Biggest weakness: Talent, Toughness or Experience?

I don't think there was a 3rd player who stepped up for POR in ANY of thier playoff games...

Certainly a large part of what has made ORL so good is that Howard, Turkoglu & Lewis have played so consistently...and they have Jameer Nelson coming back from injury next year, who was playing very well before his injury...

DEN & HOU both had 2 players playing pretty well consistently, certainly in thier wins they found that 3rd player to step up (and had role players step up as well)...and I think that had a fair bit to do with why they won those games....

I agree, generally teams need a 3 player to consistently produce to WIN...and have other role players step up as well...I think POR problem right now is that they really only have one player (Roy, who showed up each night, Aldridge showed up for about 1/2 the games...but I think it is very reasonable to expect him to improve in that area (experience being a factor)....

I don't see that 3rd player yet on this team...I see a couple possibilities (Oden & Rudy mainly), but no sure thing...So that is why I think this team's weakness right now is talent...maybe it will develop from within, but POR is a unique position to add another "key" player to thier roster, and so IMO they should reach for that 3rd scoring option (or heck even 2nd) if they can get it...

 

I voted for talent, but it's probably more like D. (all of the above)

Portland needs to get tougher for sure. They need to stop settling for jump shots and attack the rim.

Portland certainly needs experience as well.

Talent though for me is the right answer. Portland has a star type player in Brandon Roy, and very good second fiddle in LaMarcus Aldridge, and then 8 or so guys who right now in their careers should be bench players for sifferent reasons. Everyone says how much depth we have, but in the NBA you win with your starters. Portland's starters are two starters, a rookie center coming off knee surgery ad unable to stay out of foul trouble, a journeyman PG who really should be a back up and a rookie who has promise, but shouldn't be a starter right now on a championship team.

 

I went with experience. The majority of our core guys need some more time to develop. Rudy, Batum, Bayless and Oden were all rookies this season so they will be better next year IMO. On top of that I feel that both Roy and LMA will be better next year as well. So now you just need a healthy Webster, a regular Outlaw, Joel, and Blake and you have a pretty nice team.

I have a feeling we are making a move though. Sergio & Frye are going to be gone in the draft, and we might even see Bayless & Outlaw included.

 

For a bit I thought you were being serious and I was so confused.

 

No need for stupid juvenile comments. I didn't say anything about Mike Brown west in the post. But since you brought it up, our team won 54 games because of Roy, primarily, and Aldridge. For me, Mr Sonic gets a lot of credit for getting this team to fight, but it is a piss poor perimeter defensive team, and our high offensive EFF is simply because of offensive rebounding.


Now wait and see what Pritchard does. If we add a PG, SF or back up PF this off season he agrees with me about talant.

 

I have to mildly disagree. Nene was a pretty darn consistent contributor for Denver.

 

Nene seemed to get worse and worse as the palyoffs went on.. he is bad at defense and in that last game he couldn't do anything at all offensively against Bynum. He also missed a lot of close shots.

 

Yeah but Nene was far better in the playoffs for DEN than anyone in POR outside of Roy & LA was...

Shannon Brown sure looked like he needed some "playoff" experience...kind of like Outlaw...wait....not

 

BTW, not to be pedantic, but there is a difference between "talent" and "skill".

Some of the Blazers (EG Oden, Outlaw, Batum, Sergio, Bayless, and even Rudy) have yet to fully develop their talents. Some likely never will. Experience will contribute to that, and to mental toughness as well.

Some Blazers are a little shy on talent (EG Blake, Joel), but ironically, they have developed their skills to get the most out of them.

Bottom line, IMHO, is that pure talent is not the biggest concern.

 

Isn't that a majority of the positions? "If we add any one of these 3 positions out of 5, he agrees with me." 60% chance of being right if any move is made isn't bad haha.

 

How many years until Outlaw fully develops his talent in your opinion? He has been in the league 6 years now. Oden, Batum, Sergio, Bayless and Rudy though you are right on. Although I am not sure any of them will fully develop them under Nate. Rudy, Sergio and Bayless all play too free style for Nate. Oden can't get a big man coach to help him, and get's no plays forced to him. Batum however plays safe, under control, and within himself, so he will do quite well under Nate.

I say Nate as in him and his staff. It certainly isn't all him, or really his fault. It's just his style.

 

I'll even go 1 possition. If KP upgrades the PG spot this offseason then he agrees with me.

 

Toughness. If we had a big banger in the middle against Houston, we would not have had so much trouble.

Oden needs to wake up and we need another banger in there. Draft Blair!

 

AK47 is who I think the Blazers will go after. I think it will probably have to be a 3 way though.

 

Rose, McDyess, Wilcox, whomever. Just some guy with a reputation for defense and physicality to back up LaMarcus, and preferably some semblance of an offensive game beyond garbage points and put backs otherwise I don't see them fitting in real well with our two centers.