Whether it was the Tryptophan in the turkey, the 5AM shopping spree on “Black Friday” or the fact that I haven’t been able to sleep in 3 days, I’m not really sure, but the simple fact of the matter is that I’m exhausted.

Like most people, I spent yesterday at my grandparents house working my way down to the bottom of 10 pounds of mashed potatoes and gravy. Brett Favre handled the Detroit Lions, the Cowboys knocked off the Jets, and right about the time I was waking up from my food-induced coma, John David Booty led the USC Trojans past the Arizona State Sun Devils.

It was quite a night.

That is, until my grandpa dropped the annual “What’s wrong with the Trail Blazers?” question.

Being as it is, I should have at least some kind of a prepared response for the question, and in previous years, I’ve been all over it. First, we had Rasheed Wallace’s instability on the floor. Then, problems at the point guard with Sebastian Telfair. But what’s up now?

We’ve got a steady veteran point guard, two young stars in the making, and a whole slew of complimentary players that have flashed greatness. They’ve beaten some of the best teams in the league and, to be honest, Portland remains everyone’s chic pick for the “Next” dynasty.

And then it hit me…

Teams are starting to prepare for us. Teams are afraid of us.

The growing sentiment that “You better beat them now, because in a few years, you won’t be beating them” has quickly become a reality.

Brandon Roy is seeing 2 and 3 defenders. Teams are attacking and trying to force LaMarcus Aldridge into foul trouble. Travis Outlaw, Martell Webster and Jarrett Jack have been extremely streaky but have learned that part of playing good NBA basketball is affecting the game even without scoring.

And there’s that former #1 pick that seems to be missing from the Trail Blazers front line.

But the promise and the direction of the team is positive. As Richard Nixon once said, “You must never be satisfied with losing. You must get angry, terribly angry, about losing. But the mark of the good loser is that he takes his anger out on himself and not his victorious opponents or on his teammates.”

Don’t expect the Trail Blazers to make excuses, because you won’t hear any. Just get ready to grow with a great team and be thankful that you’re not a Kings fan!

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