Stotts Is Mediocre

I'm starting to see a fair bit of posts questioning the coaching our team is receiving. (Finally.) Here's a thread to capture all of it.
Go!

Crabbe either starts or doesn't play. Makes perfect sense.

Batum is clearly hurting and not helping this team, continue to play him.

Letting Wright to continue to play when pump fake, drive and turning it over is the reg for him. I would pull his ass the second he pump fakes either a wide open 3, or when standing 6 feet behind the arc.

That's all I have for now.

I still have faith in Stotts, you've gotta be forgetting how he out coached McHale if you don't have some faith in him. That said, I do hold some skepticism regarding the adjustments(or lack of) he has made this year.

I don't understand why Crabbe isn't seeing more time on the court. I don't understand why he doesn't force Nic to sit out for some time. I don't know why he didn't add more plays that feature the ball going into Wes on a post up. It would help free him and his team mates up from three, exploit the opponent, tire them out, and take some pressure off of LA in the block. Stotts is above average if you look at the rest of the coaches in the NBA. Only a pessimist would say otherwise, seeing how 1/2 the other teams in the NBA aren't even in playoff position.

My biggest problem with him this year is his rotations while RoLo and Joel are out.
Why are we starting Kaman?
Blake and Kaman have great chemistry on the second unit.
I would rather see Leonard start and keep the Blake/Kaman combo intact.
Depending on your opponent you might even go small with Wright or Crabbe and put LMA at the 5.
Kaman doesn't bring enough to the starting line up to justify what we lose by having him on the second unit.

PDXFonz said:

I still have faith in Stotts, you've gotta be forgetting how he out coached McHale if you don't have some faith in him. That said, I do hold some skepticism regarding the adjustments(or lack of) he has made this year.

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While I haven't lost faith in Stotts, a monkey with a clipboard can out coach McHale.

Stotts is not the problem - and this is coming from someone who originally thought he was an awful hire!

Given what Stotts has to work with, he has done a very fine job. The starters are busted up and the bench is still a liability.

Daweez04 said:

While I haven't lost faith in Stotts, a monkey with a clipboard can out coach McHale.

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Reminds me of a quote from the TV show Frasier.

"My god a cockatoo with a strong beak could do what you do"

"Yeah, I heard your show. What's the matter, the cockatoo want too much money?"

blue9 said:

I'm starting to see a fair bit of posts questioning the coaching our team is receiving. (Finally.) Here's a thread to capture all of it.
Go!

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Most of the posts are from you...go back in your archive and look.

Kontrarian said:

My biggest problem with him this year is his rotations while RoLo and Joel are out.
Why are we starting Kaman?
Blake and Kaman have great chemistry on the second unit.
I would rather see Leonard start and keep the Blake/Kaman combo intact.
Depending on your opponent you might even go small with Wright or Crabbe and put LMA at the 5.
Kaman doesn't bring enough to the starting line up to justify what we lose by having him on the second unit.

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Huge mistake. Kaman is a vet and knows the speed of the game coming out of the gate. As much improvement I have seen in Meyers, he is absolutely not ready to start against other starting centers in the league. We will get worked in the paint. We already struggle coming out of the gate and this, in my opinion, would only exacerbate it.
Also, you put LMA at 5 and we will be worked by most power forwards in the league. LMA has been candid about not wanting to play the 5.

I think Stotts is doing the best he can considering all the injuries going on. Crabbe was getting minutes, then he stopped producing. The line on him a game or two ago when he started for Nico? Wasnt it like 2 pts, 0 rebounds and an assist?
In no way has Crabbe showed me that he will provide anything more than an injured Nico on the court.

To me this isnt a stotts thing. This is an Allen/Olshey thing. How many threads are there about trades or potential trades?
The longer we let our bench sit and not prove themselves, or get on the floor and then lose stock (CJ or example) the harder it will be to find and get that missing wing player without giving up too much.
We have a solid 7 man lineup, 8 if you throw Meyers in there ( obviously when healthy). We need one more solid bench player. a solid wing to compliment kaman on the inside, blake running the show, and Meyers outside shooting. They need a guy who can create his own shot, drive to the lane with consistency and know how to kick it out to Meyers.
I dont know who it is, but I have to believe that Crabbe, Claver, Trob and a draft pick gets us that? These are all expendable players if we do have the right 9th guy off the bench.
I think Barton has more upside to his career than any of the others. Id like to sit on him another year and see how his development might be. Maybe he is this slasher we need? Right now he is just too inconsistent, but a year or two from now with some better decision making? He has a good outside shot, he can drive to the hole and has decent hands. Just sometimes empty in the noggin.

