Not surprising, I guess, but lots of overblown negativity on the board today. The first game back from a road trip is similar to a road game, and New York had a couple of players really shoot the ball well (Lee, Thomas, Robinson in the second half). It's a very good win for the Blazers. Some thoughts: -- Sergio's shooting 33.3% from three point range now. If we remove the last-second long three point attempts I bet he's probably about 36%. Great? No. Acceptable? I think so. -- Great shot by Roy. -- Outlaw is Outlaw. Man. -- Oden is probably my favorite Blazer. The way he hits the offensive boards (six offensive rebounds tonight) is a result of how hard he works. He's getting blocked down on the offensive end much less now, and while he had two quick traveling turnovers tonight, his footwork is MUCH better than it was earlier in the year. When he gets his fouls under control, he's going to be a lot more consistent. I still think he's got a good chance to be a top 2 or 3 center in the NBA in a few years and I wouldn't be shocked if he someday is better than Dwight Howard to be the best. -- Aldridge's rebounding is so odd. I love the five offensive boards. I can't believe the two defensive boards. Even accounting for having to chase perimeter players around... that's not many. -- Rudy Fernandez is becoming less and less relevant, it seems. Hope he can get back into a groove to be more helpful to this team. Any win in the NBA is a good win if no one gets hurt. I am very pleased that we won, irrespective of us blowing a lead. Ed O.
It's gotten to the point I don't like reading the game thread especially when the Blazers are not doing well. If we had loss I wouldn't have posted.
We have Roy, Aldridge, Oden, Rudy, and Outlaw..... they have Lee..... We win by 1 point in our home court and Nate is a better coach than D'Antoni? Wow.
I feel you. I actually rarely post in them during the game both because of the negativity (people waiting until players they clearly already don't like to jump in and say, "Ah HA! I told you he sucks!") and because I'm often time-shifted so I can skip through commercials towards the end. Alas, I am a moderator so I try to put my nose down and read all the posts. Ed O.
Yeah. The Knicks have a few talented offensive players, but not many that are good at many things outside of scoring. I don't think that any one game is indicative of a coach's superiority... and especially not when teams like these two are so asymmetrical in terms of capabilities. Ed O.
Ya, I know what you mean. When BBF was more, well was, active I read a lot of threads I wouldn't have read otherwise because of being a mod.
becoming mine. when he gets a little more confidence and a little more respect from the refs he is gonna be pretty damn scary. hopefully aldridge was paying attention when oden made a simple drive for a layup from above the FT line in the first half.
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Oden is easily the one player on our team that once he puts it all together can not be stopped. It really isnt even close.
Nate literally has every tool any coach would ever want in a collection of players. I don't for the life of me understand the excuses McMillan has. Nate is getting by in sheer talent alone, not much has anything to do with his coaching. Just my opinion though.
Oden hasn't had the stunningly great rookie season that would have been fun to see, but I definitely think his rookie season is consistent with the claims that he is a rare big man talent. His main problem is fouls...once he gets those under control (which almost all big men do), he'll play consistent minutes and be consistently impactful. Despite his low moments, he's a lot of fun to watch develop. With a season or two under his belt, he's going to be a big force in the league.
I have my doubts about him, as well... the main reason that I'm not on the "Fire Nate!" bandwagon is simply because of the youth of the team. Portland has almost NO experience in its rotation right now. Especially with Blake out, we have ... who? Joel and Outlaw, but I don't think that even the biggest Outlaw backer would claim he's got a ton of wisdom to share or ability to stabilize his team based on his experience. I'm not saying that with Blake back it'll get better... the inconsistency, though, is rooted in some combination of inexperience and coaching, and since inexperience is undeniable, I'm still giving Nate more time before I give up on him. Ed O.
The thing that bugged me most about this game was how dominant Portland was across several key stats, only to have the game still close because of the Knick 3 point shooting. I'll take it, but this game was what it was. A victory over an east team at home.
For how much Outlaw gets ragged on around here, he sure has fire in his vains when comes to hitting big shots in the fourth quarter. Nice job by the Blazers to come back in the last few minutes. However, VERY bad job by the Blazers to lose such a big lead in the first place. Either way, we won!
This game was the best demonstartion of how the guards ole defense can really effect the outcome of a game. Sergio let them drive right past him at will, I can't say I've ever seen anything quite like it. How can our centers defend the pick in roll when their guarding two guys? Same with Outlaw. If we upgrade even one of those two spots with a real defender, we become infinitiely better. PG should be the first priority, because Webster has always been an above average defender AND an offensive threat.
This is one of those "just be grateful for the win" moments, because I think in the last 4-5 games, we've seen some serious shortcomings of this team - and they're things that have been out there, but haven't come out to bite the Blazers until now. 1.) No killer instinct. This team was ahead by double digits against the Knicks, and couldn't put them away. Why not? 2.) Lack of hustle. If I have to see David Lee run down one more board while guys like Aldridge, Outlaw, and Rodriguez are left there flat-footed, I'll scream. 3.) Lack of aggressive play. Against teams with inferior inside players - the Thunder and Knicks in particular - the Blazers should be racking up foul calls, rebounds, and points in the paint. Not seeing it. 4.) Poor closeouts on outside shooters. Whether it's Kevin Durant or Nate Robinson, there must be an "open for business" sign on the Blazers' three-point stripe, because players are stepping up there to take pot shots like it's a foul line. I am hoping that Steve Blake will provide some of the toughness, focus and fundamentals that this team has been missing. Teams are starting to play for the post-season, and it's a different season from now into April. The Blazers better figure that out fast.
That's been the problem with all our guards the past few years. None of them stop penetration. Webster isn't an above average defender...but he shows signs that he wants to be. I'm guessing that's because he trains with Kobe and wants to emulate him.
Interesting stat: Sergio is 11-24 (.458) from three in the 11 games that Blake hasn't played in. Not expecting that to last forever, but he's covering that part of Blake's game despite shooting them about half as much.
