Trevor Ariza moved his family across the country from Washington D.C. to Sacramento last summer after signing a two-year deal with the Kings. He enrolled his three children – Tajh, 11, Tristan, 8, and Taylor, 7 – in new schools and began to settle in to his new city.
But less than six months after arriving in Sacramento, Ariza learned last week that the Kings were trading him, Caleb Swanigan and Wenyen Gabriel to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Kent Bazemore, Anthony Tolliver and two second round picks. Once again, he packed his bags, ready to join the ninth team of his career and fourth team since the start of last season.
On Wednesday, Ariza leaned against a wall at the Blazers practice facility in Tualatin. It had been a whirlwind week for the 34-year-old, but he found himself smiling after his first practice with the Blazers.
He was still playing the game that he loved. That was all that mattered.
“I feel blessed,” Ariza said. “It’s an opportunity to play the game that I’ve been playing since I was a kid, the game that I love. Now, I get another opportunity in a new city… Every situation is a blessed situation when you’re playing at this level.”
AN OUTLET
Without basketball, Ariza doesn’t know where he would be. It was basketball that held him together at the lowest moment of his life.
Ariza spent the early years of his childhood traversing the world with his mother and two brothers, following his stepfather, Kenny McClary, as his professional basketball career took him to six different countries. McClary’s final stop was in Caracas, Venezuela.
It was there that tragedy struck.
On March 18, 1996, a 10-year-old Ariza accompanied his mother, Lolita, to one of McClary’s games while his two brothers, Kenny, 8, and Tajh, 5, remained back at a high-rise hotel with a babysitter. But before the game began, McClary was pulled off the court and told to take his family back to the hotel. That’s where Ariza learned that his little brother, Tajh, had fallen out of an open window in the family’s hotel room and plunged 30 floors to his death.
Soon after Tajh’s death, Ariza’s mother separated from McClary and moved her two remaining sons to Los Angeles. There, Ariza threw himself fully into basketball. The court was the only place where he wasn’t overcome with grief.
“I guess it was a therapy outlet for me,” Ariza said. “It was a way to express myself. On the court, I get the opportunity to just open up all my feelings, everything that’s wrong, everything I struggle with, I get to come out here and forget about it and get it out.”
Ariza spent hours upon hours during his childhood in Los Angeles playing basketball. He never wanted to put the ball down. At first, he played because it was an outlet, but over time, he realized that the game could take him places. He earned a scholarship to UCLA before being drafted by the New York Knicks in 2004, after just one season in college.
Over the last 16 years, Ariza has made 1,043 appearances in the NBA for nine different teams, shooting a career 42.2 percent from the field and 35.1 from three-point range as he has carved out a nice role for himself as a 3-and-D wing. The 34-year-old wasn’t quite as productive during his short stint with Sacramento. He comes to Portland averaging 6.0 points and 4.6 rebounds, while shooting 38.8 percent from the field, in 32 games off the bench this season.
But the Blazers believe that Ariza could fill a void in Portland with his experience, defense and three-point shooting. The 6-foot-8 wing is expected to be in the starting lineup Thursday when the Blazers take on the Dallas Mavericks at the Moda Center.
“A lot of experience, an excellent wing defender, a very good three-point shooter,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. “At that position, we’ve been a little bit undersized at the wing. I think he’ll mesh really well with our starters. Trevor has had a really good career and for a good reason. He knows how to play, and I think he’s a winning player.”
FOCUSING ON THE PRESENT
Ariza named his first son after his brother. He thinks about both Tajhes often before he steps on the court.
He is sure that his brother would be proud of him if he could see him today, and he is motivated to continue working hard and pushing himself to support his family and set an example for his three children.
“The focus changed once I started to have children,” Ariza said. “They became my main focus for doing things. Playing basketball is a game that I love. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid. It’s what I always wanted to do. Having my children at this point is the extra motivation that sometimes you need.”
For now, Ariza’s wife, Bree, and his three children will be watching him play for the Blazers from afar.
There is no guarantee that Ariza will be in Portland for the long-term. Only $1.8 million of his $12.2 million salary for next season is guaranteed and the Blazers could opt to waive him this summer if they don’t see him as a long-term fit. With that in mind, Ariza didn’t think it made sense to uproot his children during the school year. They will remain with their mother in Sacramento while Ariza turns his focus to the Blazers.
“We’re just worrying about the here and now,” Ariza said. “We have a push to try to make it into the playoffs, so I think that’s the only focus and the main concern right now.”
But whether he ends up staying in Portland for the next three months or the next three years, Ariza is ready give everything for his new team.
As long as he’s playing basketball, he’s at ease.
“I’m happy any time I’m on the court,” Ariza said. “Whether I’m shooting the ball, playing defense, anything I can do to help the team win, that’s what I try to do to the best of my abilities. I’m not one to complain about shots, not one to complain about touches, anything like that. I just play.”
More: Wenyen Gabriel and Caleb Swanigan react to being traded to Trail Blazers
-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg
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