Notice Preseason Positives and Negatives

Discussion in 'Portland Trail Blazers' started by THE HCP, Oct 15, 2021.

  1. UKRAINEFAN

    UKRAINEFAN Well-Known Member

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    Here were the positives for me: we consistently got the ball upcourt much more quickly than in the past.
    Guys usually passed the ball very quickly. Usually strong effort on defense.
    Unfortunately none of it was very effective in scoring or defense. Would like to see more movement without the ball.
    I agree with Billups that the injuries have really hurt his teaching efforts, and I only hope he can keep them motivated until the teaching pays off.
     
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  2. royo

    royo Well-Known Member

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    I like how Nurk and Nance look on the floor together.
    And I like RoCo range on 3s.
    It looks like Nurk will have lots of assists this season.

    And this stuff from Stotts is exactly what was wrong with this team. No effort. How can you do that in any work, let alone professional sport. "To be better, we have to learn something new. Well, it is bit hard to learn. Oh, you think? Fuck it then, let's stay pat." I mean, wtf?

    It was really easy ball for Lillard and CJ under Stotts. Now they have to learn something. We will be good. Just go as far as we can from Stotts ideas.
     
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  3. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    Always, look on the Brighter side of life. The Blazers sucked in the preseason and it's gloom & doom in here. But at least the Lakers are in the same boat, and should tear down, and trade away their team for prospects. Their in the same boat. Based on preseason. So be happy .
     
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  4. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    Lakers looking to make deals to start the rebuild ala OKC under Sam Presti. News at 11.
     
  5. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I think AD for expirings and 3 1st, 3 trade swaps is fair.
     
  6. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    In all seriousness, i think it will be a learning process, but the Blazers will be better for it. The Blazers were playing guys who either , are end of the bench, or won't be on the team in the second half. Brown III is at least 3 years from making an impact. Watford probably 2 years. If they're even on the team then. Ant & Nas didn't play. They are actual contributors this year. No Zeller. The ONLY guy not a starter, that played some decent minutes was Smith Jr. He has a chance to make the team and contribute. Elleby is still developing, but does show some signs of competent play. He just needs to work on that shot. I do think there's a possibility of the Blazers adding a role player once the cuts from other teams are made. Blazers MUST add depth somehow. Other than DSJ, i didn't see anyone worth keeping on the active roster. Brown III & Watford need G League time this year. A lot of it.
     
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  7. UKRAINEFAN

    UKRAINEFAN Well-Known Member

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    Billups definitely understands the problems he faces instilling new systems on offense and defense, and the patience that will be needed over the next couple months. So far the players sound as if they aren't discouraged yet; they are holding up better than most posters here. The article also confirmed what we saw last year; that Stotts just gave up on trying to change the defense. And now we see that Lillard and McCollum were complicit in that. It's unfortunate that all these changes, with patience needed, are taking place during the year that Lillard seems to be deciding whether to stay or go. Obviously would have been much better if Olshey had made the coaching change a long time ago.
     
  8. UKRAINEFAN

    UKRAINEFAN Well-Known Member

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    Oh, another negative; as far as I can tell McLemore is on a guaranteed contract and he does not look good, especially on defense.
     
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  9. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    He was awful. His shot is worse than Elleby's. Very disapointing.
     
  10. julius

    julius Global Moderator Staff Member Global Moderator

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    Positives:

    Damian played basically 1 game, he's not going to put up the low #'s he did.

    They didn't play bad when fully healthy.

    Brown showed a lot of energy.

    Negatives:

    Everything and everyone sucked.
    CJ still sucks ass at defense.
    Nurk still thinks he's 6"4" and goes up soft.
    Simons and Little (esp Little) needed to show up and perform. Simons kind of did, Little didn't.
    Nance was meh.
    McLemore showed why he's never stuck in the league. Same with Smith Jr.
    The defense, while better, is still bottom 25 of the league.
    The offense is coincidentally, also bottom 25 of the league.
    Snell didn't play at all (not sure that matters).
    Team still plays like they can just turn on a switch and things will be fine.
    They make stupid mistakes and play like they're a top 5 team and can get away with sloppy passes.

