Game Thread GAME# 47: BLAZERS @ PISTONS - MARCH 31, 2021 - WEDNESDAY, 4:00, NBCSNW

If Portland fans are happy to just make the playoffs, how come so many people around here are complaining? Are the complainers not Blazer fans?

 

This forum is not a good representation of the average fan. Just listen to the boobs who call into the 5th quarter. Most of them have never heard of basketball reference. Most of them would have no clue what PER is or winshare or usage or anything like that.

 

I don't disagree with this, but I'm not sure that differs from how the average Celtics fan is either.

People like to think their fan base is so different from everyone else and their rival fan base is so much worse than other fan bases, but I'm not sure I buy that.

 

Stotts is much more succesful??? Hahahahahahaha. Man, this is just not true. You are on some other planet.

I don't doubt some team would hire Stotts again. But I would guarantee that no team would go after Stotts first before they go after Stevens (unless they knew they had no chance to get Stevens).

 

I think our overall fanbase is different because we aren’t spoiled by winning. Boston fans are used to the Patriots and the Redsox and the historical success of the Celtics. We have one title total for this state, unless you count the timbers.

 

I'd say we're spoiled by making the playoffs. We think making the playoffs is nearly a right and nothing worth praise.

I see what you're saying about a city with multiple teams, many of which have won titles, but I still think the average fan over-values their best player, is highly critical of their coach, and thinks they should be better than they are. It's a common theme across cities, sports, etc.

 

More is a bit much, but the gap really isn't that big. Stotts, despite stops with perennial losers in Atlanta and Milwaukee has a career winning percentage of .515. Stevens sits at .557.

In fact, if you want to be fair and compare just his time in Portland to Stevens in Boston, Stotts sits at .559 - slightly better. And there's no arguing Stotts has faced much tougher competition in the West than Stevens in the East. I'd say it can certainly be argued they're very similar.

 

I like Stevens and have no interest in bashing him. Having said that, his win percentage in an easier conference is 55.8%. Stotts' win percentage in Portland is 55.9%. Stotts has had the best player of the group. Stevens has had more top end talent that Stotts.

 

Stevens playoff career win percentage .507, Stotts .344

Stevens with 3 appearances in the conference finals with 6 game wins
Stotts with 1 appearance in the conference finals with 0 game wins

 

Our 21 playoff wins came against West teams. We all know the east has been trash save for whatever team Lebron was on.

I'm not here to sing Stotts' praises, but the amount of credit Stevens gets for a whole bunch of 'meh' in Boston is undeserved.

 

The East has been significantly weaker than the west for a long time. Not really a fair comparison. More talent in a weaker conference should produce a much higher win percentage, yet his overall regular season win percentage is lower.

 

Stevens was hired to rebuild.

 

True...and has subsequently been given a lot more talent.

If I remember correctly, Stotts had to coach a rebuilt team who lost 4 of their top 5 players, and made it to the 2nd round of the playoff despite being picked to finish near dead least in the West.

 

I don't know if you remember what Stotts was hired to lead in 2012.....

 

Don't forget 2015

https://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/2015/10/how_theyre_ranking_the_blazers.html

 

He had a bonafide All star in Aldridge, A rookie Lillard who won ROY, veteran pieces like Batum, Crawford and Wallace.

Look at that Celtics roster from 2013-14. There was a fire sale after the championship teams and it was just a heap of trash.

 

Stotts didn’t have Crawford and Wallace. In fact Wallace was essentially traded for Dame.

 

How many bonafide all-stars and lottery picks has Stevens had at his disposal over the last 6 years and how does that compare to Portland?

More talent, weaker conference, same win percentage. And again, I like Stevens!

 

My point was that the stats you brought up of %’s isn’t quite as relevant because Stevens was brought in to completely rebuild. Stotts was brought in to re-tool.

Not how many All Stars each coach has had. That’s a secondary discussion.

 

Thats right. My memory of that era is kind of shit for some reason