Even if he comes off the bench, he is gonna get more minutes then last year. (or at least it looks like it so far this year)
Picture Greg sitting at home, getting the news. "Fuck it!" Gets off the exercise bike, grabs giant bag of donuts and vanishes into his darkened bedroom, whence are heard stifled sobs. Oh McMillan! What have you done?
i was pointing out that saying that's the lineup that won 54 games isn't really correct. oden started almost half of the games. but i'd also say the starting lineup isn't all that important. at least half of the playoff teams last year brought guys off their bench who were better than some of their starters(portland included).
Spurs analogy is a bad one. Fuck Nate. This will blow up in his face and he will change his mind after 2 games (see last year).
can you argue against terry, odom, kirilenko, jr smith, beasley, and rudy and outlaw coming off the bench with batum starting as well?
KP shouldn't be trading useful players for inferior ones, the issue is Nate McMillan. I'm all for KP starting his coaching search.
why? because you don't like the starting lineup that was announced two weeks before the season actually starts?
Good to see that we will go with a 2 on 5 offense again, maybe we can have even more come from behind wins than the 18 we had last year.
The question is, what coach would announce his starting lineup two weeks before the season actually starts... In fact, what coach would announce who gets the starting point guard position days after signing a bonafide starting PG and weeks away from training camp?
That's just an argument for not playing that grouping together. Somehow there's this vision of completely independent teams that substitute as groups, but most coaches don't actually do that. Most teams go through games with some of their starters in at all time (barring garbage time of course). Whatever though, who starts is not a huge deal anyways (except the effect it has on player egos). Whoever plays the most minutes will have the most impact anyways.
You can point to other players all you want. Oden needs to start. Period. This isn't rocket science. This is a classic over-thinking-the-situation by Nate. As for your examples... No team had three guys come off the bench that were all better than their starting counterparts, and with this lineup that could happen with the Blazers. I'm willing to concede Batum/Webster is close, and I'll even give you Andre out of the kindest of my heart, but Oden should not be confused with JR fucking Smith.
You are describing Adelman as far as playing the backups with some of his starters. He does that. Always has.
If Greg had only averaged 25 & 15 in the preseason...THEN he would have earned the right to start... LOL...what a joke....Let's see good offense...check...good rebounding...check...good defense...check...stay out of foul trouble...check..... Nah, I am going to start Przybilla over him....Way to go Nate...... The weakness of the 2nd unit with last night's starting lineup needed to be addressed...My thought was keeping Webster on the 2nd unit with Rudy to provide some much needed scoring...because Blake, Przybilla & Batum offer little in generating offense....That way at least you have 3 players Webster\Rudy\Outlaw who can provide some scoring Miller should start, not Blake...the TEAM is better for him starting, and Roy needs to learn to be effective without having to monopolize the ball all the time. Roy needs to learn to MOVE without the ball, find ways to get open, and more improtantly PICK his spots to takeover the game, you don't need the ball in your hands 100% of the time, that is bs...and if the reason to start Blake is so he can play off of Roy as a spot up shooter, then why not start Rudy instead? or acquire a "scoring" PG? It is a preposterous reason, and Miller is 100% correct that he should be starting, there is no comparison between him and Blake, he is without a doubt the better player, the better point guard, the better scorer, etc... Miller opens up opportunites for Oden (specifically) and can create for himself and others, something that is SORELY needed on this team besides just having Roy do it. Does Roy want to win an NBA Title? or be "the man"? Someone ought to ask him that....because saying he needs the ball in his hands (most) of the time, or that he isn't getting enough touches, or that Blake is a better back court mate because he defers to him every time Roy LOOKS his way...doesn't sound like a guy who is recognizing the value of Oden improving and being a force in the low post (and he needs touches you know, to do that), or the value of having another player in the backcourt who can create for himself or others....you know, the kinds of things that make THE TEAM better....
