Blazers Announce Training Camp Roster
The Blazers have announced the roster for training camp, which begins Monday, and the most interesting name on the list is that of Patrick Mills. Here’s the release from the team:
TRAIL BLAZERS ANNOUNCE TRAINING CAMP ROSTER
Training camp starts Monday, five players expected to be added
PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Trail Blazers have announced their 2010-11 training camp roster with the expected additions of Dwight Lewis, Patrick Mills, Raymond Sykes, Seth Tarver and Eric Williams, it was announced today by General Manager Rich Cho.
Portland will tip-off its 41st training camp Monday with media day, followed by practice Tuesday morning.
The 2010-11 Trail Blazers return 12 players from a team that won 50 games and reached the playoffs for a second straight season. The lineup is bolstered by the additions of swingman Wesley Matthews and three rookies – Luke Babbitt, Armon Johnson and Elliot Williams – who were selected in the 2010 NBA Draft and figure to compete for playing time this season.
In four seasons at USC from 2006-10, Lewis (Guard, 6-5, 215) averaged 11.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 30.6 minutes. The Metairie, La., native posted career highs of 14.4 points and 3.3 rebounds in leading the Trojans to the second round of the NCAA Tournament as a junior in 2008-09.
A Trail Blazer during the 2009-10 season, Mills (Guard, 6-0, 175) posted averages of 2.6 points, 0.2 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 3.8 minutes in 10 games. Portland selected Mills with the 55th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft out of St. Mary’s (CA), where he was named to the All-West Coast Conference First Team in each of his two seasons.
Sykes (Forward, 6-9, 220) played 47 games last season for Sioux Falls of the NBA Development League, where he averaged 10.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 23.9 minutes. A native of Jacksonville, Fla., Sykes played his college ball at Clemson, notching averages of 4.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 15.5 minutes in 102 games over three seasons from 2006-09.
The Pac-10’s Defensive Player of the Year last year, Tarver (Guard, 6-5, 210) played four seasons at Oregon State from 2006-10. The Portland native and Jesuit High School graduate posted career averages of 7.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.38 steals and 25.8 minutes in 128 games for the Beavers.
Williams (Center, 6-9, 280) spent last season with Pesaro of the Italy-SerieA league, where he averaged 14.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 26.7 minutes in 24 contests. He was a third-team All-ACC selection in his senior year at Wake Forest, where he posted career averages of 13.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 26.8 minutes in 129 games from 2002-06.
Single game tickets for the 2010-11 NBA season go on sale Monday at 12-noon online at trailblazers.com.
For Mills, the decision to come to camp with Portland is a curious one, because the Blazers have 15 players under contract. He could have signed with a team overseas, or likely could have signed with an NBA team that has an opening on the roster. Apparently, Mills is confident he can beat out one of the players under contract, or he thinks being in Portland is the best way to get noticed by another club.
— Greg Jayne
