Official Rising Stars Challenge Game Thread 2/15/2013 6pm PT

Damian Lillard - 15.5 FGA

Damon Stoudamire - 16.1 FGA

And Batum is Walt Williams? Come on......

 

Everybody is allowed to express their opinion, but you my friend are way off.

 

Lillard has been underwhelming lately. He shot 60% in the Miami game, but I'm guessing this was a chip on his shoulder after his record setting (embarrassing) play the night before in Orlando. He came back to earth in New Orleans.

He hit the rookie wall face first.

His 1-16 FG is an NBA record for a rookie who shot more than 10 FGA in a game. He's the first rookie that a coach allowed to chuck after missing 10 straight.

Hopefully he'll pick up his play next week.

 

Nate, summer league schmummer league. He's not in the upper echelon of NBA athletes and doesn't take it inside much. Guys like Russell Westbrook and Tony Parker for example, makes almost twice as many shots at the rim each game as Damian.

 

Hey, Walt Williams was a pretty good bench player. Take a look at his stats in Toronto, the year before we got him. Remember Bill Schonley would always say, "That's why we got him!" after he made a 3. Look at his career stats, he had years very similar to Batum, even surpassing him in many areas. His last year in Portland he shot 43% from 3pt range. Both of their offensive games was mostly long jumpshots. Blazer fans are really scraping too hard for something to cheer about.

Almost all Batum does on offense is jack up 3s, and he's shooting a very average rate, like Lillard. That is one of the core problems in this team, in love with the 3pt shot, but 3rd worst in the league at it.

 

Let's put this wailing and gnashing of teeth in perspective. Answer me this:

So, is Lillard garbage?

And yes, I mean overal, and I mean yes or nol. I don't mean one game, or ten games. Is Lillard a garbage player?

The answer is pretty self-apparent.

 

lol people trashing Lillard because of a useless game? Aldridge may not score much in the all-star game, does that make him a crappy PF?

 

Many Blazer fans want to blame the bench for everything, but we've seen the starters come out and fall way behind plenty of times as well. The bench is bad, but it's not like we're just a 6th man a way from being a team that has a legit shot and getting out of the 1st round.

Julius, the Blazers rank 4th in the league in 3pts attempted and 27th in 3pt %. It's not a statement about the NBA, but abot the Blazers. Matthews, Lillard and Batum came into the league long after the 3pt line was shortened.

 

I don't think Damian is bad, but some Blazer fans are acting like we drafted Chris Paul or Deron Williams. I don't understand what all the hype is about. He may win rookie of the year because of his numbers, but so did Damon. He'll be a very solid starter for us for years to come, but if this team ever wants to get out of the 1st round they need some players that actually make an impact. Not pussies that sit around and jack up 3s all the time.

 

I grew up watching Clyde, Porter, Kersey, Williams, those guys actually played with fire and heart. Matthews is really the only player on this team with much heart, but he doesn't have the talent. I'm just saying, this team will never make it out of the 1st round.

The Blazers have been out of the first round how many times since they lost to the Bulls in 1992? 2 times in 20 years? This collection of players is only superior to the bottom feeders we had during the Randolph era.

 

So in your opinion Damian Lillard is a pussy. Good to know.

 

http://stats.nba.com/playerShotchart.html?PlayerID=203081 Lillard's shot chart. Yeah, a lot of threes, but he's taken 237 shots within 8 feet of the basket. 33% of his shots are inside the key.

Also interesting, when you look at Effective FG% (accounting for 3 pointers being worth 3 points), his most effective shot is the one he takes the most.

http://stats.nba.com/playerStats.ht...=&DateTo=&SeasonSegment=&Month=0&LastNGames=0

 

Stop while your ahead.

 

Ha! Sounds like you're trying to spin things like a politician. Over half the teams in the league shoot a higher % from 3pt range, as a team, than Damian does by himself.

 

Who cares what his rookie numbers were? Is Damian on Deron's level now? The fact is, most players don't elevate their game to an elite level, that's why the elite are called elite. Imagining a player will reach that level is wishful thinking. Right now, Damian is a mediocre PG.

 

Indeed, the league average 3% shooting is 0.7% higher than Lillard's.