The only L.A. we need to worry about this year, is the one in Portland...

Brutal isn't it?

For those of us who have ever tried driving the lane on a bohemeth Like Amare Stoudemire, it's difficult to land without without a bruise or a bloody nose. However, here it looks like Lamarcus Aldridge is experiencing both. But you know what else is brutal about this picture? That ball is still getting pounded through the hoop.

Growing up in a basketball family, it was inevitable that I started playing at an early age with my older brother already turning heads, and my dad as a coach. When it was finally time to play on an actual team, dad decided he wanted to start coaching me for awhile. It never ended. Even during seasons where he wasn't actually my coach, he was. I was never the largest kid on the court, but always enjoyed mixing it up with centers in the pit. But as much as I loved it, for a long time it wasn't effective. This is why my dad remained my coach for my entire basketball life. He discovered that when I got hit by larger guys, that I would get really irritated, frustrated, and more than anything, extremely pissed off. He made it his personal mission to force me to use that anger. Aggressive is the easiest way to describe it, but honestly it wasn't that nice. There were countless games where my dad would yell at me, whether he was on the bench or in the stands, to purposely make me mad. When I got mad, the caution was out the window, and I would almost become a different player. Not quite hulk status, but you get the idea. Whether I was good or not is a different sory, but the point is that I learned to use everything I have, to make everyone else use everything they have.

Now I told you that story because it's essential knowledge for the real story.

Since the year Lamarcus Aldridge got drafted to Portland, he looked like he could seriously be one of the missing links to The Blazers' success. Tall, athletic, lean, light on his feet, great shot. He looked like the ideal power forward. But he LOOKED like the ideal power forward. We all know that he still has yet to BE the ideal power forward. So when are we going to get him? I was reading Mike Barrett 's blog, a Trailblazers TV analyst, and he seems to believe that the time is now. He reported that Lamarcus had a trainer from the Blazers go to his hometown in Texas to work with him on what else? his aggressiveness. I wasn't sure if it was true, but it has been confirmed that Lamarcus has put on about 20 lbs. this offseason, mainly of pure muscle.

But why now? It's pretty rare for an athlete to simply decide he's going to make such a drastic change. Re-committments of this calibur don't normally happen overnight; it's typically something that eats away at you for awhile, before you lash out.

People always told me that I didn't belong trying to play against larger guys, because of my size. Constantly told I needed to be more aggressive, and to loosen up. My dad chewed my ass whenever I wasn't playing the way he had coached me, and the way I was capable of playing.

I don't believe Lamarcus' dad has been constantly on him to play up to parr and to get aggressive. But I do believe the people have. Coaches, family, friends can give all the suggestions they want to Lamarcus. But at the end of the day, the only thing he hears is the people. You, Portland, have finally pissed off Lamarcus Aldridge. The one thing that will always get to an athlete's head, is when their hometown fans begin to question their talent, their committment, and their heart. I think we've hit the spot. We saw a glimpse of it in last years playoffs against the Phoenix Suns. Lamarcus was, for the most part, timid in his quest to contain and out-play Amare Stoudemire. But in the game pictured above, Lamarcus had clearly had enough. It's the moment when a normal athlete is getting drilled by everyone around them, but still scores, that makes them an abnormal athlete.

This blog is noticeably late for a reason. I didn't want to post this until I was sure, for myself, that what was being said was true. Last night, I headed into Portland to watch the Blazer's annual Fan Fest. Not to necessarily enjoy the festivities, or autographs, or even to watch a good scrimmage. Personally, I was more interested to observe the players and their development after this last offseason. Specifically, I wanted to watch Lamarcus. I walked into the arena, took one look to the court, and spotted the guy in a second. He's huge. He will no longer be considered "Stretch" Aldridge. He has the size of a center. But again, couldn't be sold yet because as we've seen with him, looks just haven't proven anything. Obviously, this was just a scrimmage, but every Blazer out there was out to prove a point to everyone there. Aldridge has a big chip on his shoulder, and he showed it. He was everywhere on the court yesterday; did not-stop-moving!!! He was constantly shifting his weight on defenders, and attacking the hoop. What was most pleasing, was seeing him not only go inside, but mix it up with his shooting outside.

Portland, for what it's worth coming from me, Lamarcus Aldridge is hungry. Lamarcus aldridge is pissed off. And most of all, Lamarcus Aldridge is ready.

Well done, Portland.