The Blazers will play eight preseason games, including one at the Memorial Coliseum.

The release from the team …

PORTLAND, Ore. – As part of a season-long celebration of the team’s 40th anniversary, the Portland Trail Blazers will return to the Memorial Coliseum on October 14, highlighting an eight-game preseason schedule announced today.For the first time, the Trail Blazers will return to the venue they called home from 1970-95. Portland will host the Phoenix Suns, reuniting the two teams that played in the final NBA game at the Coliseum on Tuesday, May 2, 1995.

“We are excited to have an opportunity to host a ‘turn-back-the-clock’ game at the Memorial Coliseum,” Trail Blazers President Larry Miller said. “It will be very nostalgic for many Trail Blazers fans, and for others a chance to see the team play in its original venue for the first time.”

The Trail Blazers open their preseason with a home-and-home against the Sacramento Kings on October 6-7 and conclude the eight-game schedule with an October 22 rematch against the Suns at General Motors Place in Vancouver, B.C.

Tickets for the October 14 game at the Memorial Coliseum go on sale August 17. Turn back the clock pricing for the game, as well as full details on the Trail Blazers 40th anniversary season, will be announced soon. Single-game tickets for three home dates at the Rose Garden will go on sale September 21.

This was unbelievable … a once in a lifetime shot.

The Trail Blazers have signed point guard Andre Miller to a multi-year contract, the team confirmed this afternoon.

“We are excited to add a player of the caliber and character of Andre Miller,” general manager Kevin Pritchard said. “He is one of the league’s ironmen who brings a wealth of veteran leadership to our team and is a great fit for our young and improving roster.”

Miller, 33, averaged 16.3 points, 6.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds last season for Philadelphia, his 10th in the NBA.

He is regarded as a deft passer, particularly in throwing lob passes, and is known more for finishing inside – usually after a pump fake – than he is from making perimeter shots. Last season, he made only 28.3 percent from three-point range and during his career he is a 21 percent three-point shooter.

The team did not disclose terms, but agent Andy Miller said the Blazers would exhaust nearly all of their $7.7 million in cap space to sign Miller.

“It’s a perfect fit, I have always felt that way,” Andy Miller said. “I think he can take the Blazers to the next level in their quest for a championship.”

The Blazers tried to acquire Miller at the February trading deadline, but couldn’t agree on a deal with the Sixers, the agent said.

Miller was the Blazers’ third choice in the free agent market, and their pursuit intensified in the last 24 to 36 hours, about the same time the Blazers pulled away from talks with New York free agent forward David Lee.

According to Mark Bartelstein, Lee’s agent, the forward met with the Blazers this week in Las Vegas, after which talks increased. However, on Thursday evening, the two sides agreed to part ways.

“We agreed it wasn’t a perfect fit,” Bartelstein said. “There was a lot of conversation, a lot of back-and-forth, but there were a lot of issues on both sides.”

Bartelstein said the Blazers explored a sign-and-trade with the Knicks, but New York president Donnie Walsh recoiled at the offers. Meanwhile, Lee’s camp had questions about his role on the Blazers, who have a solid front line with LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla. The Blazers also were wary of Lee’s restricted status, which would allow New York to match any offer. It was the same scenario the Blazers encountered last week when Utah matched a four-year, $32 million offer for Paul Millsap.

“I think they were concerned about a match,” Bartelstein said. “They wanted to be 100 percent sure.”

The Blazers got their assurance in Miller, a durable player who has never missed more than two games in a season. He received only mild interest from Philadelphia, where he played for the past two and a half seasons. The Sixers offered him a one-year deal, worth around $6 million. The Knicks also flirted with Miller, but the Blazers had the most money to accommodate him.

The signing of Miller gives the Blazers experience and depth at point guard.

Returning starter Steve Blake is coming off an effective year, when he averaged a career-high 11.0 points and shot a career-high 42.7 percent from three-point range. He also added 5.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds and was fifth in the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio.

The Blazers also have Jerryd Bayless, a second-year guard, who played to mixed reviews during the Las Vegas Summer League this month.

The signing gives the Blazers 11 players under contract, a figure that is expected to reach 13 once second-round draft picks Jeff Pendergraph and Dante Cunningham are signed. It is unclear whether the Blazers will make another move before October’s training camp.

Miller played four seasons at the University of Utah, where he was a first-team All-American his senior season. Cleveland selected him with the 8th overall pick in the 1998 draft, after which he was named to the All-Rookie first team. He played three seasons in Cleveland, one for the Los Angeles Clippers and three-plus seasons in Denver before being traded to Philadelphia in the deal that brought Allen Iverson to Denver.

Geoffrey C. Arnold, The Oregonian

LAS VEGAS — Kevin Love doesn’t see his participation in USA Basketball’s minicamp as vindication after being snubbed for two major rookie honors during the NBA season.

Love was left off the rookie roster for the Rookie Challenge game during All-Star weekend and he wasn’t selected to the NBA all-rookie first team at the end of the regular season.

Now he’s among the NBA’s elite young players who are competing for a spot on the team that will represent the United States in the 2010 FIBA World Championships and the 2012 London Olympics.

“I don’t look at it that way,” Love said Thursday before practice. “Vindication will come when I’m selected to the sophomore team (for the Rookie Challenge game) next year at the All-Star Game.”

