TUALATIN — It was a rare, perhaps even first-of-its-kind, surprise when Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen

and sat courtside as new coach Terry Stotts directed eight new Blazers through the debut workout of the 2012-13 season.

And after the unusual appearance, when the mercurial Allen briefly chatted with reporters, the first subject he broached didn’t center on the team’s promising future or the ongoing presidential search or the budding leadership of LaMarcus Aldridge.

“It was a great morning to see the new approach Terry and the other coaches have instituted,” Allen said. “A lot of emphasis on defense. A lot of energy out there. Defense is something I’ve been looking for an improvement in for a few years now. I was excited to see that being emphasized.”

It’s been nearly a week since practices started under Stotts, and a surprising reality has emerged from a coach who was

: There sure has been a lot of focus on defense.

From the moment Stotts

on Monday to the

at the practice facility in Tualatin, the Blazers’ training camp has been centered on establishing Stotts’ defensive philosophy and cementing the foundation for the Blazers to become a defensive-oriented team.

General manager

touted

as an offensive mastermind when he hired him, but after seven practices under Stotts, the Blazers had incorporated just two offensive sets and none focused on Aldridge, their offensive anchor. Instead, as they entered the weekend, Stotts had instituted 70 percent of the defense the Blazers will play this season.

“I think it’s important to start with defense and go from there,” Stotts said. “The theme will be competing, being aggressive, being alert and being strong defensively. We have a young team, so we can’t take anything for granted. We have to create the mindset with these guys that we will be mentally and physically engaged defensively on every possession.”

The backbone of Stotts’ defensive philosophy is playing “aggressive” and being “solid.”

The Blazers will not do a lot of gambling. They will rarely switch. Creating steals is not a priority, but protecting the paint, rebounding, contesting every shot and limiting offensive penetration is. And in a drastic change from recent seasons, the Blazers will play a different and more aggressive style when guarding the pick and roll, the most widely used offensive tactic in the NBA.

The Blazers’ big men will “show” on pick and rolls, meaning they will dart out from behind a screen in an effort to slow or frustrate the opposing guard instead of sagging back and reacting. All the while, Blazers guards will fight through screens and climb over top of them rather than drift behind and search for their man in the aftermath.

The tactic seems particularly appropriate for this Blazers team, which features standout perimeter defenders such as

,

and Ronnie Price, and mobile, athletic big men such as

, J.J. Hickson and Meyers Leonard. Players have largely praised Stotts’ pick-and-roll philosophy, saying the new approach will help foster a more energetic and hawkish defense.

“It’s more aggressive,” Matthews said. “It’s taking the ball out of people’s hands. It’s not letting them dictate. We are dictating where the ball will go. If you are going to go pick and roll against us, your first three steps are going to be back the other direction, rather than, OK, we are going to absorb you coming at us. You are going to go away from the basket.”

Added Aldridge, on the benefits of the new pick-and-roll approach: “Aggressiveness. Not letting guys get comfortable. The Deron Williams(es), the CP3s, the guys who can put up their shots (will now have to adjust).”

Another defensive change under Stotts: The Blazers will no longer try to funnel a play into a specific spot on the floor and counter with a defensive scheme. In recent seasons, the Blazers’ defense has tried to steer the ball toward the baseline or into a middle trap in an effort to disrupt an offensive play or set up a double team. But Stotts believes in having his defenders guard opponents straight up and countering with weak side or post help should one of his players get beat.

This approach simplifies what can be a complicated scheme and puts the defensive onus on the individual. Be solid. Guard your man. Don’t get beat.

“I think our defense this year is all about fighting and wanting to play defense,”

said. “At the same time, we’re keeping it simple. Coach wants to put it on each player to lock up, keep your man in front, guard your man and play hard. It’s all about just wanting to do it. So far, our guys have been wanting to play defense.”

Stotts has shaped his defensive philosophies over decades of coaching, but his current philosophy comes from his most-recent four-year stint as an assistant with the Dallas Mavericks and coach Rick Carlisle. Stotts was the “offensive coordinator” in Dallas, but he also soaked in the beliefs and principles of Carlisle, a respected defensive mind, and virtually everything Stotts is doing with the Blazers is a version of what Dallas has done in recent seasons.

Stotts spent countless hours the past four seasons studying opposing defenses as Carlisle’s offensive strategist, and he saw opposing teams try every tactic imaginable to slow down All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki, including an endless array of double teams and various forms of pick and roll coverage. But through all the film review, he realized the best defensive schemes he encountered came inside American Airlines Center at Dallas practices and games.

“I really believed in the defensive package we had in Dallas, so even though I was looking at all these different defenses and possibilities, I really became a firm believer with what we were doing in Dallas,” Stotts said. “There’s no one right way of doing things. But if you believe in what you’re doing, then there’s a really good chance it will end up working.”

And Carlisle, who gleaned many of his defensive philosophies from longtime former coach Dick Harter — who was an assistant alongside Carlisle in Portland — has made a believer out of many of his proteges over the years. According to Stotts, Los Angeles Lakers coach Mike Brown, Toronto coach Dwane Casey and former Raptors coach Kevin O’Neill also borrowed Carlisle’s principles when they left his bench to become head coaches.

The Blazers ranked 26th in field goal shooting percentage allowed (46.3) and 18th in points allowed (97.8) last season, so it’s no wonder Allen is looking for better defensive play. And while it’s far too early to predict how much the team can improve defensively this season — or whether it has the makeup to be a good defensive team — at the very least, the Blazers have adopted a mindset from Day One that defense is paramount.

“Right now, we are showing an edge and definitely an urgency about us to want to compete and play D,” Price said. “And that’s fun. I love that. It’s going to be my job and some of the other older guys' job to keep this intensity up. Because right now, we’re showing a lot of signs of having an opportunity to be a great defensive team. I like what I see so far.”

—

; follow him on