So NOW do you understand what I'm talking about??? We are a better team this year.

Oh yea? what was our record last year?

I'm all in for the optimistic approach, but don't sugarcoat it too much.

 

Big Picture is the Blazers have lost 3 of the last 4, and 6 of the next 8 opponents are playing above .500 ball. The two games they get a break are on a second of a B2B after the Warriors and Spurs. Huge trap games....
Now do i have to explain that all but 2 of these games are on the road? With 3 B2B's in that very span? The Blazers could very well go undefeated or even
go 6-2 but you and i both know that is very very unlikely. Even the home games after this brutal stretch holds team such as Boston, Miami, Golden State, Sacramento (Who seems to have the Blazers number) and the Thunder. The season is not over yet. They must play every game and not lose focus. No games will come easy for the rest of the year.

By the way...My name is not Dude.

 

Huge difference in the conference from last year. He seems to have completely forgot that this years record would not even sniff the playoffs.

 

This is something I've been thinking about. While entirely true that record wise we wouldn't be in the playoffs last year, I think it might be a little more complex than that...

Every win a team earns is a loss to another (I know its cpt. Obvious, but hear me out). the upper echelon of the western conference have vastly superior records than last year.... historic records...Thus causing other teams to lose more so than they would have last year. Also the east is playing much better as a whole as well.

I am just speculating here, but I believe that last years blazers (injuries included) and other western conference teams would not have as good of a record as they did if they were playing this year instead of last.

I may be way off on this, but it made sense in my head lol.

 

The general overall thinking is that the top teams would not have the same record because the conference was tougher. Same philosophy different direction.
Also along the same lines is many believe the Eastern Conference has finally caught up due to the larger amounts of top draft picks over the last few years. I would tend to agree on this point.
It will only be a matter of time until they all decide that playing in the fun and sun of the west coast is what they are looking for so they will most likely all end up in the Western Conference....The cycle continues!

 

OK, let's not sugarcoat. I loved last year's team - they played hard, were high character guys, and the team was very good.

But, LMA was stunting Lillard, who has been unleashed. This team, when we actually use our cap space, will have a higher ceiling than last year's team. I think that's what's got KS excited, and me, too.

 

I think it's a rising 6 versus a 6 that was pretty decimated by injury with your marquee franchise player becoming a free agent who most expected to leave. I mean if last year's team were to play this year's team in some alternate universe and both were healthy, last year's team probably wins. That team might have been the third best team in the West before the injuries.
Now instead of limping into the playoffs, this team is playing better overall even with a few recent losses. Last year felt like the end of something, this year feels like the beginning of something. Add a big piece or two in free agency and this team will be a dangerous one for a while.

 

The template for a contending team is having top players at multiple positions. GS has the best PG, 4th best SG, and 2nd or 3rd best PF, and a top 10 C.

We have the 4th best PG, 5th best SG, a bunch of role players who rank between 10-30 at their respective positions. We have so much room to grow, but the backcourt is going to be our backbone.

 

Actually, I think the exact opposite is true. I think the overall improvement in the Eastern Conference is a direct result of an influx of talent from the West - in particular at the PG position. A couple years ago, the depth at PG in the West was ridiculous. Guys that were struggling to get minutes as backups, or considered redundant by their teams have moved East and are now starting for Eastern Conference playoff teams , or even making the Eastern Conference All-Star Team.

Just looking at the Eastern Conference play-off teams, most of the starting PGs (and a couple significant backups) have moved from West to East in recent years:

TOR: Kyle Lowry (All-Star) and Cory Joseph
BOS: Isaiah Thomas (All-Star)
MIA: Goran Dragic
CHO: Jeremy Lin
IND: George Hill
DET: Reggie Jackson

That's five quality starters (two All-Stars) and two quality backups at the PG position moving from West to East.

There hasn't been a reciprocal migration of talent at the PG position from East to West. All of the top PGs in the West are home grown (either drafted by their current teams or traded within the conference). DAL, with Deron Williams, Raymond Felton and Rajon Rondo (last season) is the only team in the West bucking this trend, and their additions haven't really improved the team (currently 7th in the West). Deron Williams (PER = 14.5) is a shell of his former self. Fatty Felton is what he's always been - below average (PER = 12.0). Rondo was a disaster in Dallas, and while he's leading the league is assists, SAC still sucks just as badly as ever.

The other position that was deep in the West was PF. There has also been some significant movement of quality PFs from West to East (including two current and one former All-Stars). Again, with no similar reciprocal movement of talent at this position from East to West.

The weather may be sunnier and warmer out west (well at least in the SW, not in POR, MIN, DEN, UTA and OKC), but the migration in quality talent has definitely been from West to East in recent years. The improved parity between the two conferences (the West is still better), was a leveling of talent as players that were considered redundant/expendable in the much deeper West moved East to get playing time and more significant roles on their new teams - which eventually leads to larger paychecks, which is always the biggest motivation for players looking to change teams.

BNM

 

Just curious, what are you using for player rankings? PER, PPG, subjective rankings?

BNM

 

Combo of all these stats, defense, and my subjective eye test.

PG:
1. Steph
2. Russ
3. CP
4. Dame
5. Lowry

SG:
1. Harden
2. Butler
3. Derozan
4. Klay
5. CJ

SF:
1. Lebron
2. KD
3. Kawhi
4. PG
5. Giannis

PF:
1. AD
2. Green
3. Blake
4. Millsap
5. Aldridge

C:
1. Cuz
2. KAT
3. Brolo
4. Pau
5. DeAndre

Might be overrating Bogut a bit saying he's top 10, but the guy anchors one of the best defenses in the league.

To bring it back to the topic, we need to target younger guys on the verge of cracking these top lists a few years from now. Guys like Gordon Hayward, Vucevic, Noel, Crowder, Whiteside, etc. Easier said than done... I'm aware.

 

Man, if you would have said that Giannis is the 5th best SF earlier in the season I would have laughed at you..... but lately he has been balling out of his mind.

 

Ya ever since Kidd gave him the ball to run their offense, that guy has shown his full skillset.

 

And my fantasy team has been reaping all the benefits lol

 

Yes ours isn't easy; but Dallas, Utah and Memphis all have slightly more difficult schedules the rest of the year. I like our chances to have the 6th seed better than other teams. It'll be a fun finish.

 

You wouldn't say Wiggins or Irving have contributed? Or Maybe Oladipo or Brady Beal. Micheal Kidd Gilchrist... My friend the list goes on and on. I haven't even scratched the surface.
Here is a link to a site that can give you some perspective.
http://www.mynbadraft.com/nba-draft-picks/1st-overall/10509/

 

Did not mean to be condescending at all sorry.
The point that i was originally making is the entire Eastern Conference. Sure there are teams still rebuilding. Heck even Anthony Davis hasn't won much yet but the overall win/loss totals have improved. Also a draft pick doesn't have to be the #1 pick to help. See Lillard. The list of teams that are getting the top 6-8 picks over the last 5 years is pretty overwhelmingly Eastern Teams. They are also trading some of those players and yes they are getting players in return from Western Teams. I do agree with the main idea that a player will go where he will get Playing time and eventually a bigger paycheck but the others except of course Melo are going for Championships. Those teams that were in the running are not just the Warriors and Spurs but have also been Clippers and Thunder and Houston supposedly. The Mavs always seem to be dealing to get to the Finals.
I would suspect the Heat and Cavs with the Raptors and maybe even the Hawks to get some of that as well as the Celtics this year. Another team that seems to be surging is the Hornets. Don't think anyone expected the Knicks and Nets to be quite so bad?