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Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen wants answers

By Matt George Moore

OAKLAND, CA - APRIL 16: Paul Allen of the Portland Trail Blazers attends the Western Conference Quarterfinals game against the Golden State Warriors during the 2017 NBA Playoffs on April 16, 2017 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - APRIL 16: Paul Allen of the Portland Trail Blazers attends the Western Conference Quarterfinals game against the Golden State Warriors during the 2017 NBA Playoffs on April 16, 2017 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen wants to know why his team isn’t winning more often. Welcome to the club.

Sports media commentators have spilled a lot of ink on the question of why the Portland Trail Blazers are struggling. We’ve also discussed it often here at the RCP. After a rousing start to the Jusuf Nurkic era, which saw the team go 14-6 with him in the lineup, the 2017-2018 Trail Blazers have not performed up to expectations.

Now Paul Allen, the Blazers’ billionaire owner, is apparently asking some pointed questions.

Trail Blazers Struggle

According to The Oregonian/OregonLive’s John Canzano,

"“The lieutenants who work at owner Paul Allen’s Vulcan, Inc. mothership have been analyzing data and asking important questions. Two NBA front-office sources said they were contacted in the last 10 days by the Vulcans and asked whether they thought the Trail Blazers struggles were due to a broken roster or poor coaching.”"

We’ve asked that same question. The consensus seems to be that Blazers general manager Neil Olshey failed to put the right team together for head coach Terry Stotts. I think this is correct, and I hope Allen’s “lieutenants” don’t come to the opposite conclusion. Firing Terry Stotts would be a mistake, and would set the team back even further than it already is.

Canzano quotes “one of the league sources” as saying, “Paul is getting antsy. He thinks they should be winning more.”

We do, too. And they still might. Thursday’s come-from-behind victory against the Philadelphia 76ers – without Damian Lillard – is a case in point. It was a definite morale booster, the kind of victory that can turn a season around.

Much Ado About Nothing?

It’s not unusual for an owner to ask questions about an underperforming team. But I think Allen should focus more on what’s happening on the court rather than what’s taking place in the front office.

Next: Blazers are not a December team

The Trail Blazers need Nurkic to perform every night the way he did Thursday against the Sixers. And they need Maurice Harkless to continue breaking out of whatever doldrums have plagued him this season. If these players can do that, then the Blazers’ season will turn around – and all this talk of who’s at fault will be drowned out by the cheering of Rip City fans.