Start Collins. Start Hood.

Discussion in 'Portland Trail Blazers' started by Natebishop3, May 7, 2019.

  1. PtldPlatypus

    PtldPlatypus Let's go Baby Blazers! Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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  2. BBert

    BBert Weasels Ripped My Flesh

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    I say benching them might light a fire under them. You never know.

    Since Mo and especially Aminu suck so bad against the Nuggets starters, I think they are the ones who should come off the bench, get into a rhythm against the Nuggets bench, and possibly carry that over when they are in against the Nuggets starters.
     
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  3. LayneStaley

    LayneStaley Well-Known Member

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    Stotts needs to nut up and sit ET, 5 min is too much in Game 7.
     
  4. tlongII

    tlongII Legendary Poster

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    Terry should just ask Dame who to start and roll with it.
     
  5. BBert

    BBert Weasels Ripped My Flesh

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    1. He plays dirty
    2. When he plays dirty, he doesn't get called for it
    3. When he fakes being fouled, the refs fall for it (or they know it and call it anyway)
    4. Sometimes when he fouls a Portland player, the refs call the foul on the Portland player
    5. A combo of healthy Nurk, healthy Kanter, and Zach not getting screwed by the refs would shut that entire Nuggets front court down.

    I believe Portland to be the clearly better team, and as you said, the more marketable team. Why the refs have worked so hard to keep the Blazers from extending leads against Denver, and why they have worked so hard to get this series to 7 games, is beyond me.

    Maybe the league is afraid the Blazers might beat their Golden Child, Golden State.
     
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  6. BBert

    BBert Weasels Ripped My Flesh

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    Turner has been a disaster. His confidence looks completely shot. Speaking of shot, he looks like he's afraid to shoot. He can't hang onto the ball or control his dribble. Is he injured? Sick? Mentally caving to all the criticism he gets? Told he's on the trading block? Suffering from depression? What's going on?
     
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  7. Pinwheel1

    Pinwheel1 Well-Known Member

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    I would not risk that. Not with 1 game left in the series. Terry has done a pretty good job of riding the hot hand in this series. Just stay with the starters and make the adjustment as the game goes on.

    But I am concerned with the start of the game. We like s to get both Hark and Aminu involved early which in theory sounds like a good idea, but the result IMO is a slow starts by Dame and CJ. If Hark and Aminu are open then by all means they should shoot, but I don't like seeing Chief as a creator. Watch our 2nd possession of the game (10:48- 10:36 mark of the 1st quarter) That was a horrifying 12 seconds.
     
    Last edited: May 10, 2019
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  8. Pinwheel1

    Pinwheel1 Well-Known Member

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    Again I think Terry has done a decent job riding the hot hand. ET got more minutes last night because he produced. 7 rebounds , 7 assists and the 1 horrible turnover. (Which I admit I dropped a few F bombs when it occurred) But he had a pretty good night.
     
    Last edited: May 10, 2019
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  9. Natebishop3

    Natebishop3 Don't tread on me!

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    I think Terry went with Turner for so long because Turner is literally the only guard that will run the offense and move the ball. Even Dame seems to have issues loving the ball because of the trapping defense that he faces. Turner tried to feed it to Curry and Hood. Curry becomes pretty worthless when CJ handles the ball. So by playing Turner at power forward, they also play Hood, CJ, and Curry and somebody is going to be open for three.
     
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  10. Hoopguru

    Hoopguru Well-Known Member

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    yeah, I think when Dame brings it up it slows pour motion O down. I love it when he plays off the ball.
     
  11. hoopsjock

    hoopsjock Well-Known Member

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    Re-watching Game 3, it's pretty apparent Harkless is struggling with some sort of leg issue in the 4th quarter before any of the OT's even start. Simply put, if Moe doesn't have explosiveness in his legs he's basically worthless on the court. His quickness and leaping ability are pretty much his only strengths as a player so he's a liability on both ends if those aren't close to 100%.

    This isn't meant to bash Harkless, I just don't think he's right and if that's the case he's not helping us on the court.

    I'm not sure what Aminu's excuse is.
     
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  12. Natebishop3

    Natebishop3 Don't tread on me!

