Since his rookie campaign Jerryd Bayless has demonstrated the ability to score, if not consistently, at least in impressive torrents. Who will forget his 29 point performance against Phoenix last year, let alone his 31 against the Spurs a week later? Outside of Brandon Roy the Blazers haven't had anyone with such potential to make opponents instantly miserable. When Bayless was driving and drawing fouls and hitting the pull-up he was nigh unstoppable. Sadly, those superstar-level nights were scattered too thinly, even for a second-year player. Once Roy returned from injury last year double digits turned into three, four, or six point offerings. Clearly fielding another backcourt player who needed the ball and shots in order to succeed was not high on Portland's to-do list. Roy had the captain's chair, Andre Miller had more experience. With a full, healthy roster Bayless was going to lose minutes, touches, and shots to both of those players. It didn't end there either. If you're tallying Blazers whose offensive games need to be explored better (as Bayless' certainly does) count in LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum, and Greg Oden at minimum. For various reasons, all three of those players came higher on the priority list than Jerryd. This is what the "Free Bayless" crowd missed. Bayless had clearance but he was also taxiing a runway with multiple flights scheduled ahead of him for takeoff. Which of the five players just mentioned should the Blazers pull out of line to accommodate Jerryd's take-off?
The magic solution to this scoring conundrum was Bayless becoming more of a true point guard. It's no accident that the team forecast all of his minutes to come at that position, nor that they bolstered the off-guard position in spite of his presence. It was no accident that, when pressed, Jerryd himself claimed he wanted to run the point and be thought of as a helmsman rather than a gunner. If he could be penciled in as Portland's long-term point guard Bayless would only need to wait out Andre Miller's contract to claim all of the playing time he could handle. One more year of understudy and the lead would have been his.
Bayless had not been completely comfortable at the point heretofore. Neither had he failed abjectly. He went through most of the bumps and bruises any converted point guard encounters. At first he only saw the rim. Then he only saw the floor when he was on the drive. He was never smooth with the simple entry pass. He was only brilliant on the drive. He didn't like the catch-and-shoot. Throughout last season he worked on those skills. He became adequate, at times quite good, with his stand-still jumper. He started discovering more angles off of those same drives, recognizing cutters and opportunities. Much of the time, though, he still looked lost, or at least wasted (in terms of his skills) when playing point. He also had trouble defending without fouling, his impressive body becoming a liability as much as an asset.
