There, I said it.  Somehow, glorious or inglorious, I believe it.

You know why?  Because I am a 56 year, silver haired intellectual, the mother of two college-aged daughters, married for nearly a quarter of a century, and these words came out of my mouth at the breakfast table this morning:

“OOOOOO!  I want Tyler Hanbrough!”

You see, despite all reason, despite years of embarrassment, the Blazers have won our hearts and, collectively, our love can help carry them to the NBA title.

I don’t say this to be funny or to be profound.  Teams can float in a force field of love – the kind of love that doesn’t let them down when they are pushed out in the first round by the burly and punch-happy Houston Rockets. It’s the kind of love we all long for, the kind of mother love that grounds a truly functional family, the tough (and wise) love that says, “Don’t waste time feeling sorry for yourself – what did you learn from failing this time around and how are you going to go be better next time?”  This is not your Kobe Bryant approach to winning basketball games.  It’s more LeBron James style.

Whether the Blazers get Tyler Hansbrough with their 24th pick in the first round – or not – isn’t the point.  The point is that the Oregonian’s sports page one story this morning is about the pop-eyed North Carolina star, part of yesterday’s pre-draft workout that Blazer officials called “the best top-to-bottom collection of prospects the organization has seen this post season”.  Hansbrough made the headline, Hansbrough was the single focus of the above-the-fold photo.  Which says to me:  the Blazers pretty much are in love with him.  And so am I.

Because I watched him play through his four years at North Carolina – one of the most successful college players in history.  Tyler Hansbrough is known for his work ethic, even more than he’s known for his extraordinary stats. He’s one more Brandon Roy.  And another LaMarcus, and more Rudy.  More of the same:  Athletic, intense, hardworking young men – the type you want your young adult daughter to bring home someday to the dinner table.  The type of young men we can all love, and be proud of.  I am thrilled the Blazer organization is looking for the kind of toughness that comes from passion and intelligence and character and dedication.

Remember the Lakers game when Ariza “took out” Fernandez under the basket?  Remember watching Rudy cartwheel and land in a heap and the sick feeling in that moment when you realized that happened on purpose? I don’t ever want to watch someone in a Blazer uniform “take out” an opponent. I don’t want the ethical dilemmas that confront Lakers fans or Rockets fans every day:  That type of toughness comes with a price, a price to the players – and a price to the city that embraces and celebrates a competitive culture that’s spun out of control.

We’ve turned that corner here in Portland.  We’re on a meteor-ride out of the ashes of the past, because we all  learned together that toughness doesn’t mean law-breaking, or bragging, or pit bulls in the garage. We picked ourselves up, dusted ourselves off and answered the question, “What did we learn from that?”

So, Tyler Hansbrough?  Bring him on.  He’s the kind of kid any mother would love.

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