History of The Portland Trail Blazers - Mighty Mouse

Mighty Mouse

In addition to Dunleavy, the 1997–98 campaign saw two other important new faces: forward Brian Grant who was signed as a free agent in the off-season, and guard Damon Stoudamire, who was acquired in a mid-season trade with the Toronto Raptors. In his first NBA seasons with Toronto, the Portland native won Rookie of the Year honors and posted All-Star quality numbers for the Raptors, and reminded many of a young Isiah Thomas. Many expected that "Mighty Mouse" would become the franchise player the team had lacked since Drexler left.

The Blazers finally seemed to jell in 1998-99 (a lockout-shortened season). The team finished with the second best record in the Western Conference, posting a 35–15 record. The Blazers eliminated Phoenix and Utah in the playoffs before being swept by the eventual champions, the San Antonio Spurs. In the 1999 off-season, Rider was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for sharp-shooting guard Steve Smith. Second, the Blazers traded a collection of bench players to Houston for Scottie Pippen. It was widely believed that these players would lead Portland to a return to glory.

Led by Stoudamire, Smith, Pippen, Wallace, Sabonis and sixth man Grant, the Blazers finished with the second-best record in the league, behind only the Lakers. They returned to the Western Conference finals, where they played against the Lakers. The Lakers, led on the floor by Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal and coached by Phil Jackson, split the first two games in Los Angeles with the Blazers. The Lakers then took two straight from the Blazers in Portland. The Blazers then came back to win Games 5 and 6. The Blazers were leading by 15 points in the fourth quarter of Game 7 at Los Angeles, before the Lakers came back and won the series in a 4th-quarter rally reminiscent of Game 6 against the Bulls almost ten years ago. The Lakers went on to win the first of three consecutive NBA titles with Shaq, Kobe, and Jackson at the helm.