Third arrest in five days has Blazers scrambling for answers

PORTLAND, Ore.-- Maurice Cheeks admits the Portland Trail Blazers have a problem, and it's time to change.

For the third time in five days, a member of the Trail Blazers was arrested.

Forward Ruben Patterson was charged with assaulting his wife less than a week after guard Damon Stoudamire and forward Rasheed Wallace were cited for marijuana possession. Stoudamire and Wallace both admitted smoking marijuana to the arresting officer, according to a police report.

"I think it's an issue we have to deal with," Cheeks said. "We're grown men, and we can't keep passing the buck here, or passing the buck there. We have to be accountable for the things that we do and the things that we say."

Bob Whitsitt, the team's general manager and president, said any penalties for Stoudamire and Wallace can only be determined by the NBA, while disciplinary action against Patterson could come from the league or the team after the case has been resolved in court.

He said Patterson would not play in Tuesday's game against Houston so he could work on his "personal situation," and that Patterson's status for upcoming games is still unclear.

Whitsitt also said the team will be more careful in making future player personnel decisions.

"Paul Allen and I would like to apologize to our fans," Whitsitt said, speaking on behalf of Allen, the technology billionaire who owns the Blazers. "We have to do a better job, our players have to do a better job, we have to get it right. This is embarrassing, it's disappointing, it's frustrating. I'm sure we've got a lot of angry fans."

The number of Blazers who've been in trouble with the police over the past couple of seasons is enough to field a decent starting lineup. The alleged offenses range from underage drinking to drug possession to attempted rape.

One of the league's most dysfunctional teams has had problems on the court, too.

Wallace led the NBA in technical fouls the last three seasons, including a record 41 in the 2000-01. He also threw a towel in the faces of teammate Arvydas Sabonis and referee Gary Benson that season.

Relations between players and Cheeks haven't always been smooth, either. During a Nov. 12 game in Houston, Cheeks benched Stoudamire after a heated exchange, and Stoudamire has played in just one game since.

Nonetheless, management, coaches and players insist all the problems shouldn't bother them once the team takes the court. The Trail Blazers were hovering around .500 through the first month of the season.

This is at least the third arrest for Patterson -- all for acts of violence, twice against women.

Patterson was taken into custody Monday after his wife said he assaulted her at their home, said Sgt. Doug Nafziger, a spokesman for the Tualatin police. Shannon Patterson had minor injuries, but because the couple's two young children were present, Patterson was charged with a felony.

Teammate Derek Anderson posted Patterson's $1,000 bail. Patterson will be arraigned Dec. 6 and could face up to five years in prison and a $100,000 fine if convicted.

"It's like family. You all have problems in your family, but you all stick by each other," Anderson said. "That's what we do with this team, we stick by each other no matter what happens."

Patterson is on probation following a 2001 modified guilty plea in Washington state on charges he tried to rape his children's nanny.

He was suspended by the NBA for the first five games of last season, his first games with the Blazers after signing a six-year, $33.8 million contract following two years with the SuperSonics. He had to register as a sex offender with Washington County when he moved to Oregon.

He also was convicted of misdemeanor assault in February 2001 for attacking a man who scratched his car outside a Cleveland nightclub.

Patterson isn't the only Blazer who has had legal troubles.

Earlier this year, Stoudamire was charged with a felony after police found a large bag of marijuana in his home while responding to a burglar alarm. A judge declared the search illegal, but prosecutors are appealing.

Stoudamire and Wallace now face mandatory jail time if convicted on the latest charges, said Jeremy Randolph, Lewis County, Wash., prosecuting attorney.

"And they'll do it at the convenience of our court system, not the Portland Trail Blazers," he said.

In December, guard Bonzi Wells and former teammate Erick Barkley were cited by Portland police after refusing to leave the scene of a fight in downtown Portland and yelling profanities at an officer.

And in May, second-year player Zach Randolph, then 20, was arrested on charges of underage drinking in Marion, Mich.

Anderson said that no matter what happens, the team must try to rise above the problems and compete hard every night.

"It's like an injury," Anderson said, referring to Patterson's absence at Tuesday's shootaround. "If you're missing a guy, you have to go with what you have, and that's what we're going to do.

"The guys that we have on the floor have to go to war every night."