Sports Column

Playoffs all Roy lacks to join elite

On Sports

By kerry eggers

The Portland Tribune, Dec 23, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (4 Reader comments)

Brandon Roy says he doesn't deserve the same status yet as playoff-tested NBA guards such as Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade.

L.E. BASKOW / THE PORTLAND TRIBUNE

A couple of decades ago, Trail Blazer fans were treated to the blossoming of one of basketball’s great talents in Clyde Drexler.

Look out, because the city appears to have a second coming in Brandon Roy.

In his third NBA season, the 6-5 shooting guard is climbing into a hallowed stratosphere reached only by the game’s greatest perimeter stars – players such as Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Steve Nash.

Roy, 24, isn’t quite there yet. And he is the first to point out he doesn’t deserve the acclaim reserved for the very best, if only because he hasn’t yet experienced the postseason.

“Honestly, I’d say no,” Roy says when asked if he should be mentioned in the same breath with the game’s elite. “I haven’t played in the playoffs. They’ve earned that respect for a reason. I’ve been home watching them – guys like Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant – (in the playoffs) for years.

“I want to be in that category, and I’m going to continue to work to be there, but I can’t say I’m there yet. Hopefully, one day I can say, ‘Yeah, I’m right there with those guys.’ ”

Roy has been on the roll of his career. On Tuesday – playing on a sore knee that was drained before the game and with a splint protecting a torn tendon in his right pinky finger – he had 29 points in 31 minutes versus Sacramento.

Another point would have meant four consecutive 30-point games, last achieved by Drexler in November 1991.

1 | 2 Next Page >>

Facebook	Digg	Del.icio.us
Newsvine	Stumbleupon	Reddit