Blazers G Damon Stoudamire reinstated
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PORTLAND, Oregon (Ticker) - The Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday reinstated troubled guard Damon Stoudamire, who said he spent a portion of the summer in a treatment program.

"I want to close a dark chapter in my life and move forward," Stoudamire said on the team's web site. "I'd like to focus on basketball."

In a news conference Wednesday, Trail Blazers president Steve Patterson announced Stoudamire's $250,000 fine for conduct detrimental to the team would be revoked. In addition, the Blazers will match a $100,000 donation Stoudamire made to the Albina Head Start facility fund.

"I know I can't throw money at a problem and donating money isn't going to win fans over," Stoudamire said on the web site. "You have to earn fans' respect on and off the court."

Last season, Stoudamire failed on both counts. He averaged career lows of 6.9 points and 3.5 assists in 59 games, often finding himself buried on the bench behind point guards Scottie Pippen and Jeff McInnis.

On July 12, Stoudamire was arrested at Tucson International Airport in Arizona and charged with possession of 40 grams of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, both misdemeanors. He allegedly had the marijuana wrapped in aluminum foil and was caught at the metal detector.

"This whole thing has been embarrassing for my family and me," Stoudamire said. "Everyone keeps asking me if I'm stupid, and that's really hard to take. I'm not an idiot; I've just made some really bad decisions."

It was Stoudamire's third drug-related offense in less than a year, prompting the fine and suspension from Patterson, who urged Stoudamire to enter rehabilitation and tried to release and trade the point guard.

Stoudamire entered a treatment program in Houston. He also took college courses and worked out with former NBA player and coach John Lucas, who has developed a secondary career of helping players with substance abuse issues get back on their feet.

"What I learned was I needed to face it and deal with it," said Stoudamire, who said his arrest this summer was not a cry for help. "The issues of getting caught were just face problems. I had deeper issues to deal with."

"We are pleased with the progress Damon has made this summer," Patterson said. "He has taken personal steps to put himself in position to be as successful as he can be. The Blazers are ready to put his mistakes in the past and are ready to help him focus on the future."

Stoudamire is scheduled to make $14.375 million this season and $15.75 million in the 2004-05 campaign. The 1996 Rookie of the Year is the NBA's highest-paid player who never has made an All-Star Game.

The 5-10 Stoudamire turned 30 earlier this month. He was the first draft pick of the expansion Toronto Raptors in 1995 but was traded to the Trail Blazers during the 1997-98 season when the Raptors would not offer him a contract extension.

Stoudamire averaged at least 17 points and eight assists per game in his first three seasons, but his game has been in steady decline since.

In 566 games over eight seasons, he has averaged 14.6 points and 6.8 assists, numbers he has not approached since arriving in Portland and receiving a six-year, $72 million extension.link