If the Blazers would have hired Terry Porter, rather than Nate McMillan, as their next coach, I'm pretty sure that Diane Linn would have been spared her latest embarrassment.
Ironically, the Blazers' problems are not all that unlike the Fantastic Four "Women of Hawthorne" on the Multnomah County Commission. Both are seen as out of touch with their fans (voters); both are perceived as arrogant, and both have had one after another public relations nightmares, self inflicted.
Which is why I think the Blazers made a mistake in passing up Porter in favor of McMillan. I'm sure McMillan is a terrific coach, a disciplinarian, and all that. But it misses the point.
What is the Blazers' biggest problem? I think it is that the people of Portland have fallen out of love with them. Too many bad characters, too many underachieving teams. Still, Portland will give the team another chance - heck, it is begging to fall back in love with the team, if only given a reason.
So why hire Seattle's favorite son when Portland's favorite son is ready to come back?
Hire Porter and many of those disaffected fans who are disgusted by the antics the last few years will instantly give the team another look. Sure, he'd still have to keep his players out of jail and out of the gossip columns, and he'd have to win more games than the team has in recent years.
But Porter can obviously coach. His Milwaukie teams overachieved both years he was there.
I hope for the best for McMullin, but I can't help but think that the Blazers once again made a mistake.
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