‘Shareef has to go’
Agent says Abdur-Rahim is looking for a trade that will get him more playing time
By KERRY EGGERS Issue date: Fri, Jun 11, 2004
The Tribune
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Shareef Abdur-Rahim isn’t asking for a trade, and he doesn’t want to come off like he is.
“I don’t necessarily want to be traded,” the Trail Blazer forward says. “It’s not like, ‘Get me out of Portland.’
“But from the rumors and everything I hear, I think I probably will be traded.”
Abdur-Rahim’s agent isn’t so diplomatic.
“We are absolutely asking for a trade,” says Aaron Goodwin, who also represents LeBron James, Gary Payton and Damon Stoudamire, among others. “Shareef doesn’t have the opportunity to play in Portland. He didn’t ask to come to Portland to sit on the bench. Portland did that to him.
“I have great respect for (Blazer President) Steve Patterson and (General Manager) John Nash. I think they will oblige our request. If they don’t, it becomes an ugly situation, because Shareef doesn’t return to Portland.”
Is Goodwin saying Abdur-Rahim wouldn’t report to training camp in October?
“Yes, I am,” he says.
After arriving via trade in midseason, the 6-9 Abdur-Rahim mostly came off the bench, because Zach Randolph kept his starting job. It was a comedown for Abdur-Rahim, who averaged 20.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in his first seven NBA seasons with Vancouver and Atlanta. But he handled it like a pro, causing no problems for coach Maurice Cheeks while doing his best to fit in and contribute.
The Blazers almost surely will trade Randolph, 22, or Abdur-Rahim, 27, before next season. Goodwin is relatively certain it will be his client, who is due $14.6 million in the final year of his contract.
“Zach is Cheeks’ guy, and I respect that,” Goodwin says. “I like Zach. He works hard and is a good player. So Shareef has to go. I saw the pain he went through after the trade last year. No way he goes back to that. It’s in everybody’s best interests to move Shareef. There is no sense going down a path that would be detrimental to Shareef and the Blazers.”
Nash has acknowledged an interest in trading Abdur-Rahim but says the club won’t get serious in pursuing a deal until after the June 24 draft.

A different role

Abdur-Rahim, a gentleman who has been popular with teammates and fans during his short time here, admits to mixed emotions. As an established player just beginning his peak years in the league, he is in an uncomfortable situation. Coming off the bench is not a good career move. But he says he has enjoyed his time in Portland and the late-season run that nearly produced a playoff berth for the first time in his career.
“I didn’t live up to the statistics I had put up through my career, because I was in a different role,” Abdur-Rahim says. “But it wasn’t pointless. My teammates were cool. Coach Cheeks is a good guy. I was able to contribute. I was an asset to the team. The fans made my transition a lot easier. They really supported Theo Ratliff and me, and of course, Dan Dickau, with him coming back home to Portland. It made me feel like I was wanted.
“And the run at the playoffs, I enjoyed that. I would much rather play meaningful games at the end of a season than be on a bad team. I wasn’t at my most comfortable spot, but that is part of being in a group sometimes.”
In an end-of-the-season meeting with Nash, Abdur-Rahim voiced his concerns.
“I explained at my age, my preference would be to play more,” Abdur-Rahim says. “He said the team was going to try to add some things this summer, but I didn’t take it as him saying I necessarily was going to be the one traded. Still, I left the meeting feeling like if things were to happen, I would be one of the guys involved.”
Is it possible to play another season with both Randolph and Abdur-Rahim? Could there be a lineup where both of them were to start or play major minutes?
“I don’t know,” Abdur-Rahim says. “Somebody is probably going to be frustrated. Last year, it took a small toll on Zach when his minutes were cut a little, and it took a pretty good toll on my game. And Dale Davis was scratching for minutes, too, so things were pretty crowded.
“I know I could handle it. I learned some things about myself last year. You have to adjust sometimes to things that happen. You have to be flexible and cope with situations. I learned I could do that.”

Civic duty

Abdur-Rahim has divided time since the end of the season between his home in Atlanta and an offseason residence in Bestin, Fla. His wife, Dee, is expecting their second child, a girl, in about a month. Their son, Jabri, is 2.
Last Thursday was the grand opening of a community center in Atlanta financed by Abdur-Rahim’s Future Foundation. The mayor and prominent local businessmen were on hand, along with Shareef’s sister, Qaadirah, program director for the foundation.
“It’s a learning center for at-risk youths located in East Point, the part of Atlanta where I grew up,” he says. “It’s a chance for kids to get help with their studies and homework, a place for them to go for a lot of things. Eventually, we plan to have adult literacy classes there.
“There was nothing like that for kids when I grew up,” Abdur-Rahim says. “I wanted the kids in Atlanta today to have that opportunity.”


http://www.portlandtribune.com/archview.cgi?id=24752

I know some people on this forum are anti-Shareef. However, unlike most players on the current Knicks roster, he's been very consistent throughout his career.

I can't speak of him as a defensive presence, but his numbers and consistency speak for themselves:

20.1ppg/8.2rpg/2.8apg/46.6 FG %... what's promising is that he has a true post game, and his assist totals suggest that he has some passing skills.

But yeah... I dunno. It's interesting that my opinion of Rasheed Wallace has changed so much since watching him a bit in the playoffs. Now you kind of understand why his size and all around game are so useful...

I would trade for him only to forward him to another team for draft picks or someone else. Marbury-Houston-TT-Rahim-Muhammad would be horrible defensivley.

Posted by raven:

imo reef is better than anything we have inside right now.

I shall second that

sorry guys. defense is a mindset above all. Take a good coach who put emphasis on D, and with a no name group, you'll get great success.