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    Yup. I think Harkless is hurt. He's having a real issue keeping up with Murray, and usually he's pretty quick.

    Aminu's issue is psychological. Watch him when he shoots free throws. He looks completely psyched out. Same with Turner. They're both afraid to shoot right now.
     
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  13. Natebishop3

    Natebishop3 Don't tread on me!

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    The problem is that our offense becomes

    1: Dame dribbles around the half court line (20 seconds left on the shot clock)

    2: The screen finally comes (15 seconds left on the shot clock)

    3: The Nuggets trap Dame (10 seconds left on the shot clock)

    4: Dame either tries to drive or jack a contested three. If he has to pass either way, the player who receives the pass has 5 seconds to make something happen.

    We need to be moving the ball around quicker. That's how you beat these stupid traps. Move the fucking ball. Space the floor. Don't let them double Dame.
     
  14. Pinwheel1

    Pinwheel1 Well-Known Member

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    I agree. I will say one thing in CJ and Dame's defense I think there is a huge opportunity for both of them to attack the basket against Jokic. When the floor is spread and CJ and Dame are "over dribbling" they did a good job last night of getting to the basket and finishing. (It seems harder actually when Plumlee is on the floor) But when they move the ball quickly around the perimeter, it doesn't result in points unless Hark and Aminu happen to be on that night.

    This has occurred all season where the 2nd unit has moved the ball better than the 1st unit because they often had one extra shooter in there. (Between Curry, Nik, Jake, and Hood) But I am not sure the motion works as well with the starting unit.....unless Hood or Curry are in there with them.

    Anyway I think Dame and CJ need to continue to attack the basket against Jokic when he is not under the basket. As good as he is, he does not have the greatest lateral quickness.
     
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  15. Natebishop3

    Natebishop3 Don't tread on me!

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    Well, that's the problem, right? You can't swing the ball when you have Aminu and Harkless out there. Aminu is turnover prone and they're both unpolished scorers.

    The other issue is that Kanter's scoring production has dropped off almost entirely since he said he hurt his shoulder worse in game 3. So now we're back to the Dame and CJ show in the starting unit, and that's just not going to cut it.
     
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  16. ABM

    ABM Happily Married In Music City, USA!

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    FWIW....According to Olshey, Hood's starting.

    https://ripcityproject.com/2019/08/...zers-setting-3-goals-rodney-hood-next-season/

    Portland Trail Blazers: Setting 3 goals for Rodney Hood next season

    2. Accept a role off the bench
    Speaking of only being a spot starter in Utah, that’s the role where Hood would serve Portland best. There’s no room for an offensively minded wing that’s a liability on defense next to Lillard and McCollum, they already contribute enough firepower. Kent Bazemore is a more skilled defender and Mario Hezonja has a stronger frame that can handle powerful forwards.

    Instead, Hood would make the perfect weapon off the bench, akin to other famous Western Conference sixth men Manu Ginobli and Lou Williams. Anthony Tolliver and Pau Gasol certainly won’t be creating their own shots off the bench, and Anfernee Simons and Gary Trent Jr. could certainly use a veteran presence on the court to help transition into a larger role with the team.
     
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  17. Titan

    Titan Well-Known Member

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    I think the Blazers should at least experiment with either Bazemore or hood as a starter and figure out who has the better feel as the season goes. The author does make a good point that Bazemore defense would better compliment the starters, but I think that leaves the bench unit with less defenders. So start Hood, unless Bazemore becomes the clear choice.
     
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  18. tlongII

    tlongII Legendary Poster

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    I think the competition will work itself out. I'm fine with either starting.
     
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  19. hoopsjock

    hoopsjock Well-Known Member

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    I think Hood's defense was more than adequate in the playoffs. He was playing the Harkless role then and we didn't really lose anything on that end.
     
  20. Chris Craig

    Chris Craig (Blazersland) I'm Your Huckleberry Staff Member Global Moderator Moderator

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    I don't have a problem with Hood starting. I do think he might be better off the bench. He is a 6th man type player who injects energy into the game. If he starts, the Blazers don't have that coming off the bench.
     
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