HoopsHype.com Rumors

Chris Haynes: According to Nicolas Batum, he expects that Wesley Matthews (hip) will be back for Thursday's game vs Nuggets. Twitter @ChrisBHaynes

Portland Trail Blazers, Wesley Matthews, Injuries, Nicolas Batum 

Entering tonight's game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the New Orleans Hornets, only seven players in NBA history had recorded at least five in each category of the five main statistical categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks). With an 11-point, 10-assist, five-rebound, five-block, and five-steal night for Nicolas Batum, he became the eighth player in 27 years to accomplish this feat. It's been done a total of 15 times now in the last 27 years. Batum joins Hakeem Olajuwon (six times), Andrei Kirilenko (three times), David Robinson (once), Vlade Divac (once), Marcus Camby (once), Derrick Coleman (once) and Jamal Tinsley (once) to record a 5x5 in this era. The last one occurred on January 3, 2006 by Andrei Kirilenko against the Los Angeles Lakers. CBSSports.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

Marc J. Spears: PLAYERS WHO CANT BE TRADED UNTIL 1/15/13:L Allen;D Arthur;Batum;Bass;J Evans;Gordon;D Green;J Green;Hibbert;G Hill;J Hill;Humphries;Ilyasova Twitter @SpearsNBAYahoo

Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks, Portland Trail Blazers, Trade, Roy Hibbert, Nicolas Batum, Ersan Ilyasova 

Marc J. Spears: FWIW, NO G Eric Gordon ineligible to be traded to PHX until 7/14/13. POR F Nicolas Batum ineligible to be traded to MIN until 7/18/13. Twitter @SpearsNBAYahoo

New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Trade, Eric Gordon, Nicolas Batum 

Joe Freeman: I asked #Blazers Nicolas Batum how his sore back held up against Spurs: "Bad," he said. "Bad. I'm glad that we have a day off tomorrow." Twitter @BlazerFreeman

Portland Trail Blazers, Injuries, Nicolas Batum 

He lost his composure while punching Spanish captain Juan Carlos Navarro in the groin at the Olympics last summer. France was outscored 12-2 in the final seven minutes of its 66-59 loss when Batum attempted to punch at the ball -- and missed badly. "That was a tough moment for me," Batum said. "Because people who know me know that's not me. It surprised even me. "We wanted so bad to do something great in the Olympics. We work hard to go there and to be so close to beating Spain -- we had the lead all the game, and then I just lost it. I don't think it's good. What I have done is really bad. It's really bad and what I show about basketball, what I show about myself, what I show about France, what I show to young people watching the game -- that's bad. So I apologize. It's a bad thing. I'm human, yeah, but it's something I don't want to do again, for sure.'' SI.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

His father, Richard Batum, died of a ruptured aneurysm. "My father was a pro basketball player in France," Batum said. "He passed away while playing in the game on the basketball court. I was 2 years old. I was in the crowd with my mom when it happened. "That's a terrible memory. I think about it sometimes. I just remember he got fouled and went back to the free-throw line to shoot his free throws, and then he was falling down at the free-throw line. I can remember when my father went down, and I can remember later, when I wake up, all of the TV stations around and my mom crying and all the craziness going around. Here I was 2 years old, but I've got memories about it." SI.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

He thought of his father when the Blazers chose him in the draft. "He was crazy on the court; me, I'm like a cool guy, smooth," Batum said. "He played inside, he was a power forward and he had to fight almost every game, and he got crazy after every game. So I'm totally different from him. "But I think I have to continue his legacy. He was a basketball player, and so I have to do it too. I would talk about it when I was a kid. At school people would ask me, What do you want to do when you become a grown man? I want to play basketball. That's it. That's all I want to do. Because I knew he was a player, I just wanted to play basketball. I didn't know I was going to play in the NBA; I just wanted to be a basketball player somewhere. But now it's good for me to be in the NBA, because I know he's proud of me and watching down on me.'' SI.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

Chris Haynes: Nicolas Batum says yesterday he had dinner w/former #Blazers Greg Oden. Batum says he looks good & is planning a return to NBA next season. Twitter @ChrisBHaynes

Portland Trail Blazers, Greg Oden, Nicolas Batum 

“It's tough,” J.J. Hickson said. “It definitely stung. This one definitely hurts more. They were 0-12 coming into this game and they got their first win against us. That says a lot about us as a team.” “It was embarrassing,” Nicolas Batum said. “ CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, JJ Hickson, Nicolas Batum 