To me Stotts is doing what he can with all the injuries and inconsistent play from the bench. He has tried many different rotations and is quick to yank you if you are not performing. What more could we ask of our coach while going through this season? Almost everyone on the bench has started this year at one point or another, so to say that Stotts isnt doing anything in my opinion is just wrong.

PDXFonz said:

I still have faith in Stotts, you've gotta be forgetting how he out coached McHale if you don't have some faith in him. That said, I do hold some skepticism regarding the adjustments(or lack of) he has made this year.

I don't understand why Crabbe isn't seeing more time on the court. I don't understand why he doesn't force Nic to sit out for some time. I don't know why he didn't add more plays that feature the ball going into Wes on a post up. It would help free him and his team mates up from three, exploit the opponent, tire them out, and take some pressure off of LA in the block. Stotts is above average if you look at the rest of the coaches in the NBA. Only a pessimist would say otherwise, seeing how 1/2 the other teams in the NBA aren't even in playoff position.

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This. I have seen some blemishes in his coaching game this year. Things I didnt really see last year.

Ironically, it's coming from the offensive end. Everything is outside. I know that's the offense. But if it's not fallin. You better do something else.

What i blame Stotts for is the way the offense has been operating lately.

There has been little to none plays run, everything is iso with a poor outside shot taken. Stotts needs to get the offense back in control, playing TEAM basketball.

Also, Batum needs to sit, its rediculous that he is playing right now.

blue9 said:

I'm starting to see a fair bit of posts questioning the coaching our team is receiving. (Finally.) Here's a thread to capture all of it.
Go!

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I agree with you completely. If Stotts had proper control of this team we would see more fundamental basketball and less Damian playing out of control.

adrenalize74 said:

What i blame Stotts for is the way the offense has been operating lately.

There has been little to none plays run, everything is iso with a poor outside shot taken. Stotts needs to get the offense back in control, playing TEAM basketball.

Also, Batum needs to sit, its rediculous that he is playing right now.

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It's just stupid, all of it. It almost feels like Stotts doesn't have control of the team in some respects.

Stotts is a great coach

Thibs could be available this summer...

He wouldn't let this Batum coast go on for too long.

If Thibs were the coach Nic would be nailed to the bench by now.

There's just no hustle.

Less inclined to think it's a problem with Stotts. It might be an Olshey problem. Interestingly, he just received an extension.

Only time will tell on all.

OneLifeToLive said:

Less inclined to think it's a problem with Stotts. It might be an Olshey problem. Interestingly, he just received an extension.

Only time will tell on all.

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Right now, it's Stotts. After this year? Then we could talk about Olshey,

Strenuus said:

Right now, it's Stotts. After this year? Then we could talk about Olshey,

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I find this hilarious. We sure are in an instant world with zero patience and understanding of "X" factors.

Okay, so Meyers started last night against a smaller center. How did that work out?

Stott's is playing the cards he is dealt. You cant magically pull a royal flush out of your ass when your missing high value cards from the deck.

Pull Nico. I agree he needs to rest, but who on this team is able to give a better effort than the INJURED Nic? Crabbe hasnt done it. CJ cant, Wright is darn near worthless, because we have enough 3pt shooters(maybe too many). Victors game has been fairly error free, but nothing glamorous or volume output.

Most people in this thread read like you think Stotts should be sitting Nico because he has LBJ on the bench ready to come in. Okay, we rest Dame, who is starting in his spot? CJ? Barton? Blake? You really think that is going to help this team get more wins?

Stotts is a players coach for sure and this might be his only slight in my opinion so far. Letting guys play hurt, when maybe they shouldnt, but as far as replacing players to get better output? Where are you gonna get it from?

This is a magical year because of what Stotts is doing considering all the issues he has had to deal with. He is looking at tw0 50+ win seasons in a row as long as we can get back on track when full staffed. This is with a young and still budding team and his first true stint as a long term head coach. Stotts is not the issue we have.

Orion Bailey said:

I find this hilarious. We sure are in an instant world with zero patience and understanding of "X" factors.

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Please help understand the X-factors that we seem to be missing.

Okay, so Meyers started last night against a smaller center. How did that work out?

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Nobody (including Stotts, Hughes, Vanterpool and the rest) has any idea because he never came back in after his initial stint.

Stott's is playing the cards he is dealt. You cant magically pull a royal flush out of your ass when your missing high value cards from the deck.

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I think the problem here is that people think (and I'm tending to agree) that Stotts doesn't realize that Kaman is a Jack of Spades that's usually pretty useful (6th man) but doesn't work if you're in a hand that's a wheel and heart draw (starting alongside Dame and LMA). And that Dorell is a 3 of clubs. He has peeked enough at CJ and Crabbe to see that they're both red, and that's about it. He hasn't even flipped Claver over yet.

