Portland has exercised the third year options on Damian Lilliard, Meyers Leonard and Thomas Robinson.
If Leonard and Robinson reach their potential, we could have found our pot of gold. We got damn lucky with Lillard. First, however, someone needs to keep Leonard in the key.
I think we need to let Leonard do what he is best at. Just as the Kings were dumb to try and make TRob a jump shooting PF it'll be silly for us to try and make Leonard an inside presence when he has never been one. He is a jump shooting big and can have a lot of value as such, Rik Smits and even Sam Perkins played significant roles for very good teams even though they were not traditional big men. Hopefully at least two of our sophomore players can make some big improvements this year. Our roster certainly has some very nice upside potential if a few guys exceed exceptions.
What Leonard does best is be a stretch 4. As for your comparison, the difference is that Smits was a good defender. and Perkins at least knew what defense was at the 4.
Is there such a thing as a stretch 5? I don't think he can shoot as well as (at least in my mind) a stretch 4 should be. Nor can he guard them. But I agree that he can take his man away from the basket. At least 12-15 feet. I think he will work well with Trob who will need to stay around the basket.
Yes, Okur and Sabonis could be considered stretch 5s for example but Meyers is NOWHERE near that type of player!
Was there some kind of deadline because I'm wondering why the Blazers exercised options on Leonard and T-Rob. Why not wait til the end of the year to see what you got.
I really think Thomas Robinson will be our next great PF and take Aldridge spot. LA will get traded before his contract.
Lenoard lead the Blazers in 3pt % last season and had great FT and FG % as well. He scored efficiently inside and on put backs. He has a lot of upside with his shooting and could be a hell of a role player. He won't be an inside presence so fans shouldn't expect that nor get disappointed when he doesn't provide something he's never been good at. But I could see him getting hot in a few games and providing a great offensive spark that keys our second unit.
Sabas had great skills but he was not a good 3 point shooter. He could make them but his percentages were very poor. Meyers has actually looked better then Sabas in that regard. Don't get me wrong, its only one of many components to being a complete basketball player and Sabas greatly outshines Meyers in basically every other aspect of the game.
Sabas 415 career 3pt attempts Leonar_ 7 career 3pt attempts Let's settle the fuck down kids......Geez
Sabonis only made 136 of those attempts which equals 32.8%. That is a poor percentage, my main point was saying Sabonis was a poor 3 point shooter, he dominated in other parts of the game. Meyers has displayed much better shooting in summer league and last year in the season. Meyers shot 54.5% FG on 277 attempts which was equal or better than every year of Sabonis career. Meyers shot 80.9% FT's on 89 attempts which was better than 6 of 7 seasons Sabonis played. Obviously Meyers has a ton to prove; can he keep those percentages up in longer minutes, can he play defense or rebound well enough to not be a major liability. He will never have the passing or IQ of Sabonis so I wasn't saying he had that potential. But early indications are Meyers shooting is far and away his best strength and he could carve out a very special role with that skill.
Leonard will be playing for the Clippers later in the season so don't stress. Leonard & Wes for Jordan will happen.
