The Blazers are undergoing a pretty major retool and when that happens, you often need cheap parts around the edges.
Enter Ronnie Price. The Blazers announced they had signed the veteran guard Wednesday night after GM Neil Olshey confirmed the signing to reporters. From Blazers Edge:
We're going to sign a point guard later today," Olshey said. "Just a minimum player that is going to flesh out our backcourt. We think he's going to be a nice addition."
It didn't take much prodding for Olshey to reveal the identity of his expected addition.
"Ronnie Price," he said. "Ronnie's on his way to Portland, he's doing a physical today, hopefully everything goes well there. He'll join the backcourt. He's very close to Damian [Lillard]. They work out together in the summer. He and Wes [Matthews] played together. He's a totally different look than what Damian and Nolan [Smith] bring to the table and I think he'll really complement those guys."
via Blazers Announce Signing Of UFA G Ronnie Price - Blazer*s Edge.
Price averaged 9 points and 5 assists in 36 games for Phoenix last season. At 29 he's still got several good years in front of him and can give he kids on the Blazers a solid set of rules on how to play the NBA game.
It's not a needle-mover, but it's also not a waste of money, either.
