Asking Blazers' Brandon Roy to retire is not the answer

The $68 million question is apparently about to get a new answer. Which is only to say that the Trail Blazers Inc. brain trust wants to float a new notion for Brandon Roy.

It's this: Retirement, old pal?

I hope they duck when they ask him.

A source familiar with the situation said Thursday that Portland figures it must deal with Roy's future if it's truly going to rejoin the league's contenders. Retirement for Roy is among the options they're considering.

The Blazers know they hold the distinction of being the only team in the Western Conference that hasn't won a first-round playoff series in the past 10 years. So they're eager and acting with urgency.

There are only three viable options when it comes to Roy's future: A) figure out where he fits and play him; B) set him free with the Amnesty Clause; or C) lure him into retirement.

The league's Amnesty Clause would set Roy free, as the organization once did with Derek Anderson. The Blazers would still pay Roy what they owe him over the next four seasons, but they wouldn't pay luxury tax on his salary. It could potentially save owner Paul Allen millions, but wouldn't necessarily result in salary-cap room unless a new collective bargaining agreement stipulated such.

Retirement sounds lovely. I don't blame the Blazers for wondering about sending Roy to Boca Raton, Fla. (I'm thinking Darius Miles probably has a place there from when Portland attempted to send him there three years ago.) But it feels like a pipe dream.

If Roy voluntarily retires, he forgoes his salary and can't return to the NBA for one season. I don't see that happening. But if the three-time All-Star were forced to retire for medical reasons (a league-appointed physician would have to rule Roy is medically unfit), there's an interesting loophole. With Roy medically retired, the Blazers could potentially get salary-cap relief after a one-year waiting period.

I asked Rich Cho what they planned to do with Roy just 48 hours before the general manager was fired by Allen. He didn't answer, but he laughed nervously. I could feel him shaking his head at the mistake that the Vulcans made in negotiating a contract that had no insurance and no clauses for the possibility of injury despite Roy's chronic knee issues.