate, because there is no way the Knicks success can be attributed to his “talents”. So good luck, Raymond Felton. I only ask that you treat New York the way you treated Portland and take no responsibility for the team’s outcome.

(Unless, of course, they fail. Then the blame falls squarely on your pork shoulders. Take that!)

@davidmackaypdx | @ripcityproject | davidmackaypdx@gmail.com

You guys have no idea how much my dentist hates me for this. Actually you might...it's probably as much as you hate the fact that you can learn from my actions, huh? (Source: YardBarker.com)

No, this will not be me talking about how referees need to relax or how much I miss the TNT guys already, or how much Magic Johnson and Stuart Scott make my ears bleed. We’ll be talking about things that went both wrong and right in both of those series, that the  the Blazers can possibly learn from in future playoff runs.

• The Regular Season Doesn’t Matter That Much: One of the things you have to love about Blazer fans is their unbridled passion for the team. It’s a reason why, deserved or not, Blazer fans are called some of the best fans in the league. However, it certainly seems that a lot of Blazer fans put too much emphasis on the regular season, giving it too much of a rollercoaster-esque feel. If we’ve learned anything from the Conference Finals, it’s that the regular season does not mean anything in the post-season. The Celtics looked like burnt toast before the playoffs and are 4 wins away from a championship. On the flip-side, the Magic looked like world beaters and have the same chance as MacGruber of winning the title.
• Confidence in a Bench can provide Dividends: This is learned from the Suns, and Alvin Gentry deserves a ton of credit for this. He may be one of the few head coaches who gave his bench the time to grow during the regular season to the point that during the playoffs they peaked in moments they should not have. Dragic, Dudley, Frye, Amundson, all quality players, all played big roles and all helped their team win. The Blazers are a team that has an inconsistent bench, a team that needs more production from the bench to get to a higher level. On paper this is a team that has better talent on their bench than most teams. This is not to bash Nate, just to point out that if the bench had more confidence they would more than likely play better ala Phoenix. And that bench helped them get an Artest put-back away from who knows what?

More learning points after the jump…

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