Baseline Talk: McMillan Disappointed In Blazers' Sluggish Start

The Trail Blazers were hoping to take the next step this season toward becoming a team that could challenge the Lakers and Spurs in the West. But Portland has gotten off to a 2-3 start, and coach Nate McMillan is upset with his team’s effort.

"We are not playing as hard as we need to to win," McMillan told The Oregonian. "To win games in this league, you have to work, and that's not something I've had to say to this group in the last couple of years. This team … that was just a known that we were going to get that (effort)."

Point guard Andre Miller(notes), who joined the team in the offseason, also has gotten off to a bad start (31.6 percent from the field), but he says things will work out in time as the Blazers learn to play at a faster pace. …

Suns point guard Steve Nash(notes) is already logging plenty of minutes — he's only had one game so far in which he's played fewer than 37. But Nash, 35, says he isn't worried about his durability.

"I take care of myself and prepare to play all summer," Nash told The Arizona Republic. "I'm not out playing golf or drinking. I feel like I can handle it."

Suns coach Alvin Gentry, who has Nash and 37-year-old Grant Hill(notes) sit out of some practices, said he'll start looking at Nash's minutes "when they put an X by our name in the paper that says, 'clinched playoffs.' I'm not going to sit him an extra three minutes and risk us losing a game." …

Lakers coach Phil Jackson said PF Pau Gasol(notes) went through a "pretty good workout" Tuesday, and the team doesn't expect his injured hamstring to keep him out much longer, the Los Angeles Times reported.
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