Pull Nico. I agree he needs to rest, but who on this team is able to give a better effort than the INJURED Nic? Crabbe hasnt done it. CJ cant, Wright is darn near worthless, because we have enough 3pt shooters(maybe too many). Victors game has been fairly error free, but nothing glamorous or volume output.

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Crabbe has. CJ hasn't had a ton of chances, but the effort, if not the results, is there. Wright is darn near worthless. Victor's game can't be volume output or glamorous because you need to be on the court to produce those things.

Most people in this thread read like you think Stotts should be sitting Nico because he has LBJ on the bench ready to come in.

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Nope, most people are saying Nic should be sitting because he's injured and plays like absolute (expletive adjective) (expletive object). It's only a slight exaggeration to say that most people think a trained monkey could play better and/or with more effort than Nic is playing right now. He doesn't need LBJ on the bench. He doesn't even need Aaron Afflalo or Jeff Green. Yet when you're pulling minutes, starting one night and completely sitting the next 4, racking up the DNPs, you can't possibly know what you have

Okay, we rest Dame, who is starting in his spot? CJ? Barton? Blake? You really think that is going to help this team get more wins?

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I think that you might be better if you try to stay focused on the arguments at hand, which have to do with Nic's ineptitude and the big man rotation, rather than a strawman about how Dame needs to sit.

I've spent longer than I should on this.

After the All-Star Break Rolo will be healthy... All the players will get some rest and be re-energize, They will go back to winning at the same clip as the beginning of the season... maybe even go on a 8-12 game winning streak and everyone will be praising Stotts. I don't always agree with his moves but I also am not an NBA coach, We don't know how serious any one of the injuries are. We're not behind the scenes talking with the players. Athletes play hurt all in every sport, its part of the game. So far I have been pleasantly suprised with the way Stotts has handled the team since he's been here. I'm not going to grill the guy for having a losing month with a team that has been injured almost across the board. Rolo is the glue of this team and this has just shown how important he is.

Bring.Back.Nate!

He would immediately bench Lillard and start Blake.

SlyPokerDog said:

Bring.Back.Nate!

He would immediately bench Lillard and start Blake.

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He'd also park Nic in the corner to just shoot 3's

RoLo would be a convenient excuse if we played like crap when he was out. Unfortunately, RoLo went out in Game 25. We then went 8-2. Then Kaman started starting, and we went 6-7 in those games, (3-7 in last 10). Then he and Leonard combined for 17 minutes last night.

I thought about Stotts rotations over the last three games and wondered if we're trying to showcase TRob and CJ before the trade deadline but they failed to help the cause. I also think we've kept Crabbe out because they have some good film on him when he played well. Hard to say but after the Bucks loss Stotts looked extremely frustrated and seemed to have no answer for the media. 2 guys in double digit scoring will never beat 6 guys in double digit scoring and we need more production on offense. Yeah, it's a slump but not season ending by any stretch. I'm frustrated with the game threads and team bashing that now is plastered all over the team's homepage. When I go to the homepage, the center pane for Rip City 2 looks like Knicks fans have arrived. Stotts is mediocre? CJ is horrible...etc. Of all the years I've followed the fanbase, the angry villagers with torches and pitchforks were pretty hard to tolerate within 2 minutes of the first qtr. For me, it ruins a game I settle in to enjoy whether we win or lose. Constructive criticism and objective analysis is great and has its place but the angst has taken over the boards. We all like winning but during a game, a game thread should not be overwhelmed with trade ideas, coach firing and doom and gloom. Those threads have their place but it fucks up a game experience for some of us. That's my 2 cents.

SlyPokerDog said:

Bring.Back.Nate!
He would immediately bench Lillard and start Blake.

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Ha! So happiness is no Nate! Well I suspect Nate would start Blake instead of Nic, park him in the corner and let Damian run the ISO.
Results would be about the same.

Does anyone else ever wonder why Portland can't find a coach that understand the damn game? Coach Newell would look at this shit
that is being played and simply shake his head. No the damn game has not changed, we just have too many friggin coaches that
don't know the game and let the players sort it out. We see the result before us.

BrianFromWA said:

I've spent longer than I should on this.

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I often have that feeling.

Orion Bailey said:

I find this hilarious.

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I do not find 2-8 in our last 10 hilarious.

Joel Freeland deserves max money, by the way.

37-15 last year with him last year,
17-13 last year without him

25-5 with him this year
7-11 without him.

For a total of: 62-20 with, 24-24 without.

BlazerCaravan said:

Joel Freeland deserves max money, by the way.

37-15 last year with him last year,
17-13 last year without him

25-5 with him this year
7-11 without him.

For a total of: 62-20 with, 24-24 without.

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I know it is hyperbole week and all but seriously of course he doesn't deserve the max but what he does deserve is to be on our team next year which is no slam dunk.