Let's start with Ball Movement. Why has this team fallen off so far from just a year ago? Last season we had very good movement with and without the ball, now it looks like we're playing what I call 2k ball (Standing on the perimeter and trying to pass to each other while everyone is covered still.). What do yo all think? Is this a confidence issue? No one wanting to pull the trigger? (Especially Lillard..) Or is it our lack of a screen game? Our screen game offensively and defensively is atrocious. Offensively I never see LA/RoLo/Kaman/Leonard screen a chaser down the baseline, I'll see Lillard/Afflalo/CJ running with his man still right at his hip while trying to get open. When you see other teams do this same exact common run off a screen play it works very well against us, we can't stop it and it's so frustrating on the defensive end. It was a huge problem against the Spurs last season and we haven't improved. Something needs to be done, but I fear it's too late in the season. Mini rant over.
We set the worst screens - without good screens you can't get open players. With regards to ball/player movement I would say that we've never had good player movement, but we at least use to move the ball well. That was last season. About midway through last season the league figured out the entirety of our ball movement: pass the ball into LMA on the left block, when doubled LMA kicks back out to the entry passer and the ball swings all the way around the perimeter to get an open perimeter shot on the opposite side of the floor as the defense scrambles in their rotations caused by the LMA double-team. Once that got figured out teams adjusted their defensive rotations and took away our ability to create an open jumper from an LMA double-team. Simplistic offensive sets coupled with terrible screens - and few players who are better than average at passing - results in bad offense.
Yes, I've noticed the same thing. When the Blazers move the ball they do well, but sometimes, for whatever reason they get away from that and struggle.
