Jason Quick of the Oregonian reports that Damon Stoudamire may be playing himself back into the Blazers good graces.

After another rumor-filled summer where Damon has reportedly been mentioned in trades to the Timberwolves, Knicks and Cavaliers, the point guard waiver between wanting out of Portland and wanting to prove he can beat recently acquired Jeff McInnis for the starting job. I'm tired of listening to all of this stuff," Stoudamire said during the weekend. "It's not a bad thing, but it's something that has really motivated me. I'm really looking forward to having a big year. If it's here in Portland, it's here in Portland. If it's somewhere else, it's somewhere else. But I'm looking forward to having a big year."

In a scrimmage against Team USA on Saturday, Stoudamire was impressive. Considering he was matched up against Andre Miller, he was very impressive. "I tell you what, they might not want to trade me," Stoudamire said, laughing. . "I've got something in store for everybody." Blazers assistant coach Herb Brown said, "Damon looked good, huh?"

Stoudamire has heard the rumors while working out religiously. He looks more muscular than last season and accepts the trade talk. "I have been here for five years, and I always come up in trade rumors," Stoudamire said. "But until I am gone, I am a Blazer. But the one thing I can say is that through my time here, I have always tried to please everybody and do everything for everybody else. This season, I have to -- not play for myself -- but play my game from start to finish."

Jim Beseda of the Oregonian reports that Arvydas Sabonis has agreed to return to the NBA. According to a Lithuanian newspaper, Sabonis has agreed to a one year contract worth $7 million. He is expected to sign the contract as early as Monday.

"Once I received Portland's offer, everything was very clear," Sabonis told Lietuvos Rytas. "It might be one of the last contracts in my career, therefore I have to use this opportunity."

Both the team and Sabonis? agent, Herb Rudoy have said that the contract has not been completed, but Sabonis spoke as if the only thing missing was his signature.

"We remain optimistic that we will get a deal done with Arvydas," Blazers president Bob Whitsitt said. Said Rudoy: "We are very close. I expect to have it done early next week. Arvydas is really excited about returning to Portland and he has instructed me to get it done as quickly as possible.?

Apparently, Sabonis insisted on a one-year contract. Said Sabonis: "After one year, we will see if there is sufficient health, desire or any demand for me to continue playing."

Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports that the rumors of a Jerry Stackhouse trade to Portland for a re-signed Bonzi Wells are unfounded. "I have not talked to Bob Whitsitt," Pistons president Joe Dumars said. "Not once." Whitsitt is the Trail Blazers president and general manager. If a trade between the two teams were going to happen, you would expect Dumars and Whitsitt to be in constant contact.

"Nope," Dumars said. "I read more about this in the papers than anywhere else. To do a sign-and-trade, you have to be talking to the team. We're having no conversation with them."

If the two teams aren?t talking, why does the media still discuss the possibility of a trade? Bill Strickland, one of the more savvy agents in the business, represents Wells and he desperately wants to get his client out of Portland.

Wells made a little more than $2 million in the last year of his rookie contract. He?s looking to sign for six years, starting at $5 million this year. The Blazers aren?t offering anything because they know that there are very few teams with the cap space or the desire to make that kind of offer. The only recourse then is to find a team willing to take Wells in a sign-and-trade. So Strickland has been busy calling teams and trying to broker a deal.

Complicating the rumored Pistons/Blazers deal is Wells? ?base-year compensation status? after he signs a new contract, and the opt-out in Stackhouse?s contract after this season.

"I've always said that if anybody calls and offers something, I will listen," Dumars said. "But listening to a deal and making a deal are two different things. I won't hang up on anybody who's making an offer, you know, but Bob Whitsitt has not called and made an offer. There is nothing on the table."

Marc Berman of the New York Post is reporting that while the Knicks have no interest in bring back team icon Patrick Ewing for a retirement tour, GM Scott Layden has tried to convince Portland free-agent center Arvydas Sabonis to make his NBA comeback in the Big Apple.

The Knicks, however, will most likely end up losers in the Sabonis sweepstakes despite a heavy pursuit of the European big man, Sabonis' agent Herb Rudoy indicating that Sabonis will most likely be re-joining the Trail Blazers this week.

Portland still retain his bird rights after Sabonis sat out last season and have offered him a deal over the mid-level exception, starting at more than $6M.  The contract is expected to be for either one or two years.

"Scott has asked me a lot over the last year what Sabonis is going to do," Rudoy said. "Scott really kept on top of it, called me more than half-dozen times. But every time I mentioned New York to Sabonis, he said he just wanted to play in Portland."

