Maurice Cheeks grabbed a bottle of water off the scorers table and checked to make sure it was unopened. The Trail Blazers' rookie coach cracked the seal, took a swig, then turned his attention back to action on the floor in last week's exhibition game against the Sacramento Kings.

As he set the bottled water back on the scorers table, Cheeks grinned at the folks seated courtside.


"This is fun," Cheeks said.

It has become a familiar line for Cheeks. The former All-Star point guard has said it almost every day and in almost every setting since training camp started three weeks ago. And during games, now he's the coach always standing and getting the camera time. And sometimes, he doesn't even wait until after the game to give reporters his assessments.

"It's like playing all over again," said Cheeks, whose team plays Golden State tonight in an exhibition game at the Rose Garden. "I love it. It's such a change from being an assistant to being a head coach, and the change is a change I enjoy. You're into the game. You're involved. You're not out there stealing the ball and making shots, but emotionally you're right there on the floor."