Here’s my fix: 1) Stop trying to run. Brandon is our best player and he’s not a runner and our team needs to be built around our best player. Let’s run a half court offense only, pick & rolls, create mismatches, low post scoring… 2) Get both centers a bit more involved in the offense. Joel has good enough hands to be in a pick & roll and he has a decent jump hook. If we simply run a few plays for him, it will create more space for jump shots. 3) We need toughness at SF. If Webster and Outlaw can’t step it up, get one who gets in there and mixes it up. A banger type. 4) Consider replacing Nate. We have established talent and his substitutions are killing flow & continuity. If he can’t put the right people together, find a coach who can. 5) Tell KP to let go of his precious babies and trade for a player or two who can get the job done. We seem to have too many prissy players. 6) Start kicking some AAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSS on defense. If these guys can’t, get some who can. It’s true, nice guys finish last. 7) Give me a luxury suite to watch games in. Surly I deserve it.
No thanks, I'd rather pass around the perimeter until we get an open shot, and if we don't, let Outlaw or Roy go 1v5. Bad idea. Both centers foul more than they score and we would lose by double digits. I think Outlaw does just fine at SF. He obviously scores a lot, so we're good there. We went from 31 to 41 to 54. Don't worry, we'll win 60+ this year. All the players are too important to the team. Why? Defense isn't mandatory when you run such an efficient offense. No.
The solution isn't fixes like that. Just like Oden's problem now and Webster's problems years before. This is all mental. It's goes from all the way up to the front office, down to the lowest role player on the team. Either someone takes charge and figures out a way to get everyone on the same page, or our season will be this bumpy all season. You can change plays all day long. You can trade for players as well. Nothing will work until you fix yourself.
Me thinks you and the wifey spent too much time in the hot tub last night. BTW, thanks for the suggestion.
Here's some ideas from Ben at Blazer's Edge http://www.blazersedge.com/. It seems to me that we should try some adjustments before replacing the coach and players: "Adjustments It's very important to remember this analysis covers less than 11 minutes of play in one game. Nevertheless, I think there are some takeaways. * The Miller/Roy/Fernandez trio has some serious potential offensively and is likely the best option for kick-starting things when the Blazers are struggling to score, especially when paired with either Outlaw/Aldridge or (ideally) Aldridge/Oden. * Going back and forth between Miller and Blake down the stretch can create more problems than it solves. * Whether through locating pick and rolls differently (i.e. on the side instead of up top) or by isolating him on more occasions, the Blazers can do a much better job of involving Aldridge down the stretch. This will need to be a point of emphasis. * Consider having Roy dump passes in to either Aldridge or Oden to allow more offensive flexibility on the ball side. When Miller dumps the pass in, his man can collapse because he's not a shooting threat. When Blake dumps the pass in, defenders collapse because they feel they can close out on him quickly and need not worry about him pump-faking to attack the rim. Roy's man must play more honestly, respecting both Roy's jumper and his driving abilities. This allows more room for Aldridge to work and a lethal safety valve should he encounter trouble. * Oden setting high picks late in games serves no purpose unless 1) he becomes a target after the pick and 2) Roy looks for him. 1 will absolutely have to happen before 2 does. Neither happened Tuesday night." Also some interesting stuff Ben wrote, that Nate used 7 different rotations in the final 6 minutes of that game. wow.
Ben knows jackcrap and is completely reactionary. How he still has a press pass (or does he?) amazes me. Armchair quarterbacking is now worth a press pass. Unreal.
Well, my guess is that press passes are given out on the basis of how many readers your media may have, not on how much expertise the writer has. Having said that, at least Ben seems to have an analysis that goes to specifics. I don't really see that much elsewhere in the press or on this board. I myself am far from an expert on basketball; my own playing time was a year while confined in an army stockade. But some of his stuff makes sense to me. It would be interesting to see a discussion from those of you who have played a lot as to what is specifically wrong with his ideas and what specifically you would like to change concerning in-game tactics.
The entire idea of "ben" having some sort of credibility that supercedes any other fan's credibility. I think I already expressed that opinion, didn't I? Although I'm not convinced that Ben is actually a Blazer fan.
Hey, I've posted similar commentary on this board. So have many others. If you want to fawn over "ben", go to Blazersedge, I guess.
What the hell is your problem? We're debating Ben's opinions, which have just as much weight as ours. How about you actually look at his points instead of attacking the writer?
Martel (somewhat), Outlaw, LA, Rudy. And what I mean is, get your hands on players when defending and make them work harder. Or, a good hard foul once in a while to let them know you mean business. We're very well two deep at every position so knocking your man down a time or two isn't going to hurt the team. People are just lolly-gagging thru our key. I played a year og high scholl ball at West Linn and if a player on another team came thru our key and didn't get hit hard (foul or not), you got pulled on the spot- no questions asked. Our defenders are pretty much letting the other team do whatever they friggin' feel like doing. It makes me sick.
I like the idea of playing Rudy at SF and letting him create more. I think Outlaw, with his nice jump shot, is too limited in his overall game. 100% agreed. Pick one and live with that player. Terrible rotation by Nate. Again, 100% agreed. Miller can run the pick & roll well. In a way, we do this. But, our poor spacing and overall lack of basketball IQ dooms us. It's a coaching issue. I disagree. A high pick and then moving to the basket can creat some defensive problems for the other team. Also some interesting stuff Ben wrote, that Nate used 7 different rotations in the final 6 minutes of that game. wow.[/QUOTE] And that's been my main complaint about Nate. His rotations are hurting us. Badly.
