THE SKY IS NOT FALLING!!!!!!! Everyone sharpening their pitchforks and lighting their torches meant for KP need take a deep breath, put down their weapons, and commit themselves to being patient. I'll put our situation as simply as I can... Would you prefer KP make the WRONG move today, or keep doing his due diligence (which has gotten us to where we are today) and make the RIGHT move tomorow? The timeline of course is metaphoric, but the logic is right. The fact is, when we didn't move RLEC at the deadline, KP started a "move clock" that had exactly 1 year on it. Like it or not, our flexibility will exist until this year's deadline. I don't think anyone on the Blazers staff, or any Blazer fan for that matter is advocating for COMPLETELY standing pat (ie. not taking advantage of this cap flexibility), rather, the thought is to get this one right. Consider the following ...We weren't going to contend for the title this year, w/ or w/out Hedo. This means that this season will be one where we learn alot about this team and these players. Things like... -How much can GO improve? -Can Bayless be our starting "pg"? -Will Martell ever be able to get to full health again? -Is Nate the right coach to take us to the top? -Will Rudy/TO/Joel be happy coming off the bench for their entire career? -many others... So YES!!!!!! ABSOLUTELY we need to make a move to continue to improve this team. NOBODY ANYWHERE is saying we DON'T. But KP WILL wait until the right offer comes along. Just keep this in mind. Cleveland, LA, San Antonio, Toronto, Orlando, Dallas, Detroit... they've ALL made moves because their championship is closing and they're making one last stab at things. We on the other hand were [essentially] the youngest team in the league, and last season we won home-court advantage playing THE MOST DIFFICULT NBA SCHEDULE IN HISTORY! Our window is just being approached. We will be fine. Life will be good. Even if KP waits until the trade deadline, we'll be adding another huge piece for the next 5 or 6 years. So breathe in, breathe out. And lets all just agree to continue loving our Blazers! All that said... If nothing happens through the deadline...I've got one hellova nasty pitchfork ready to get mobbin.
We'll see how it goes. But I must say I don't have a whole lot of faith. When's the last time Blazers management did something we can clearly say was the RIGHT move? I'm saying not since the 2006 draft. Don't get me wrong. I'm happy with the team's level of success. I'm no where close to saying anybody should be fired. But seriously, we haven't made one definitively good move for three years. The closest thing to a good move we've made was getting rid of Zach. Everything else has either gone bad or is still up in the air.
i disagree with this statement. i also disagree with this statement. obviously, the goal is always going to be to improve the team and the blazers should be looking to improve the team in every way possible, but i disagree with the idea that the blazers need to make a move.
-Drafting, recruiting, courting and signing Rudy was a good move. -Buying Batum was a good move. -Trading Jarret Jack (who wanted out and needed to be out) for Jerryd Bayless, widely thought by "experts" to be a guy who could've easily gone as high as 4 was, at the VERY least a wash of a move, but WILL be a good move. Your point is not lost, but it seems to me that what we HAVE been doing and NOT DOING for that matter, seems to be working. It's not like you can count that many specific BAD moves that they've done. They've been careful and conservative, which, with a young, developing team, is, in my opinion, the way to go. I guess the way that I look at it is this, everyone and their dog knows that SOMETHING has to happen, so even if they have to take a stab at the next deadline, it, given the likely economic circumstances and teams ready to dump and run, WILL be at the very worst, as good as the offers we're getting now. I see ZERO point in rushing these decisions.
Maybe. Or maybe the right offer has already come and gone. I'd have bought your story based on KPs reputation until the Turkoglu fiasco. Now I'm not so sure about him. I was never sure Turk was the right deal anyway, and a little surprised at how much we offered him. But WTF? KP is KP I figured. Then he couldn't close the deal. Looks bad glazeduck. Looks bad. Personally I think he could have had Devin Harris at the trade deadline for RLEC, Outlaw and Bayless and he turned it down. I'd have pulled the trigger on that in a heartbeat. And I'll bet if he had the chance he'd go back and do that deal. Letting the cake bake was a story we were all sold when the real truth was we were playing hardball and couldn't get a deal done because of that.
No they do. They need to do SOMETHING with that space. It's an asset and a BIG one. If they don't do SOMETHING with it, it'll be a giant mistake. Will they still compete in the next few years? If GO, Batum and Bayless develop then yes. But something needs to be done w/ that space because we lose it once Roy and LA are extended.
It looks bad for him as a designer of cities? Didn't make Portland cosmopolitan enough? Woah! I'd have totally pulled the trigger on that imaginary deal, too! I, personally, think he could have had Chris Paul at the trade deadline for RLEC, Outlaw, Sergio, Blake and Webster. But unfortunately he's not willing to trade his beloved players. This deal I believe he could have done and I believe he turned down shows how incompetent he is.
I PROMISE you that was not on the table. Maybe something like Harris + us taking on Carter and/or Simmons' contracts while sending out Outlaw, Bayless, Batum, Picks, cash, RLEC, etc. Regardless, we're a VERY attractive team to trade with. We have a TON of talent on rookie contracts, an owner w/ deep pockets and cap space. We WILL get good offers.
Oh, Lord, no! We're a LONG, LONG ways from being contenders. We shouldn't expect to contend next year, or the year after that, or even the year after that. Patience, that's the word. Let's keep putting off our "contender" status indefinitely, because God knows, that's what reasonable fans do . . . [Sarcasm off]
the way the 09 plan was discussed around here, it was this summer we were to cement a legacy of 10 straight rings....so yeah, in that sense, the sky is falling.
i don't think they need to do something with the space. the space is there and is a good thing to have because it presents a lot of opportunities. if the right one comes along to improve the team, by all means, it should be done. but if the right move doesn't come along, it's not a mistake to do nothing. the team has plenty of talent. could they be a year off from truly contending? maybe. depends on oden/bayless/batum.
I disagree... We're close. But getting there and being prepared to win the title are 2 VERY different things. We're not ready to beat Kobe or Lebron in a 7 game series. Adding Turk wouldn't change that THIS YEAR.
Stop exaggerating. It was 6 straight rings. You know that quite well. And won't you feel silly when it happens. (Yes. Yes, you will.)
I get that. I understand that this is why people are freaking out. But at what age do most people learn that plans don't always go accordingly? We hit a speedbump. We'll be fine. The car is still moving, in the right direction mind you. What I'm saying is that just because plan "A" didn't go perfectly, doesn't mean we're all of a sudden screwed or that we need to panic and simply get SOMETHING done. We still have plenty of time to be patient, burn the phone lines and make a smart, rational, well thought out decision. The sky is not falling. I'd put it more like, our plane to greatness has been delayed. It's still taking off, we just have to wait annoyingly longer in this frustrating, boring airport, that is this thusfar static offseason, longer.
Hmm. Pre-2006 draft. 21 wins in cap hell with a starting line-up that would make an NBDL team sad. Post-2009 draft. 54 wins with cap room through 6/30/10 and a tie for second-best record in the West. What are you talking about? Seriously.
Oden was supposed to be the centerpiece of the "dynasty". Now losing an also-ran like Hedo Turkoglu means the sky is falling? This from the guy who had an epic and all-time board meltdown when Z-ME was traded on draft night.
