I did think I was going to be traded the whole time leading up to the trade deadline, and then I come to find out that Gerald gets traded. So I’m like, OK, there are three hours left in the deadline, they’re going to make some more moves. Then Marcus gets traded. Then I get a call from Chad Buchanan (Blazers Interim GM), saying we didn’t want to trade you, that the opt-out was the thing that had us nervous, because they didn’t know if I did leave, would they get something in return, but we talked about it and worked it out. And then 30 minutes later, I hear Nate McMillan’s fired. And then I’m like wow, this is crazy. Greg Oden’s released, Chris Johnson’s waived, and all of this was in the same day. It was unbelievable. ... But I would’ve bet you my last dollar that I was gonna be traded, because that’s what all the reports were saying, so I had no idea. But the craziest thing of all is saying me and Raymond Felton were leading a mutiny against Coach McMillan. First off, I have a different type of respect for Nate McMillan, and I told him that when we talked in his office before the season first started. I was like it’s weird being here with you because I watched you growing up in Seattle. When I was a 16-year-old kid I used to go work out with the Sonics. I’ve known Nate since I was 16, and we have a mutual friend who just passed away last year, who told me I would be playing in Portland next season. So besides my respect for Nate, I don’t play that game let’s get the Coach fired; I’ve never been that guy. I pride myself on being a true pro. I’ll start, I’ll come off the bench, I’ll play the one, I’ll play the two, I’ll do whatever’s asked and I’ll do my very best. When we’re losing, I don’t throw anybody under the bus. We win as a team, we lose as a team, that’s just a fact.
