Here's an article I found on blazerfans.com, off of
CBS sportsline! I have a much higher opinion of this
Davis guy (he thinks Portland should've beaten LA last
year... and he's RIGHT!)

Blazers' Davis eager for rematch with 'beatable'
Lakers
SportsLine.com wire reports


PORTLAND, Ore. -- Dale Davis, still bugged about
losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals, is
eager to play Shaquille O'Neal and company more often
as a Portland Trail Blazer.

Davis, traded from Indiana to Portland for Jermaine
O'Neal and Joe Kleine last week, said the world
champions "definitely" are beatable, and the suddenly
muscular Trail Blazers could be the team to do it.

"They should have been beat by Portland last year,"
Davis said of Game 7 in the Western Conference finals,
in which the Blazers blew a 15-point lead early in the
fourth quarter.

Of the Pacers' six-game loss in the title series,
Davis said, "I'm still kind of upset. I still have a
nasty taste in my mouth, so just to have the
opportunity to play again and try to beat those guys,
trust me: I'm going 110 percent."

The Lakers and Blazers play the first of their four
regular-season games on Oct. 31, the season opener, at
the Rose Garden.

It's no secret the Blazers built their offseason
strategy around stopping O'Neal, who averaged 25.9
points and 12.4 rebounds in the conference finals.

"I think one thing that's a plus here is that we've
got a lot of guys to throw at him," Davis said.

The 6-foot-11 Davis joins a front line that already
has 7-3 center Arvydas Sabonis, 6-11 forward Rasheed
Wallace and 6-10 Shawn Kemp, acquired from Cleveland
the day before the Davis trade.

"Obviously our biggest challenge is going to be from a
minutes standpoint," Blazers coach Mike Dunleavy said.
"The last time I counted, there's only 96 minutes
(between the two forward spots) for four guys, but the
bottom line is, everybody's going to have to sacrifice
for the opportunity to win a championship."

Against the Lakers and other teams with a Kobe
Bryant-sized point guard, the Blazers could sit Damon
Stoudamire and put small forward Scottie Pippen at the
point, keep Steve Smith at shooting guard, and rotate
the big men up front. Otherwise, Davis see his playing
time reduced, which he said is fine.

"I don't mind sharing time," he said. "Everyone's
going to have to make sacrifices, and that's what
being a professional is all about."

Davis, 31, played the first nine seasons of his career
for the Pacers, and was unhappy with a two-year, $19.1
million extension he signed. He is due to make $21
million over the next three years, far below what he
thought he deserved.

When discussions about a trade came up, Davis' short
list included the New York Knicks, Miami Heat and
Dallas Mavericks. Portland was there too, but he
thought it was a long shot.

"This is a team that I would have loved to have been
on, and just to get the opportunity is definitely
great," he said. "It was a surprise, but I'm more
happy than anybody."

Davis, who averaged 10 points and 9.9 rebounds last
season, said he's eager to play in the more wide-open
style of the West.

"I feel like I can run, especially playing the five
(center) spot," he said. "I can get up and down and
beat some of the centers. Out West is somewhere that I
always wanted to play before I gave this game up."

Davis will wear No. 34 for the Blazers, the same
number he had at Clemson. He wore No. 32 with the
Pacers because 34 belonged to Mel Daniels and was
retired. In Portland, Bill Walton's No. 32 is retired.


A long list of Blazers have worn No. 34, the last of
which was Isaiah Rider.





__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Send instant messages & get email alerts with Yahoo! Messenger.
http://im.yahoo.com/