Is there really any excuse not to play Greg Oden at least 25 minutes a night? Other than fouling out or being so tired he can't get up and down the court he should be on the floor. He is not going to get better by playing 13 minutes a night. This is an evaluation year according to KP, so evaluate him. It's ridiculous that he isn't playing through foul trouble. Nate needs to adjust around Greg, not the other way around. IMO Nate has proved that his defensive schemes suck ass anyway. Figure it out.
Well, most of the time I don't think there is an excuse. And if he gets fouls we need to let him play through it. But last night, there were better options that gave us the best chance to win, which is why Nate did it. And while I was frustrated with Greg's minutes, I think Nate made the right call.
That depends on if winning games is the priority or if developing Oden is the priority. Oden was getting abused on the pick and roll last night. If he plays double the minutes, does the team win the game? If you're fine with potentially taking extra losses by not playing the players who give the best chance to win, then I suppose there isn't an excuse for not playing Oden 25 minutes. If you want the team to make the playoffs, I suppose at this point a case could be made that there is an excuse to not play him 25 minutes in every game.
I agree that last night the defense Nate had us playing worked better with Aldridge and Outlaw. I guess my point is that our defense shouldn't be designed so poorly that we can't play our franchise center against most teams because most teams run the pick and roll
Przy handles the pick and roll more than adequately under the same design. I figured this would be yet another thread bashing "McMuffin".
You mean like when Prz screamed at the guards cause he was getting cheap fouls? Prz handles it better, but it's the scheme as well.
Correct. There is a reason the pick and roll, such a basic play, continues to be a success. The only way to really stop it is by having solid man-to-man defenders, by doubling the dribbler before the pick is set, or by going zone. The first is a talent issue, the last two leave glaring weaknesses in the defensive set.
Yeah you often see Shaq, Hakeem, Tim, Josh, Kareem and so on sitting the second half of games? Great teams know how to use their great centers. Nate has no clue! Championship teams are built around great centers. Nate is building his team around his guard play and whatever falls off the rim Greg or Joel can have. That's why Nate will be gone before this team becomes a contender,why? He doesn't know how to make his center effective!
I agree w/ the inside-out philosophy, but lets be real. Greg is nowhere near a great center right now, and playing to Roy's strengths gives our team the best chance to win. If we had a great center (lets say we had Dwight Howard), i'm pretty confident we'd play around Dwight. That said, I definitley agree that we should develop Oden much better than we are doing though. Let him play through fouls, give him more touches, STOP SWITCHING ON PICKS, etc... Give Oden the best chance to suceed and develop.
I think the coaching staff needs to figure out really quickly that Greg is getting sick of not being involved in any of the offense. At this point I am pretty sure that is the issue.
If Greg doesn't get better it's such a waste and the play calling is the reason! If I was seeing the ball 3-5 times and I had that size and talent I'd be opting out and heading to Phil or Pop as soon as I could. He's got to learn win or lose! He is the key to our championships!
As much as I love Roy, LA, Bayless and Rudy they will not bring the rings here without Greg! He is the force that makes their finesse, it's that simple!
Funny...Dwight got a consistent 33 mpg as a rookie even though he was shooting worse than Greg, committing 33% more turnovers per game, rebounding at a slightly worse rate, (though Greg fouls more), and through JAN, scoring at a worse rate than Oden. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/gamelog?playerId=2384&year=2005 http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/gamelog?playerId=3225 But amazingly enough, with that consistent 33mpg he averaged 14/12 and 16/10 in Feb and March and went on to become the C we see today. All this with 2 good legs and no "rust". We have a guy who's out-Howarding Howard's rookie year, and you think he should sit until he gets to superduperstar status?
Orlando won 36 games in Howard's rookie season. I don't think the situations are at all similar. Orlando was in rebuild mode that year, and actually exceeded expectations. Portland is on record saying that not making the play-offs would be a disappointment. I'm just not in favor of giving players undeserved touches or minutes when there are players on the roster who give you a better shot at winning with the ball in their hands.
Fair enough PapaG. But if you're "developing", "evaluating", whatever...how can you evaluate your team with Oden on the bench? I want to make the playoffs, too, and I don't think playing Oden and making them are mutually exclusive. And who knows? Maybe if he actually played you'd see the progression quicker?
This philosophy is fucked!! Who gives a donkey nipple if the teams makes the playoffs and we lose a year of Greg becoming the man in process? Greg must not get lost so we can make the playoffs. This time is massively important in his development as a player of impact. 99% of that is letting him play through the learning curve of the NBA! If he ends his first year scoring 8ppg and 8 boards, I for one think his confidence may be permanently screwed! Short term succes VS long term dominace, whay would you pick?
I want Oden to be a monster in the league. I also think the team is playing very well at this point as it is being coached. It's a tough situation for Nate, I imagine, in potentially trading some Ws in a season where every W will likely be critical in securing a play-off spot. Tough call, and I don't completely disagree with the camp that wants Oden to be force-fed into being a meaningful player instead of an afterthought.
What if that is all he does this year after Nate hypothetically makes him option A on offense? What if he isn't near ready being the primary option and he fails? Would that shatter his confidence? Would that cause Roy or LMA to leave after next season as a FA? Oden has showed nothing at this point to prove he should suddenly become THE MAN on the roster, and in the media even Greg has agreed with that assessment.
