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It's time to figure out what to do with Blazers By Don Hunt Now that the Portland Trail Blazers have done everyone a big favor by bowing out of the NBA playoffs as quickly as possible, it's time to give a hard look at what went wrong. And what the future holds. The Blazers aren't the first professional team to collapse at the end of a season like a wind-blown tent. But given their talent - six former All-Stars, four Olympians and seven lottery selections - their sudden demise is hard to explain. How is it that a team with the best record in the Western Conference on March 6 - 42-18 - could lose 17 of its final 25 games, including the three recent blowout losses to the Los Angeles Lakers? How is it that a team with essentially the same core players from last season, when Portland squandered a 15-point, fourth-period lead in a Game 7 loss to the Lakers in the Western Conference finals, could be so dreadful one year later? There are no easy answers and no quick fixes. But in descending order of significance, here's one man's opinion of their woes: Rasheed Wallace's temper. Only in the NBA could anyone get away with his antics: a record 42 technical fouls this season, including seven ejections, and 80 T's over the past two years. Wallace is indisputably Portland's best player and one of the top 10 players in the NBA. But he has a tough time hitting his turnaround jumper from the locker room following yet another heave-ho. As inexcusable as his outbursts are, even more unforgiving was the incident in which he threw a towel in the face of teammate Arvydas Sabonis during a regular-season game against the Lakers on April 15. Sabonis' crime? He had accidentally hit Wallace in the face with the back of his hand after being shoved by Shaquille O'Neal. If you were watching that game, you noticed that several minutes had gone by between the time Sabonis inadvertently hit Wallace and when Wallace retaliated. Time enough for most people to calm down and let such a harmless event pass. Troubling, too, was management's apparent indifference to Wallace's temper tantrums. Oh sure, we heard over and over how coach Mike Dunleavy had talked to, pleaded with and insisted that his behavior improve, and yet it never did. What Wallace needs is what any impulsive, ill-mannered, out-of-control person needs: consequences for their actions. If management told Wallace he would be suspended one game for every ejection - without pay - from here on out, would he drop an "F" bomb on the next official that made a call he didn't like? Like many abusive individuals, Wallace sees himself as the victim. If only the officials wouldn't make these bad calls, if only the press wouldn't blow things out of proportion, if only Sabonis' hadn't clubbed him in the face ... Despite his problems, the Blazers shouldn't give up on Wallace just yet. He's the best power forward in the game, he's improved during each of his six seasons in the NBA and, from all accounts, he's a hard worker in practice and not a bad guy off the court What Wallace really needs is some anger management sessions with a counselor or psychologist to help him conquer his demons. Ill-advised trades. Give general manager Bob Whitsitt credit for not being afraid to pull the trade trigger - no team can stand pat and expect to win a championship - but his wheeling and dealing over the past year backfired. Acquiring an overweight, past-his-prime Shawn Kemp in a three-way deal that sent Brian Grant to Miami was the worst mistake. Grant wanted out of Portland because he knew he would continue to back up Wallace at power forward, but Whitsitt should have known better than to obtain Kemp, now in drug rehabilitation for cocaine abuse. Trading Jermaine O'Neal for Dale Davis has also proved to be a blunder. Davis is an adequate backup to Sabonis or Wallace, but at a slender 6-foot-10, he can't guard the physical centers in the NBA and his offensive skills leave a lot to be desired. O'Neal, meanwhile, has blossomed since taking over at center for the Pacers; he had 16 points and 24 rebounds in a recent playoff game. Finally, acquiring Rod Strickland late in the season did nothing but rankle some of the veterans. Strickland is another player with issues - three drunk-driving arrests in as many years - and his arrival corresponded with the Blazers' late-season collapse. Strickland isn't as talented as either of the other two Blazer point guards - Damon Stoudamire and Greg Anthony - and logged only 16 minutes in Portland's three playoff games. No leader. With his six championship rings, Scottie Pippen would be the logical candidate to lead but never seemed to want the role. He complained after Game 1 of the Blazer-Laker series that he wasn't getting the ball enough. An assistant coach went through the video and found that Pippen had touched the ball 41 times in his 40 minutes on the court. Leader or not, Pippen is a shell of his former self. His smothering defense used to be his calling card, but Kobe Bryant routinely beat him off the dribble in the just-completed series. Pippen can still occasionally slash to the basket and score, but his reputation as a clutch, long-range shooter has vanished. He was just 3-for-17 from the 3-point line against the Lakers. Age. Sabonis is 36, Pippen 35, Strickland 34, Anthony 33 and Davis, Steve Smith and Stacy Augmon all 32. Kemp is 31, going on 60. Detlef Schrempf, a late-season pickup, is 38. The Blazers were able to crank up their running game this season with Stoudamire, Wallace and Bonzi Wells on the floor, but once Wells went down with a torn anterior cruciate ligament late in the season, the fastbreak baskets began to dwindle. And with a half-court offense that features little movement, the Blazers struggled when opponents double-teamed Wallace and kept Stoudamire from penetrating. If Whitsitt and owner Paul Allen learned anything from this season, it's that too much talent can be a bad thing. So what now? How much of the house needs cleaning? Like it or not, Dunleavy will probably be the first to go. He did a credible job in his four seasons as the head man, but when you're the coach of the deepest team in NBA history and you lose in the first round of the playoffs, you're toast. As for the players, Stoudamire, Wells and possibly Wallace are the only ones on safe ground. It's going to be an interesting off-season, to say the least. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.