Layden thinks Ewing can still make a contribution but if he's going to add to his payroll, he wants a player capable of making a bigger difference, according to a source.

In a stunning turn of events the Portland Trail Blazers are to waive forward Shawn Kemp on Tuesday, ESPN.com and Yahoo sports are reporting.  The stunning aspect, of course, is that Kemp still has $46.5 million in guaranteed money left on his contract.

Not shocking enough for you?  The Oregonian is reporting in its Tuesday editions that Kemp has agreed to forfiet more than $25 million of the guaranteed money owed to him by the team, and an agreement between the two entities states that the Blazers will pay Kemp about $20 million over more than 10 years.

The move has major benefits for the Blazers.  In addition to the salary savings, the Blazers will save about $13 million per year in NBA luxury taxes through this agreement (not $20M per year as the Associated Press reports).

Cleveland coach John Lucas, who has counseled Kemp in recent years, said he was shocked at the news.

``It's not often you hear of players giving back money, especially one of this magnitude,'' Lucas told the newspaper. ``It's a statement for the player, just in the regard that he is willing to give back a year of his money.''

Kemp could not be reached for comment so his future plans at this stage are unknown.

Steve Kerr's reign in Portland only lasted one season, Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune is reporting, but last week's trade that sent him back to San Antonio caught him completely off guard.

Kerr was planning to move his family from San Antonio to Portland this summer but before doing so he contacted Bob Whitsitt on whether or not he was likely to be traded.  This happened a week before the trade and Whitsitt's response was nothing on the table, which made Kerr happy.  Although disappointed at first about being traded to Portland Kerr wound up having fun and wanted to stay with the team.  Then one week later the trade happens.

?Bob told me nothing was going on,? Kerr says. ?He said he didn?t expect anything to happen, to plan on moving up, but to call him again in a couple of weeks before we definitely make the move.?

Whitsitt reportedly said Kerr had indicated to him that he wanted to return to the Spurs, according to Eggers, something that Kerr strongly denies.

?That bugs me a little bit, because I did not ask for a trade,? Kerr says. ?I told him I had enjoyed the previous season and was looking forward to coming back, and my family was fired up about joining me. The trade caught me totally off-guard. Crazy."

?When I first went to Portland, I wasn?t thrilled about it, but I ended up having a real fun year. I had established a role on that team and felt I could play a similar role this season, at least until they got Jeff McInnis. Now I?m thrilled to be back with the Spurs.?

?I love having Steve Kerr on my team,? added Spurs coach Greg Popovich. ?He has such a basketball intelligence quotient, and my players respect the hell out of him.

?Adding him to the locker room of a team that played the Lakers as well as we did last year will be a plus. He will end up coaching for us some day if he wants to.?

Some expect this to be Kerr's final season.

Jason Quick of the Portland Oregonian reports: Arvydas Sabonis is one step closer to becoming a Trail Blazer for the second time.

After a week of deliberation, the 7-foot-3 center informed the Blazers on Wednesday that he has decided he wants to return to the NBA, and that he wants that return to be in Portland.

Blazers president Bob Whitsitt and Sabonis' agent, Herb Rudoy, both said Wednesday that the sides have started negotiations.

"(Sabonis) has decided he wants to return to the NBA, if I can work out an acceptable contract with the Blazers," Rudoy said.

It is believed Sabonis is looking for a one-year contract worth $6 million to $8 million. The Blazers have no salary cap restraints on how much they can offer Sabonis because they retained his "Larry Bird rights," which are given to players who stay with one team for three consecutive seasons.

However, the Blazers are not the only team vying for Sabonis' services. Rudoy said Unijaca, a team in Malaga, Spain, has made an offer that Sabonis is considering. That offer is believed to be for $10 million over two years.

"It is possible he will not play (in Portland)," Rudoy said. "He might play with the team in Malaga, Spain, or just not play at all."

Rudoy also said he doesn't expect to finalize anything until next week at the earliest.

Jason Quick of the Portland Oregonian reports: Multiple sources say Trail Blazers co-captain Damon Stoudamire has asked for a trade, but the point guard said Tuesday that if he is not traded, he intends to remain the team's starter.

Stoudamire would not say Tuesday whether he has asked for a trade but acknowledged that it was possible considering that the Blazers recently signed two point guards, Antonio Daniels and free-agent Jeff McInnis.

Stoudamire said until he hears otherwise, he plans to be the Blazers' starter next season.

"The bottom line is that I don't ever see anybody coming up in here and taking my spot," Stoudamire said at the Self Enhancement Inc. gym in Northeast Portland, where he is holding a free basketball camp for kids. "The only way I could see somebody ever taking my spot is if I'm traded out of a Blazers uniform."

