Two thoughts. 1) Isn't this the same interview from last week? Nothing new, right? 2) Maybe this is why Portland's not focusing on bringing in a guard. Maybe the plan is to start Rudy.
I agree with the comment that Nate needs to figure out how to use Rudy better. As for the comment "And all he did was stand around and jack up 3pt shots", I can only say that in the games I saw Rudy was constantly moving and I would say that he worked harder than anyone else on the team when on offense.
Great observation. Portland ran a set every game that would run Rudy of a double screen on one block and a single screen on the other. Yes, we could have ran more plays with Rudy taking the ball to the hoop, but to say all he did was stand in the corner would be false. Even if that is all he did, it would be hard to fault the coaching staff because they put him in a position to hit more 3's than any rookie has in the history of the NBA
Nate used Rudy a lot like he did with Martell. Nate set up those plays where Rudy would run through 2-3 screens to get open for a 3 just like he did with Webster. Rudy can do that, but he can do more imo.
Since it appears our fantastic GM will once again do jack shit to add a ppiece to the roster, I hope the rotation looks like this. No way this happens because of our coaches loyalties, but a lineup of Rudy - 12/Bayless - 22/Blake - 14 Roy - 30/ Rudy - 12/Bayless - 6 Batum - 25/Roy - 6/Rudy - 6/Outlaw - 11 Aldridge - 30/Outlaw - 16/Joel - 2 Oden - 32/Joel - 10/Aldridge - 6 I don't like breaking it down this way because I think our team is flexable enough that a lot of people can play multiple possitions, but since we probably won't win a title anyway, why not start trying to find out if Rudy or Bayless can handle that possition for when we might be able to make a run?
As long as Nate is in charge, we will have trouble keeping creative players happy. It's because Nate abhors creative-thinking players who don't need someone instructing their every move like a babysitter. Sergio, Travis, Rudy, soon it will be Greg.
I wouldn't be surprised if that happens and quite frankly, neither should anybody else. Don't forget that he plays the same position as Roy. So unless you want to trade away Roy so Rudy stays to get his PT then start getting used to the fact that Rudy might not be here long term. But I also think that he has shown himself to be a part of the regular rotation, so if he can live with being 6th man, he'll be here for a while I hope.
MM I like your rotation.. however I dont think they will move Blake down to 14 MPG.. I could se maybe them cutting 4 MPG from Bayless to give to Blake and maybe 2 of those PG minutes from Rudy to give Blake 22 Bayless 18 and Rudy 28 total. Although I still think they would try and give Blake more minutes.
Did you guys watch the games last year when Nate put Rudy and Roy in the back court together? I really wanted to see this too, but left very underwhelmed. It was really bad. Rudy didn't seem to be able to do anything. Maybe they didn't execute well, but Nate did try it several times and it failed big time. According to 82games, the Blake/Rudy/Roy lineup did pretty well, but I hate seeing Brandon wrestle with SFs the whole game.
Me too, it's why he needs to go. Blake should be nothing more than a specialist off the bench. Like I said, it's not like we are going to win it all this year anyway. Why even play Blake? Nate has to find out if Rudy, Bayless and Roy can handle the PG spot in his eyes. Roy sure seemed to think Bayless could in pre training camp scrimmages.
I noticed it. I wonder if anything would change if going into the season Rudy knew that was his role?
I think the key would be to make Rudy the PG and give him a clear job description. The problem last year seemed to be that neither knew how to play off each other. I think Rudy could probably stay in front of PGs as well as Blake on defense. If the team committed to working Rudy as a PG, then maybe it would work better. Last year, they both looked very uncomfortable. The problem is that Rudy best position by far is SG. Brandon's best positions are SG and SF (almost equally). Can Rudy be trained to be a better PG? I don't know, but something would have to be different from last year.
Okay..... Rudy is not being used to his potential, Oden can't get the ball to be the center he was billed to be, and Blake can't get everyone involved. What we know is we have the second youngest team in the league that flat out needs to be pushing the ball in a west where the best teams are not getting any younger. Agreed? Lakers best player in now in his 30's, the Spurs are old, Dallas is led by a 34 year old PG so why aren't our Blazers using what should be our greatest advantage speed and deep rotation? Simple....... got the wrong coach who wants to play slow down, half court hoops with a team of sprinters. Rudy, LA, Bayless, Outlaw, Blake should be running the west to death up and down the court. We are not mean enough, old enough, experienced enough, of a team to play slow down half court grind it out games with teams like San Antonio, LA or Denver. Not going to happen. We saw what Houston did to us and this offseason we added nothing to make that glaring situation any better. So here's the REAL PROBLEM..... you've got a half court coach with a fast break team. Nate is a good coach for a team like the Spurs, Rockets, Celtics or Pistons, but his philosophy here is killing this teams strengths. Rudy is not going to be the asset we need with Nate calling these type of plays, for that matter either will Bayless or Oden. Nate has got to change his coaching style or next year will be the exact same as this year except LA will absolutely kick our asses with addition of Artest and San Antonio will will not fold in the first round. Please don't get me wrong... I feel Nate is a fine coach, just not for this team. He's four years to early!
