ESPN NBA Draft

PORTLAND, Ore. -- While Adam Morrison appears to be the fans' choice for the Portland Trail Blazers on draft day, there are many questions surrounding the team's strategy and whether it includes the shaggy-haired Gonzaga star.

Will Morrison be available at No. 4, when the Blazers select? Will they trade up to get him? Do they even want him?

A Portland sports-talk radio station has organized a "Draft the 'Stache" campaign to convince team brass that Morrison's their man. A group of about 30 fans turned out at the former Gonzaga star's pre-draft workout in Tualatin, chanting the catchy phrase.

Morrison, known for his mop top and mustache, obliged the group with autographs.

The forward led the nation in scoring with an average of 28.1 points per game, and is one of the strongest offensive players available in Wednesday's draft. He is also from the Pacific Northwest.

"Yeah, it'd be great to play four hours from home, driving distance every night, to have family and friends from the Northwest. I think the Northwest knows who I am as a person," he said at the NBA's pre-draft camp. "And they have a great coach. [Nate] McMillan's a great coach; he's proven that over the years. They're trying to rebuild that organization back to where it was, and from what I've heard, back when Clyde [Drexler] and those guys were playing, it was the best basketball city in the NBA.

Picking Morrison would provide the Trail Blazers with some positive PR. The Blazers finished last season 21-61, the worst record in the NBA. And the team's ownership situation is in limbo, with owner Paul Allen claiming the franchise is losing too much money.

It remains to be seen if Morrison will be available. The Blazers choose behind Toronto, Chicago and Charlotte. It is also unknown if Blazers even want him. While the draft really doesn't feature a consensus No. 1 pick, there is talent to be had and questions about Morrison's ability to defend.

Another local the Blazers looked at was shooting guard Brandon Roy, the Pacific-10 Conference player of the year after averaging 20.2 points for Washington.

Rudy Gay, a small forward from Connecticut, won positive reviews after his pre-draft workout for the Blazers. The 6-foot-8 Gay averaged 15.2 points last season as a sophomore.

LaMarcus Aldridge, a power forward/center who decided to enter the draft after his sophomore year at Texas, is known for his defense and could provide help if the team fails to re-sign free agent center Joel Przybilla.

Also in the running is Italian power forward Andrea Bargnani, who has been compared to Dirk Nowitzki.

"At the end of the day, you got to pick the best player," interim general manager Steve Patterson said. "The fans want to see ball games and have guys that they can identify with. You know, Adam Morrison has had a great career at Gonzaga, and he's going to have a very good career in the NBA. He'll be one of the guys that we'll look at along with Roy and all the other guys that may or may not be there.

"But generally, you know, the concept that picking a local guy, unless you're in Houston and you pick Hakeem Olajuwon and you win a championship, it doesn't really put as many people in the seats as most people think."

Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press