Hey all! I've been a follower of this forum all season, but first time poster. I've enjoyed the insight and viewpoints about the Blazers. Thought I'd throw this out there since I don't think it's been asked yet. With the acqusition of Camby and the presumed return of Roy this Friday, where will Portland end up in the Western Conf. standings at the end of the season? They're currently in the 8th spot, but just 2 games behind 4th place Dallas and 4.5 behind 2nd place Denver with 26 games left. Mathematically it's certainly possible to end up in 2nd, but realisitically, where will Portland end up? Of their remaining 26 games, 13 are against current playoff teams. There are other stats to consider, like their record this season against the remaining teams on their schedule, but it's really tough to say if those stats mean anything with possibly the healthiest roster they've had for a while and a new defensive middle in Camby. Thoughts?
i say 6th at best... 9th at worst i truly believe its us or houston unless the spurs suffer a big injury
It might add to the conversation to know that of those 13 games against current playoff teams, 9 of them are against the West: LA 1 Dallas 2 Phoenix 1 OKC 2 Denver 2 Utah 1
I kind of agree with mixum on this one except Im a little more optimistic. We own the tie breaker with SA and Phx already and we have a good shot at the tie breaker with Dallas and OKC. I think we finish better than SA and Phx, Utah wont play .900 ball the rest of the season so we could get hot and catch them but not likely. Dallas really improved IMO and will be 3rd, but you never really know how that will work out on the court. OKC is the wild card, they are good but young, they could easily slip on the stretch run but will they? If Roy gets healthy soon we have a soild shot at HCA but could just as easily finish 9th. My guess right now is 6th, maybe 5th.
At the risk of being Captain Obvious - it is all down to Roy. If he comes back strong, the Blazers have a shot at the 7th seed. If he shuts it down for the year, welcome to the lotto.
I am secretly hoping for the 8th spot that way we can play a certain team in late April and take em' to school.
I would rather win a playoff series than play the lakers in the first round. If we won a series it would be a huge accomplishment and step forward for this team, despite all the adversary. That would give us a lot more to build on for next year than a 5-7 games with the Lakers. The thought of beating the Lakers in the first round is sweet though. I still want some payback for 2000.