Yes, Batum has lived up to that lofty offseason contract — and then some — during a season-opening 11-game stretch in which he is playing the best basketball of his career. But, the NBA season is only three weeks old. There’s plenty of time for this feel-good story to go south. “It’s what people say about me and what people too scared to say it think about me: ‘Yeah, he’s been good, but it’s only been 11 games. We’re going to see the old Nicolas Batum soon,” the Trail Blazers’ starting small forward said. “But I’m going to try to avoid that. I’m not the old Nicolas Batum.” Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

In some ways, Batum is starting to get a little star treatment. “I feel some respect,” he said of Deng’s defense. “I take that as respect. It’s good. I have to keep working, find other ways to produce. Great players in this league, like LeBron (James), Carmelo (Anthony), (Kevin) Durant, they have game plans on them every day. But they find a way to score 25, 30 points, anyway. So I have to find a way to do that, to find my way and do something even when teams are trying hard to stop me.” Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

“It's been ten years and I felt like I had to go back to Cameroon because now I'm a NBA player and not a little kid in middle school,” Batum said. “When I was 13, I had nice sneakers and video games and I remember how I felt seeing others with nothing. I grew up understanding how lucky I was. But, at some point, I think I forgot and that's why I decided to go back and see how my family was doing and see what I could do to help them. “You know people say I'm French because my mom is French and I was born in France; I grew up there and everything, but my dad was born and raised in Africa and I have family, uncles, cousins and everything there. I'm from Africa, too.” CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum, Cameroon 

Batum says he sat in astonishment, listening to each young woman's life story. “I was just shocked how 14-year old girls were raising their brothers and sisters,”Batum said. “They couldn't even go to school because they had to work. I told them, 'You are part of this world, too. You can become something in society.' But, mostly I just listened.” After hearing all of those painful stories, Batum said he stayed awake for hours that night writing out a list of ways he might be able to be of some assistance. However, he said it was frustrating trying to come up with something. CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum, Cameroon 

Batum boarded the plane headed back to Paris and realized something...he didn't think about basketball for four days. That new-found appreciation and perspective on life is exactly what he needed at that time in his life. “I forgot about the NBA, I forgot about basketball, I forgot about my contract situation,” Batum said. “I forgot about everything, I was home. My dad was there and my grandparents were there. I was in peace. I was focused on how I can help them. I wasn't a French guy, I was a Cameroon guy.” CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum, Cameroon 

To his credit, Batum on Friday was professional and accountable. He was humble and he was honest. “This is the worst shooting night in my life ... and when I don’t have my shot, I stop playing. It’s my biggest weakness,’’ Batum said. “I’ve got to work on that. And I have to realize the game is different this year for me. It’s not about my contract - I don’t care about that - it’s about my teammates. If I play good tonight, we win the game. That’s on me.’’ Oregonian

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

By the time the day ended, Batum says, 16 teams had called his agent, Bouna Ndiaye, to express interest. Minnesota, New Orleans, Toronto and Cleveland were most aggressive. And despite what you might think, Minnesota did not offer the most money. A source with knowledge of Batum's free agency says Cleveland offered a whopping $52 million. "That was exciting," Batum says. "At this time, I didn't know what the rest of the league was thinking about me. I knew the Blazers loved me, wanted to keep me, but I didn't know what the other teams were thinking about me. I wanted to know who I am in this league. On July 1st, I was like, 'Wow.' " Oregonian

Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

That giant leap from Gordon's second year to his third year, is similar to what Trail Blazers general manager Neil Olshey is hoping to get out of Batum this year under new head coach Terry Stotts. CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

“I'm hoping that's the kind of jump Nic makes,” Olshey said. “Like Eric Gordon who was 16 [points] a game, 16 a game when he played for Vinny [Del Negro] and before he broke his arm, he was averaging 24 and a half a game [during the 2010-11 season] and was fifth in the league. CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum 

Neil Olshey: “Now, I'm not putting a number on Nic, but if Nic can make a jump, if Wes [Matthews] can make a jump, if L.A. [LaMarcus Aldridge] can just be L.A., and Damian [Lillard] can be who we think he has the ability to be, we're not that far away. And having a lottery pick potentially, and three second [round picks], and having $13 million in room potentially, is a pretty good position to be in eight months from now.” CSNNW.com

Portland Trail Blazers, Nicolas Batum