Withi all of the discussion in the Webster thread, I'd thought it would be interesting to find out where the majority stands. Who will start at SF?
I say Batum, because he is the incumbent, is a better defender, and (IMO) his rookie year was better than anything Webster has put up.
like i said.... If MILLER starts... ITS GOTTA BE WEBSTER If BLAKE starts.... ITS GOTTA BE BATUM Real simple. With that said.. I cant see Miller not starting. And the 2nd unit needs defense. Batum is perfect fit. Webster is more of a complete player then batum at the moment.
or maybe i can replay the blazers last 6 games of last season and watch BATUM DO NOTHING WHEN IT COUNTED THE MOST CAUSE HE CANT SCORE. give me a break... batum sucks on offense. i dont care if he scored 20 a night in the euro league. last time i checked this was the nba.
Probably could make a decent argument for adding Roy up there. Batum's my favorite, but if he gets injured I'd really rather see us go with a Miller/Rudy/Roy/Aldridge/Przybilla lineup than anything else. Although if the plan was to use Roy at SF more he probably wouldn't have cut down his weight over the summer.
Oh, I'm not saying he's going to be a twenty a night scorer (probably more like 11 or 12), but regardless of what you think of the competition he faced in Eurobasket (better than most college teams) he looked a lot different with the ball, and he played very aggressively. Nic's biggest test will be to see if he can attain and maintain a certain level of aggressiveness on offense. In any case I expect him to be a more well rounded contributor than Martell and a more efficient shooter and scorer than Martell has ever been.
I wouldnt be surprised if this is the one position that changes throughout the year. Nate may go with whoever is hot at the time or whoever matches up better with that nights opponent. We could really use this to our advantage if everyone is on board.
Good description of Webster's entire NBA career, too, minus one quarter in Utah. The difference is, Batum can pass and defend.
Think about how many times last season someone was shooting well, and then Nate pulled them. I doubt he will change who the starter is, but I could understand if he adjust PT like this.
I like Nate as a coach, but his substituation pattern is so predictable it hurts. He pulls people when they are hot and never puts them back in.
Batum has to be the favorite. I haven't seen many rookies defend as well as he did and I expect that to continue. Martell would be better off in the second unit with a green light to fire away. But really I am hoping both Martell and Batum play so well that it is a really hard choice to make.
I like both players, but the reality is the Blazers can't afford another year in the playoffs with the small forward only putting down 2 points a game and expect to get past the first round. The best teams in the league are too good defensivly to have more than one offensive liability in your starting unit at a time. That being said, unless Batum finds a way to score into the teens each game, then this job will be Martell's. Plus, I really do not think Batum is that much better of a defender than Martell. He has some physical tools Martell does not with his length, but Martell was doing a fine job defending the guys Batum was defending the year before last.
I voted Batum for his perimeter defense so Roy doesn't have to guard the best wings in the league all game long and he can rest up for the fourth quarter. I can certainly see the argument that with Miller starting we might need Martell for his shooting, but Nico can negate that by improving his own shot.
ahhh the legend of Martell the shooter... too bad stats don't back it up. Batum's rookie year equaled or bettered Martell's career numbers in FG% FT% 3pt% TS% & eFG% STOMP