    All in all, if the team doesn't gel and improve, they're a 30 win team. At best. On the positive, they would then keep their pick for next year.
     
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  11. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I did like what i saw in that 1st half, especially on defense, other than Nurk's lousy shooting. They were giving fits to the Warriors, with basically only 6 guys that can actually play.
     
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  12. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I think 30 wins is a little extreme , considering they played with mostly guys who, won't make the team, or are end of bench 2 way guys. The Blazers may start off slow, but they should be better with the additions of Zeller , Nance, and the improved play of Simons, and hopefully Nas. That's 9 guys. I think DSJ, if he makes the final roster will contribute. Can't say anything yet on Snell. Brown III, Watford, McLemore, & Elleby probably won't contribute a thing. But the 10 players that will be in the rotation will be fine.
     
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  13. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I do think all the poor shooting was due to weary legs from all the hard work in camp on defense. It's a process.
     
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  14. BoomChakaLaka

    BoomChakaLaka Well-Known Member

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    #Chicago Bulls got better! Simply put, we got worse.

    #Ownership needs to see the problem and fire him!

    **Olshey must go ASAP**

    #Team has NO soul.

    #CJ + Nurk for KAT still looks appealing

    #CJ for Simmons feels like an experiment - could work, might not?

    #We could use a tough PF - like Julius Randle

    #I’m sorry, but RoCo, as likable as he is, would be great coming off the bench as 7th man, but he doesn’t impact the game enough to be a starter

    # In five years, we will wish we had extended Simons

    # Trade. And include Little - the guy is made of play dough

    # sorry, but Kanter is as good as Nurkic; better trade him with Little and CJ and bring in talent

    # Ok. Ok. Melo would not be an asset to THIS assemblage

    # I mean WTF: Blevins / Elleby / Mclemore / Snell /
    Watford / this is piss poor

    # The above has ONE common thread. And he must be fired ASAP!!

    # The Good? The “Caption Contest” could get really fun this year!


    Random thoughts on the 2021-22 Season
     
    Last edited: Oct 16, 2021
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  15. UKRAINEFAN

    UKRAINEFAN Well-Known Member

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    It's my opinion that the Stotts' teams were never really in great shape. They didn't have to be with the defensive and offensive systems we ran, both in games and in practice. So it will take a while to get in better shape; hopefully it will pay off over the long season. Of course I think the starters will play less minutes this year, so hopefully they will stay fresh and strong.
     
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  16. Predator

    Predator The Godfather

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    Preseason doesn’t mean jackshit to me.
    It means even less with a first year head coach who is overcoming *10 years* of terrible habits.
    I expressed this on my old account that I can’t access anymore but I said Stotts should’ve been canned years ago because of this.

    everything Billups has said has just reinforced what I feel. “We aren’t going to make real progress until later in the season … hard to break 10 year old habits… etc”

    With that said, you can clearly see better defensive rotations *at times*. But the chain always gets broken somewhere. Probably a product of not playing starters and being able to practice much.

    offensively I’ve not seen anything differently and it looks worse. Maybe because dame isn’t playing much. Or I hope.
     
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  17. Chris Craig

    Chris Craig (Blazersland) I'm Your Huckleberry Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    The Blazers don't have time. They have to win or Dame is gone. Time is no longer a commodity the Blazers have. They are out of time.
     
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  18. 1 Eye Jack

    1 Eye Jack Well-Known Member

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    Wat to early to even have any idea how good or bad this team will be. Our key guys didn’t even play one of the preseason games. Anyone who thought we’d go into the season and have success was kidding themselves. New coach and complete overhaul of offense and defense. I’ll hold my judgment till about 15-20 games into the season.

    I’m not all doom and gloom it will either work or won’t. If it doesn’t you still have dame, Nurk and CJ as trade pieces. You start with 4-5 draft picks plus good players in return and the rebuild begins
     
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  19. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I think he means at the beginning of the season. I think once the team gets their legs the shooting will improve. But i can see improvement. I think if the team gets better as the season moves forward, everything will work out. Including Dame's Blazer future. By the way, say Dame in a new Modelo commercial. Pretty Damn Cool.
     
  20. tykendo

    tykendo Don't Tread On PDX

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    I hate when that happens with quotes.
     

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