That reminds me of a soccer team I used to be player/coach for; and we had this Moroccan guy on the team and he was by far the most talented guy on the team. But it seemed every year we came up just short of the championship and finally he got tired of it and went to another team. The rest of the team just liked to play a fast, aggressive style and in some ways he had slowed us down some. And so we went on to dominate the league that year and win the championship.
Wow, some depth might really go a long ways this season. Things are definitely looking a bit brighter.
The Blazers have certainly addressed their shortcomings of last year; they now have a very balanced and deep team. Besides the balance of positions there is also a nice balance of youth and veterans. I could be wrong about this but I think it is possible that McMillan may have as much or possibly more input into what they are doing than anyone else.
I just don't see this team being very good, either. If we stay healthy, we should make the playoffs, but I don't see getting into the top 8 as a guarantee. Being mediocre with not much promise sucks, and that's where I see this team. *sigh* Ed O.
Haha. Yes. Excellent point. I think I might be alone in not expecting much from this team this season. Ed O.
haha loner! IMO we finally got the depth and well-roundedness to play team ball and make a splash in the playoffs.
I still think there's a lot of promise in Aldridge, Batum, Williams and even Matthews. Aldridge is really the only one of those four to be in his prime playing years. You have to admit he made some pretty startling progress last year--who's to say he's done improving? And of course there's always Oden. Yeah, I'm probably the only guy here still saying that, but I still say there's at least a chance he recovers, and as long as there's a chance there's a chance at a championship. It ain't a ton of hope. There are certainly a fair number of teams with more upside than we have. But the potential is there.
Anyway, considering we went from three franchise-level players down to one in two years, I wouldn't say the future is bright. That's like looking at the sun and then trying to convince yourself that the moon is bright too. But it's not all bad.
We aren't going to win a championship with this Roster but the is better overall depth and talent at most of the positions. Namely the PF and C. Also getting Gerald Wallace fully integrated in the offense should help things as well.
At the very least, we will go from a team with a reputation of being soft, to one of toughest in the league. Adding Wallace at the trade deadline amped up the energy level - the guy ALWAYS brings it. Adding Thomas and Craig Smith gives us some nastiness to back up Aldridge and keep opponents from roughing him up and getting away with it. We now have 12 of the hardest fouls in the league to give, and if one of those guys gets tossed, it's no big deal. I never advocate dirty play, or stupid (Andrew Bynum) fouls that put a player at risk for injury, but I also believe in hard nosed physical play. You don't back down from your opponent. It's always better to be intimidating than to be intimidated. Having guys like Thomas and Smith on our roster will make opponents think twice about ess any excessive contact on our guys BEFORE it happens. BNM
Rice just texted me and says Jamal Crawford is killin' it in practice! Hasn't missed! Take it for what it's worth.
Just remember that no one even thought the Blazers in 99 had a shot for top 3, let alone the WCF. Not saying this team could, but they do have enough talent to possibly get there.
