Are we really a 30 win team like everyone says we are?

I mean, even though we lost, I liked our team tonight and of course, I loved them on opening night. This team looks wayyyy better than last year's team. Hickson and Lillard are big upgrades over what we had last year though I do miss Camby's blocked shots. I just don't see a losing team out there. 45 wins at least.

 

Eric we have NO bench. If we keep playing our top 4 players this many minutes, it's gonna get ugly!

 

If Lillard continues to play this way and even improves as the season goes on and if Aldridge gets on track and maybe takes another step because of good chemistry with Dame I can easily see us making the playoffs. Of course those are a lot of ifs but a definite possibility IMO.

 

We have a bench. We're just not playing them. I wish Stotts would give Freeland, Barton, and Claver more minutes. I don't mind Jeffries, but Pavlovic is not very good and Nolan Smith is horrible.

 

Actually, most "experts think we are a 35 win team

 

I talk a lot of crazy optimistic sarcasm about this team, cause it's fun, but I honestly think that we're a .500 team, if not 45 wins this year. I think we have the talent of a 50 win team, and the only thing keepin us from that is a rookie PG. Ironically, he's also the reason we're not a 30 win team like many predicted. There is a learning curve, and we're ahead of the curve because of Lillard, but still a young team.

 

as long as they stay healthy I see them as a winning team with the playoffs as a real possibility

STOMP

 

I hope to be buying Sly a beer soon after it's determined the Blazers will make the playoffs.

 

MM....... I'm in Houston, buy me lunch FAMS!

 

when you say "like everyone says" you lost me there, cause that's not at all correct, there is a lot of differing opinions going into the season of how the Blazers might fare

 

I disagree. Price, Pavlovic, and Jeffries are solid experience veterans. As you saw last night, Babbitt is good for a few threes when we need a boost.

 

Most of the magazines and newspapers have us at 27-33 wins.

 

Be tough since I am in NE Portland right now.

 

and they know what besides squat? Portland is an after thought for them

 

to further that, if a magazine previewing a sports season wants to see healthy sales of their publication, then they should appeal to what the masses want to hear/read. LA fans aren't going to impulse buy an Athlons that predicts them to struggle... thats why regardless of the sport you pretty much always see the major market teams at the top of their predictions

STOMP

 

So did we just switch spots or are you paying my wife a visit?

 

ESPN Magazine picked the Lakers to be 4th. And picked Minnesota to be 3rd. Are they not worried about selling well?

 

Actually, I will be in section 103 with my daughter

 

I think I'm a little more optimistic than the typical NBA commentators who are predicting 30-35 wins, but I still only see about 40 wins. There are just too many games the Blazers will have to play against very good Western Conference teams, too many road games, and too many games played in close succession with an extremely mediocre and inexperienced bench.

I think this team is better than the Telfair/Khryapa/Darius Miles/Z-Bo team back in 2005 that only won 21 games. But are they that much better than the team the next year - with rookies Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge (which won only 32 games)? Maybe slightly, because Aldridge is a better player than he was back then, but it'll take Batum, Lillard, Matthews really performing - and someone on the bench playing well enough to keep the starters' minutes down.