I found this article and, when I read the take onBrandon Roy, I really had to stop and think for a second about just how valid this writer's thoughts may be.http://www.hoopchill.com/2009/07/top-10-nba-players.html. And if the writer is correct, what are realistic expectations for this team this season when relying on the growth of LMA, Oden, Bayless, Rudy, Batum, and Martel?

Frankly, I love this team. They play with great heart and they play very hard. But aside from Roy, there is no consistent presence in the 10-deep. LMA is an awesome talent but he is very inconsistent. Batum is still a few years away from being what most of us think he can be and Blake is serviceable at best. This writer vastly underrates Joel but still, as great as Joel is defensively, his offense is putbacks for the most part.

Rudy and Travis are unknowns most nights. They can be great or they can be invisible. And Greg understandibly struggled mightily last season.

When taking all that into account, no matter what the upside may or may not be of some of the kids on this team, what Portland accomplished last season really falls back on Roy and on Nate. There just isn't really any other way to look at it. Of course on nights where LMA played closer to his ability level and when Rudy or Travis contributed at a rate closer to their true ability level Portland won easily. But that wouldn't get this team 54 wins if not for the remarkable abilities of Roy.

I know many here knock his defense but maybe they don't see what I see at crunch time. I remember Carmelo getting rejected by Roy to seal a game in 08-09 season and I remember several other one-on-one defensive plays by Roy at the end of games to seal victories. NBA is about "team" defense because no player can be stopped one-on-one for more than a possession here and there. As long as the point gaurd defense is weak, Portland will struggle in the playoffs because of breakdowns of their defense.

The more I think about it the more I tend to agree with the writer's sentiments of just how great Roy is in elevating this team to those heightsbeforeLMA completely arrives andbeforethe emergence of Oden and/or Bayless as a true force.