Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Lillard/Batum/Aldridge/Leonard might be better in the long run than Roy/Aldridge/Oden. I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity And in one quick post............ credibility GONE!
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity wondering how Duin thinks that the Rose Garden crowds are "passive, unexacting and languid."
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity You don't think Lillard has the chance to be as good as Roy was?
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity I really like this Lillard, but how quickly you have forgotten. Brandon was a very special player. Arguably one of the 10 best in the NBA. Roy/LA/Greg/Nic/ future was limitless!
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity I didn't say he wasn't, and I'm not saying Lillard will be as good as Roy, but I think he has a chance. He has the talent. Obviously they play different positions, so it's difficult to compare them, but point guards like Lillard come along less frequently than shooting guards like Roy. Right now, how many point guards in the NBA have amazing court vision, athleticism, and can shoot from anywhere on the floor?
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Roy wasn't top five. He was top 10 definitely, but not top 5. When he was at the top of his game, in say 2008-2009, I would have taken CP3 LeBron Wade DHoward Durant Over Roy. He was easily in the top ten though.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity I hear ya'. I just don't think this core is even in the same universe as the one we are comparing it to. To answer your PG question, there are only a handful. It seemed like for awhile there were only 3 real PGs out there.....Kidd, CP3 and DWill. But there has been a big influx lately......Rose, Wall, Irving, the Knight kid in Detroit is solid as well. I haven't been as excited about a player for us as I am about Lillard since Brandon. He has game and am looking forward to watching him grow.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity CP3 is a freak. He isn't healthy anymore, but when he was at the top of his game, he was averaging over 11 apg. That's John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Jason Kidd type of numbers. Those kinds of point guards are once in a decade it seems. Rose isn't a passer. The dude has never averaged over 8 apg. He's a scorer. Wall is still so young, it's hard to say what he'll end up being, but he's been averaging around 8 assists and 16 ppg. Those aren't bad numbers. The guy is super athletic so it will be interesting to see if he builds on that. Irving is similar to Rose in that he's a scorer. He didn't even average six assists last season. I think Lillard will end up averaging around 18 ppg and 8 assists this season. Those are great numbers for a rookie point guard. CP3 only averaged 16 ppg and 7.8 assists as a rookie. The key is the growth beyond this season. Can he take that next leap? I think he can. I don't really want to see him average over 20 or 21 ppg. I'd rather see him average 10 assists or more. He has the vision and the playmaking ability. A great point guard is far more important than a great shooting guard imo, because scoring can come from a number of players if you have a great point guard. Just look at the NJ Nets with Kidd. Who was their great scorer? Lillard could make Batum, Aldridge, and Matthews 10x better than they would have otherwise been. That's the x factor.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity The one you're comparing it to never actually co-existed.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Mods, can you change the thread title to "Steve Duin: Same old numbing mediocrity" please?
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Well, to be fair, I was the one who said that Lillard/Batum/Aldridge/Leonard could be better than Roy/Aldridge/Oden would have been if healthy.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Throw in the new offense (Stotts), and you get the possiblity of the Blazers showing up all the hate. We really haven't seen the best of our Core. Thanks IMO to Nate Mcmillian and the lack of a solid PG.
Man, our expectations for Dame are off the charts. I really hope he fulfills them, and stays healthy in the long run.
I think there's a difference between hope and expectations. I have high hopes for him, but my expectations are low because I'm a Blazers fan.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Wow, you're setting yourself up to be extremely disappointed this season.
Re: Steve Duin: Portland Trail Blazers: Same old numbing mediocrity Right now he's averaging 17 ppg and 6 apg. I don't think 18 and 8 is outside the realm of possibility. Obviously he might struggle, but if John Wall can put up 16 and 8, I think Dame could put up similar numbers.
