Lets just say if Bayless or Sergio were running the PG the whole night.. that we would have been down by a lot more. The mistake hurt bad.. but so did our settling for looong jumpers when we got within 2. Bellotti said it best a few years back after a loss at home to Cal (not the Colvin fumble) "One play cannot lose you a game.. it can win you a game, but it isnt what lost it for you"
I agree with the first part of your post, BW, but the quote by Belotti I think is stupid. If a play can not lose you a game, presumably because the rest of the game put you in position to lose, then likewise aplay can not win you a game, because the rest of the game's plays put you in the position to win. A game winning shot at the buzzer doesn't win a game any more than a game losing turnover or missed shot loses a game. Also, I hate Belotti, so maybe if the quote was someone else, I could see it slightly differently.
Lol that could have something to do with it. I agree with the quote because the way I see it The whole game (or 4th quarter even for that matter) you have opportunities to get those points you need at the end.. make those opportunities, and you arent in position to lose yes. Its hard to explain I guess, but you make a valid point on other plays putting you in position to win, but you still have to make that last shot to win.. so in my eyes I guess it can win you a game, and that is the reason you win, because you make it. But I see your side of the argument too and respect it.
There is a reason Blake is here and not resigned in Denver. Blake will play hard, work hard, etc. But when it push comes to shove, much like Jarrett Jack, he will find a way to lose you a game.
When the other team is threatening to blow you out of the gym in the first quarter when everybody else on your team is so cold that they can't hit the broad side of a barn .
Rudy has also played basketball at a high level since his late teens I believe and is 23 now, while Bayless played only 1 year of college basketball where he was more of a combo guard and was counted on to score. Not to mention the fact that he is only 20, and plays one of the hardest positions to learn in the NBA. You have to give him some time to refine his PG skills, but I've already seen some pretty good improvement from what I saw in college and earlier in the year.
When Brandon was having one of his worst games, LA not getting it going in the first half, Nicolas not making his outside shots and Joel not being much of a threat, Blake kept us from getting totally blown out in the first half.
We were down by 5, 6, and 6 when he hit his 3 3's. I am not syaing they were not needed, and they did help, but that's just expanding on the use of clutch all too much. Now anyone that makes abasket is essentially clutch, because we need them all to win. Come on. If he could dribble past the FT line, then maybe we wouldn't need his "clutch" outside shooting.
but are true PG skills learned or are they something that come naturally? you can't deny that from a pure PG stance Sergio is better at distributing the ball and creating open shots for others, as is rudy when he takes on that responsibility. i'm sorry but i just don't see that out of bayless. when he decides to stop jumping to pass the ball, then i'll start to believe he has it in him. the line-up i'm waiting to see is rudy, roy, batum, aldridge and pryz in there. that to me would be our best 5.
We been over this in other topics but I don't agree with your statement at all. Sergio can the run the offense better now sometimes but Bayless is our PG of the future and you opinion will prove to be way wrong. We need A.Miller or Kidd with Bayless as the main backup for 1-2 years. Sergio no matter how much more time he gets will never be much better then he is right now and he is very lucky to be a backup PG and probably will never be again after this year.
I hope Bayless turns into the Blazer PG of the future (I think he is a good guy and love his attitude) . . . but I think his development will take longer than expected because the PG position in the NBA is a hard one to adjust to.
I know this is way out there... I'd like to see what the dropoff from Blake's to Nic's 3-pt shooting is. When Webs gets back I'd like to see Roy/Batum/Webs/Aldridge/Przy (until Oden gets back to being better than Przy) from time to time. What does Blake do better than Nic? Batum defends quick PGs as well as anyone we have, can spot up in the corner (with the added ability to both drive in for a mid-range jumper or a dunk), shoots 77% from FT (vice 85), shoots only 34% from 3 rather than Blake's 43%. We've already stated that Blake's not passing the rock around like Kidd or CP3 since Roy dominates the ball in the half court, and there's nothing that shows me Batum's a ballhog. Defensively it's not close. You'd have 2 better-than-average defenders on the perimeter (with Roy able to if he wants), and Przy anchoring the middle. But that's a little too far out, I guess.
Sounds like a great plan to me. I would love to see that lineup. I would also like to see Rudy in there as our backup guard, adn allow him to play some PG as well.
At this point, I wouldn't be sad to see Blake leave..Sergio..well, I've already packed his bags for him. It is very frustrating seeing our 2 former PGs Jack & Bassy make a mockery of both Sergio and Blake. Blake tries, he really does on defense..but he is slow. He also has some sub-par court vision for a starting point guard as well. I think the Clipper game was more of an abberation than anything else. Some point guard options I'd like to pursue in the offseason: Jarrett Jack- Indiana Big guard who plays hard-nosed, ruthless ball. He has a nice mid-range game and actually attacks the hoop. These turnovers Blazer fans speak of are non-existent this year. Me thinks our fan base singled him out an only followed the bad and only looked for the bad. He was solid for us last year. Mike Bibby- Atlanta You want Terry Porter..you got him here. A borderline All-Star in his prime, now prone to be a facilitator and jump shooter. He is simply a better Blake. I would not over pay for him though as he is aging and not quite as good a finisher in traffic that we need. Chris Duhon- Knicks Not a sexy pick by any means, but again, I think he is a better Blake. He is a better distributor an plays tougher D. His deal only runs 1 more year so I think we could make a play for him. Ramon Sessions- Bucks I think he is on everyone's radar but it all depends on how much he is asking for. I'm afraid to over pay on a future backup as I see Jerryd as our future investment at the point and Sessions is going to want to start. His vision is unreal though. Earl Watson- Thunder This kid goes hard to the rack which I love. He is blue-collar and digs in tight on defense. He is a Nate-guy, having played under him before. His deal only runs one year longer and would be fairly easy to get away from the Thunder. Like Duhon, not a sexy pick, but a really great backup point. Andre Miller- 76ers Similar to Bibby as it depends on what he is asking for, but he would be one of the best stop-gaps we could find as Bayless develops and refines his game. I love how physical he is, like to play half-court, and can finish at the rim. In order of how I would rank them as realistically chance of obtaining them, best fit for the team, contract wise, etc: 1-Mike Bibby 2-Jarrett Jack 3-Andre Miller 4-Ramon Sessions 5-Earl Watson 6-Chris Duhon
All right, I'll concede clutch wasn't the right word to use there. My point was, Blake didn't cost us the game last night. His play was just one of several that didn't help down the stretch in the final 3 minutes. He's still our best option at PG for us right now, and the guy's hit several big shots for us all year long.
I wouldn't mind going big, and using a lineup like that eventually. But the dropoff from Blake to Batum's outside shooting is huge at the moment. Nicolas is struggling big time with his shooting, especially his corner 3s. He's getting a lot of his points now off dunks, layups and putbacks... and is only 1 of 13 from the 3-point line in the last seven games.
i wouldn't mind having bibbey, i think he'd be an upgrade over what we have now. JJ is not a PG. i don't get the fascination with him now that he's in Indy. Ford is playing PG there and jack is where he should have been all along, playing the 2 spot. Miller would be nice if we can get him on the cheap. Sessions and Duhon are going no where, as their respective squads would be hard pressed to give them up. Watson, eh, don't know much about him other than he's about 5'6" and is "scrappy".
Interesting. I've thought a lot about a Roy/Rudy back court, but never a Batum/Roy duo. I've loved seeing Batum guard PGs lately. It has been bringing back memories of Pippen. The kid is an amazing player already.
