Sergio to start against the Bob's

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/01/no_change_sergio_remains_start.html


Discuss

 

I'm fine with that. I'm more interested in who finishes the game, and my guess is you'll see the lineup with Brandon and Bayless playing the guard spots in the fourth quarter.

You can make an argument for Bayless in the second unit for his scoring punch.

-Pop

 

I think this is a shrewd move by Nate and the coaches. They need Sergio (and the whole team for that matter) to play well and Sergio is in his third year, is an able passer and should be given a chance to get things rolling with Blake's absence.

I also think Nate understands that Sergio has a tendency to fade if his confidence isn't very high; giving him the start even after Bayless' blowing up last night should (hopefully) give him a little shot in the arm.

Smart.

 

^^ I agree with Soda and Nik.

 

Also, playing Sergio early gives Oden a much better chance at being a factor in the game since Sergio will look to pass first.

Bayless is probably a better fit off of the bench right now anyhow.

 

Actually playing Sergio early gives Oden a better chance of being in foul trouble and not being a factor since Sergio can't keep his an in front of him.


I'm not gonna scream about it, but I think Jerryd plays better with Roy and Oden, and Sergio plays better with Rudy and Joel.

 

Perhaps, but I don't recall a single entry pass by Bayless this season to Oden. I'm not saying it hasn't happened; I just don't remember it.

 

Before and after the New Jersey game, McMillan said he favored lineups that included Rodriguez and Rudy Fernandez together. He made the decision to start Rodriguez on Thursday before he knew Fernandez would be able to play. But even after all that has transpired _ Bayless' big night, Fernandez' recovery from a sore left foot _ McMillan said he will stay the same, for one simple reason:

"It worked,'' McMillan said. "So we will go with it again. We will get (Sergio and Rudy) together, though.''

Makes sense, especially pairing the Spanish Armada.

 

Nor have I seen him stay in front of his man consistently yet (the reason Joel was in foul trouble a game or 2 back), but he and Roy mesh and Sergio and Rudy mesh so let's mesh the Pussycats.

 

If he really wanted to "pair" the Spanish Armada, he'd have Sergio off the bench, or stick Bayless in the game after 2-3 minutes.

I don't have a problem with this, but "It Worked" and "Sergio and Rudy" would make me think that Sergio should come off the bench.

 

I'm guessing Rudy's foot is still pretty sore, which limits what he can do in the second unit, so Bayless picking up some of his load could be part of the reason for Sergio's start.

 

I have no problem with it, they are pretty much going to have to play 3 guards all night anyhow, and probably at one point during the game go big in order to get through it.

 

This doesn't surprise me one bit.

It's clear Bayless is the better player, but Nate is the kid of guy that won't touch something if success comes from it, and it's to fault sometimes.

 

Because Sergio rarely keeps the ball moving and makes the simple pass. If you pass him the ball, chances are you won't get it back as he will reset at the top of the key and dribble it out and pass with just enough time for him to get the assist.

And Bayless passes to the post all the time, more than a couple of our guards in my opinion. And for Maris, he isn't the best defender in the league, but he is certainly OUR best guard defender.

 

We had a great start with Sergio in. We jumped to a lead and got the ball inside to LaMarcus for easy hoops while holding their guards to about 25% shooting.

I would guess you are right about Bayless starting eventually, but Nate doesn't want to set him up to be embarrassed and kill his confidence. Most games, he has not defended starters well.

Harris and Carter were a tired, limping duo who had uncharacteristicly weak games, and they doubled Roy most of the night. Bayless might be the one getting doubled tonight.

 

I cannot imagine what you are basing that statement on.

I would certainly think you were talking about different players on a different team.

 

What are you talking about? That description fits Sergio to a T.

 

The only players on this team who I worry about a bad outing killing their confidence are Greg, Sergio and Nicolas; I haven't seen anything in Jerryd's defense to suggest that he's going to get embarrassed over the course of an entire game.

Subtract garbage time and you mean the 4 or 5 games where he's actually had significant minutes ?

-Against Detroit he made Rodney Stuckey look pretty bad and rode his hip the entire time he was in the game.
-Against Chicago he only played 9 minutes and while he certainly didn't shut Rose down he played OK
-I didn't get to watch the Philly game so I can't comment on his defense.
-Against the Nets he played very good man-to-man defense on Harris (especially down the stretch) cutting off his driving lanes and/or forcing him into help defenders (LMA's block on Harris late in the fourth was a classic example)

As for Bayless getting doubled tonight (and in the future), doesn't that just mean Brandon or LaMarcus is going to be left wide open or single covered (granted we'll have to see if he can find the open man)? However, I doubt Jerryd has reached the point where he will command a double team and more likely you'll just see the bobbies go into a zone and dare Jerryd to shoot over the top of them ... we'll just have to see if he's more relaxed and his jumper falls now that he's presumably more relaxed after his breakout game.

 

If all you've seen of him is some games this season when Roy is in there with him, then it might appear that way to someone who has trouble watching 10 players at a time, but it's done once in awhile at certain times to spread the court and create opportunities. It's called re-setting the offense, and all top PG's do it when it's needed, usually when the team is not moving without the ball to get open. It's a part of the standard PG skillset.

he will reset at the top of the key and dribble it out and pass with just enough time for him to get the assist.

In other words, he creates scoring opportunities which succeed.

And it infuriates you for some bizarre reason that I cannot comprehend.