An early return for Roy? Blazer star wants in on the preseason

'I don't want to miss anything,' for chemistry's sake, he says

By Kerry Eggers

The Portland Tribune, Sep 29, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (1 Reader comment)

Brandon Roy, making a move past Phoenix's Grant Hill last season, says he hopes to answer the preseason bell for the Blazers, despite Aug. 14 knee surgery.

JONATHAN FERREY / GETTY IMAGES

A week ago, coach Nate McMillan said he intended to keep Brandon Roy out of all but a couple of the Trail Blazers’ preseason games.

Now, maybe not.

Portland’s all-star shooting guard, recuperating from Aug. 14 arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, says he understands that McMillan wants to ease him back into action, along with giving rookie Rudy Fernandez plenty of time in the preseason.

But Roy wants regular duty in the non-counters, too.

“I think (McMillan’s plan) has changed a little bit,” Roy said Monday during media day at the Rose Garden. “Rudy will get his reps, but I’ll get mine, too. We have a lot of new guys, and we need to get that chemistry as fast as we can. It’s important that I play alongside Greg (Oden), LaMarcus (Aldridge) and Rudy.

“I want to play all the preseason games. I don’t know how many minutes I’ll play in the games, but I definitely want to play in the preseason. I don’t want to use the regular season to get in shape. I want to be in there from the start. It’s important that I get a lot of reps.”

After sitting out a full month following surgery, Roy returned to action last week, taking part in informal five-on-five pickup games at the Blazers’ training facility on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

“I felt comfortable after my first couple of times down and back,” Roy says. “Afterward, there was no soreness, no swelling. I’d say (the knee) felt 95 to 100 percent, though the intensity level is not as high as in practice or games. I’ll continue to ice a lot and do the best I can to treat the knee.

“I don’t want to miss anything. I want to be there for the first day of practice. I want to be there for the first preseason game. It’s important that I’m out there and Greg’s out there. We had surgeries, but we’re doing better, and we’re trying to get back on the court as soon as possible.”

Roy says the plan is for him to take part in the morning practices and to sit out evening sessions during the opening week of training camp.

“I’m sure we’ll still have to monitor my minutes,” he says. “I want to do all the live drills, though. I’m just excited the recovery has been pretty fast.”

• Like most Blazer fans, Roy says everything is different with this year’s team.

“Our first two seasons, it was like, ‘They’re young, there’s room to grow,’ " he says. “But it doesn’t feel that way this year. We have the pieces we need to be successful right now. Some people may say that’s a lot of pressure, but this is the NBA. That’s why we play this game.

“You look around our locker room, we have a bunch of talent. I feel like we can play against anybody, anywhere now. The goal is to make the playoffs. Last year, we dreamed that, but we didn’t know how realistic that was. This year, we feel like it’s a realistic goal.”

When it is suggested that the 2008-09 Blazers remain one of the youngest teams in the NBA, Roy nods.

“But we’re not going to use that at all this year,” he says. “We’re young in age, but not in experience anymore. We have some years under our belt now. Our team is much deeper now, too. Expectations are going to be high for us this year. We’re going to approach it that way.

“In the past, we didn’t have the attitude in the locker room we have now. We’re looking forward to playing the Lakers or San Antonio. We have a good team that can give those teams a run. We no longer want to play those teams well. We want to win those games.

“It’s exciting. I love to see the way guys have matured over the past season and how they’re approaching this coming season.”

• Roy has big expectations, too, for Oden, the rookie center who is coming back off microfracture knee surgery that caused him to miss all of last season.

“There’s no question in my mind, he could be one of the best big men in this league soon,” the Blazer captain says. “I’ve seen what big men do to make their teams better. In workouts, he has all that. He’s strong; he just wears on guys with his physical strength. He’s smart. He knows how to play the game. He knows when to clog up the paint. He knows when to run the floor. I’ve never played with a big man like him. It’s exciting for me to be on the floor with him.

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