Trading Stoudamire could prove difficult because he has a big contract ($37.25 million over the next three years) and a pending felony drug case.

Several teams have expressed interest in him this week, however, including the Minnesota Timberwolves, who failed to land Daniels or McInnis. The Timberwolves desperately need to solidify their point guard position because returning starter Terrell Brandon is recovering from knee surgery in February and his backup, Chauncey Billups, signed a free agent contract with the Detroit Pistons.

Minnesota vice president Kevin McHale said Tuesday that he would not discuss trade rumors or interest in other players.

Stoudamire said he wouldn't be against staying in Portland, but at the same time, he wouldn't want to leave as a scapegoat.

"In everybody's perfect world, I guess (a trade) is the perfect solution," he said. "But I have never been one to bail on a situation. When the going gets tough, I don't want to be the one going.

"Now, if they trade me, that's different. But as far as I'm concerned, I'm here, I expect to be here for training camp, and I expect to win the spot," Stoudamire said. "The way I see it, for me not to play on this Blazers team, regardless of the moves they make, you almost would have to kill me. So in the end, I don't care who they bring in here."

On another note, Stoudamire worked out with former Blazers center Arvydas Sabonis last week and left the one-hour session impressed. "He looked refreshed," Stoudamire said. "As we were going through the workouts, the coaches would ask him, 'Do you want to stop?' and he'd say, 'No, let's keep going.' " Stoudamire said Sabonis admitted that he had become "bored" after taking the year off in Europe. He said Sabonis appeared to be in good shape.

It's looking more and morre likely that Sabonis will return to the blazers this season after a one year absense.

The Portland Trail Blazers today signed ex-Clippers point guard Jeff McInnis to a three year contract, blazers.com is reporting.  McInnis is set to join newly acquired Antonio Daniels and Damon Stoudamire in the Blazers backcourt, something that excites Portland officials.

?We are very pleased to announce the signing of Jeff McInnis,? said GM Bob Whitsitt. ?Since the beginning of the off season, we have said we wanted to address our size and depth in the backcourt. Jeff and Antonio Daniels, who we acquired last week, give us two players who fulfill that need. We believe Damon Stoudamire, Jeff and Antonio give us great stability, depth and experience in the backcourt. We believe we have definitely upgraded this area for next season.?

?I'm very excited to have Jeff join our team,? said Blazers Head Coach Maurice Cheeks. ?Jeff and Antonio give us two big bodies in our backcourt that make us that much tougher in this area. Jeff is a big guard who can defend and run a basketball team and regardless of who plays, we feel very comfortable with the players we will have on the court.?

Terms of the contract were not disclosed.

Jason Quick of the Oregonian reports that the Blazers may not be done dealing yet. With Bob Whitsitt at the controls, there is always a good chance that another trade is coming.

The Blazers have already completed one trade this summer, by sending bench players Steve Kerr and Erick Barkley to the San Antonio Spurs for proven guard Antonio Daniels, reserve guard Charles Smith and a throw-in center, Amal McCaskill. The trade came as a surprise because of the Blazers pursuit of Clippers? free agent point guard Jeff McInnis.

If McInnis is regarded as a better point guard than Daniels, why make the trade? Are the Blazers dismissing McInnis? Or is he still in the picture? And if he is still in the picture, what of Blazers co-captain Damon Stoudamire, who started at point guard last season?

Nobody is answering those questions. Bill Strickland, the agent for McInnis, has not returned phone calls or e-mails since the trade for Daniels. And Whitsitt seemingly has enjoyed keeping the outside world guessing. "I don't talk about McInnis," Whitsitt, also the team president, said. "Only (reporters) and his agent talk about McInnis."

Still, the trade for Daniels and the earlier pursuit of McInnis haven't been an endorsement of Stoudamire.

The Minnesota Timberwolves, particularly coach Flip Saunders, are believed to be interested in Stoudamire. Saunders has long been an admirer of Stoudamire's skills, and the Timberwolves are desperate for a point guard after Chauncey Billups left to sign with the Detroit Pistons, and Terrell Brandon's surgically repaired left knee remains a question mark. A rumored trade that works financially has Stoudamire, who is due to make about $13 million next season, going to Minnesota for Brandon ($10.1 million) and Anthony Peeler ($3 million).

Clearly Whitsitt is searching for ways to strengthen the team's weakest areas: point guard and center. The moves made thus far and the current talks to bring back Ex-Blazer center Arvydas Sabonis are big steps in improving both positions.