Jason Quick just said on 95.5 that the Blazers are targetting the road trip that starts 1/18 for Nic to come back (provided no setbacks) He is WAY ahead of schedule. Nice.
And Patti Mills has been cleared to play. He's practicing at full speed and it's up to the coaches (according to Quick)
that's also when Rudy's targeting, correct? And didn't Nic say about a week ago that he hoped to be back by the ASG? How do you get a 1-month bump to the left in schedule?
you sure he didnt mean rudy? funny thing about rudy coming back is... thats the spot we dont need help maybe he can play sf
Good news in that we get another warm body, but getting guards back probably won't help us much. I mean, aside from the Miller/Roy/Bayless triumvirate I'm hoping for Blake's still playing 30mpg. (Which he's doing well at recently since coming off the bench). When Rudy comes back that's another guard to juggle. When Batum comes back Roy's minutes at the 3 will go down and he'll play more 2, squeezing the minutes even further. Mills may not see the floor outside of garbage time.
Yes, Rudy is targeting the same return. Quick just said the Doctors have determined recently that Nic is way ahead of schedule. He also just said Blazers don't feel like they need to make a move . . . they are targetting some Big Men from the D-Leauge (they just got another injury exception from the league for Joel) They mentioned some names that I've never heard of. Rod Benson? I dunno. He said they will probably be released when Nic/Rudy come back.
I have no idea when he is coming back, but Batum, imho, is the one that will give us the best "lift" when he returns. Not Rudy, not Travis and not likely Mills. That kid has the highest immediate impact and the highest ceiling of these guys, imho. I hope Rudy comes back on fire and proves me wrong, however.
I can see Batum getting some minutes at the 4 in a small ball lineup, with Aldridge at C, and our 3 Gs. If Outlaw can play there, Nic can as well, with the same faults in his game of being too small.
need his shot blocking and defense BADLY. great news though if true. didnt hcp say he was out for season? cant lie i kinda agreed with him.
I want to see a Batum/Aldridge/Jeff-P at the bigs rotation for a little. Batum drove people crazy with his defense last year (remember Wade trying to elbow him?), and it seems like Pendergraph is already starting to drive people upset as well ('Melo, last game). Put these two with Bayless/Roy/Aldridge for offense, and this could be a real pain in the rear unit to deal with.
BOOM-THO!!! Sounds like a decent big, if a little skinny. Ben from Blazersedge.com broke him down last week when Joel went down.http://www.blazersedge.com/2009/12/24/1218783/the-search-for-the-17th-man Excited yet?
Rod Benson cracks me up... [video=youtube;DjdcywpkxlU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjdcywpkxlU&feature=player_embedded[/video]
Cut Mills, sign Benson. team needs a new blogger/favorite son. Come on Portland, be part of the BoomTho movement!
All I can think of after reading that Mills, Batum and Rudy will be back sooner rather than later, is just how in the fuck are they going to get 6 or 7 guards on the floor?
I really don't feel comfortable with Batum coming back early...As much as he would help right now I would much rather him get into better shape and make sure his shoulder is 100% before throwing him out on the court. I know injuries happen in basketball but I really don't trust our medical staff at this point.
I can't wait for Batum to come back. I really think Webster and Batum are perfect for each other. They compliment each other so perfectly, and it would really finalize who really needs to be dealt, which is Outlaw. Give us a banger to compliment Aldridge. Who knows, we may already have one with this penegraph dude. Howard seems like he's filling in well too. It would be nice to right Howard until Penegraph can actually take over the back-up role.
Quick always wants to out-scoop everyone even at the expense of accuracy. I'll believe NB is back when he is and then be happy about it rather then disappointed if he misses some arbitrary deadline. It is good to continue to hear that the various injured guys are at least on track with their respective recoveries though. STOMP