Love’s progress during his rookie season contributed to Minnesota’s improvement last season, and the former Lake Oswego High School star said he expects more improvement as a player next season. He is using USA Basketball’s minicamp this week as another stepping stone.

“I’m just trying to get better as a player,” Love said. “Playing with these guys will only help me.”

Regardless of whether Love makes the final roster, he is enjoying competing for the opportunity to represent the United States.

“Kevin is a good player, especially in a system — he’s smart. He can rebound and he’s got the best outlet pass in basketball,” USA Basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “Part of it is getting to know his game and how it blends with this athletic group of guys.”

Love said he would be thrilled if he made the roster.

“You’re really pushing to be the best player out here and hopefully get a spot next year for the world championships or a couple of years down the road for the Olympics,” Love said. “It’s very exciting to be invited to a camp like this. But you also want to show out so that you might have a chance to make the Olympic squad.”

Considering the way he started his rookie season, few would have expected Love to be competing in the minicamp. He began the season slowly under former coach Randy Wittman, eventually being relegated to a reserve role. But Wittman was fired and Love was rejuvenated under former coach Kevin McHale, flourishing under the Hall of Fame forward’s guidance.

The 6-foot-10, 260-pound Love ended the season with averages of 11.1 points and 9.1 rebounds in 81 games. He posted 29 double doubles and his strong finish — averaging a double double in January, February and April — and was selected to the all-rookie second team.

Love and McHale developed a close relationship, but McHale and the Timberwolves parted ways after the season.

“The fact that he was let go, it hurt a little bit,” Love said. “That’s why I’m on the court playing and not making the decisions.”

Minnesota team president David Kahn continues his search for a new coach, leaving Love to wonder who will be on the sideline for the 2009-10 season.

“I think he’s knows what he’s doing,” Love said of Kahn. “He’s moving our team in a certain direction. I just hope it’s the right way.”

The coaching search has slowed this week, with Kahn traveling to Spain to discuss point guard Ricky Rubio’s possible contract buyout, but speculation has focused on assistant coaches Elston Turner of Houston, Kurt Rambis of the Los Angeles Lakers and Terry Stotts of Dallas, and television analyst Mark Jackson.

“I have a pretty good relationship with (Jackson),” Love said. “I feel with our new point guards, he would be great.”

One of those point guards is Rubio, the Timberwolves’ first-round draft choice. Love applauded Kahn’s decision to make the trip overseas.

“He’s just doing everything possible to set our team up for some good wins next year and to grow,” Love said. “With him going over there, it shows that he cares and he wants Ricky on our team.”

Love also wants Rubio on the team and is energized about the possibility of playing alongside the star of Spanish club DKV Joventut.

“He would bring even more excitement to the team and I think he’ll definitely make our team better,” Love said. “He can run the floor and pass very well. There’s no doubt I can play with him.”

Regardless of who the new coach is and whether Rubio wears a Timberwolves jersey, Love predicts Minnesota will be a much better basketball team next season. He plans to be a major factor in the team’s improvement, and maybe vindication will come.

“We’ve got a good team with a good group of guys,” Love said. “I just have to do my part by working hard this summer and, hopefully, we’ll get a few more wins.”

OK, it’s pretty bad to watch Beckham jog around in his Galaxy Herbalife jersey. But things could be worse. They could be much, much worse.

Burger King is sponsoring Spanish soccer team Getafe for the upcoming season, so they’ve slapped their logo on the front of the kit. That’s fine, althoughit makes them look like fry cooks. But as per usual, BK just had to go that extra step to make sure we’re all sufficiently traumatized.

Included with each kit are instructions for how to celebrate a goal in the traditional European way, namely pulling the shirt up over your head. And what do we, the unsuspecting spectators get to see? Why, the King himself, staring into our very souls with his dead, dead eyes. Just the idea of more than one player doing this simultaneously has me changing my underwear.

According to Google translator, step 5 is “It embosoms to him to all King that you take inside.” Sweet dreams.

Jason Quick, The Oregonian

Utah general manager Kevin O’Connor phoned Trail Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard Friday afternoon and officially notified Pritchard that the Jazz will match the 4-year, $32 million offer sheet for free agent foward Paul Millsap.

The Jazz had until midnight Friday to make a decision, but news of their intention leaked out Thursday night and was posted on the Jazz Web site.

“We really liked Paul, and felt that he fit our team,” Pritchard said. “But this doesn’t mean we won’t stay aggressive. We want to make the team better. But we are going to be selective.”

The Blazers have $7.7 million in cap space, meaning they can sign a player to a contract worth that much in the first year, or they can use the $7.7 million to execute a financially uneven trade with another team.

The Millsap match was the second free agent the Blazers have pursued this offseason. On July 3, Hedo Turkoglu turned down a five-year, $50 million deal to sign with Toronto.

“This doesn’t hurt us,” Pritchard said. “Since it was rumored that Utah would match, opportunities have been coming up more frequently.”

Pritchard said he and his management team will evaluate which course they will take, saying it was too early to determine whether they would exhaust their cap space before the season, or enter the season with room to make an uneven trade before the February deadline.

“We will review the landscape. It’s always a moving target,” Pritchard said. “Now we will reassess the marketplace. But we will be patient until it’s time to make a decision.”

The Blazers and Oklahoma City are the only teams remaining with significant cap space available.