Game Thread GAME# 63: BLAZERS @ NETS - APRIL 30, 2021 - FRIDAY, 5:00, NBATV & NBCSNW

Just got done watching the replay of the game. Much improvement on both ends. Offense seen more movement both ball and players. But times the did fall back when the guard brings ball up no pass but a shot attempt but tonight they was going in for Dame and being aggressive going to the hoop. Dame did better job handling by using Nurk had outlet that lead to some baskets. I still he on to the ball a little to long still. You can see Simons gaining confidence out there due to he has different deamoner about him. Nurk being more aggressive is nice plus getting better shape helps with that. On defense seen more contesting shots plus at time closing the key and still ability to close out to contested a shot. But at time the rotation wasn't good but less then that then the past. But if they continue to improve at both ends they just might make hard on some team playing them in a series of they make it that far. I believe if Harden and Durant play I still think it would been a close game last night.

 

And getting stripped around the rim happens a lot. And overly aggressive (aka bad) passing. Give him the ball and coach tell him to be more selective. You don't have to pass just cuz they cut. Dame's our best distributor but it seems like Nurk with the ball does more to fundamentally change our offense in a positive way.

 

if that was actually true Portland's offense would be better with Nurkic on the floor....but it's not. It's 2.4 points/100 worse

 

I heard on the radio that in the last 15 games our D has improved significantly? Even the 5 game losing streak with close games being lost reflected better D? I dont know? think so...

 

It’s all about Nurk.

 

that's not true, at least it isn't statistically. Over the all-star break Portland's defensive rating was 116.4. After the 2nd loss to Memphis, the rating was 116.5. It's now down to 116.3

they did post a rating of 110.7 in that 2nd Memphis game, but in the first game the rating was 125.6. Before that ratings were 116.0; and 121.4

in this 3 game win streak, the ratings have been 109.7; 107.2; and 110.1. So those are big improvements and have pushed their rating down from 116.5 to 116.3. But, IMO, that's also too small a sample size to have any confidence in the results, especially considering the circumstances of the opposition. The change in focus might stick, but it also might fade back to norms for the year

 

Thanks, it sounded wrong of to me.

 

We all know when Nurk comes back from injuries, his touch is rusty for a while so he's not great offensively. But we know he can get there and we're seeing it now. That's a different subject than should we run the ball through him or not. The answer is definitely yes. He makes our offense sing when he's the playmaker.

 

The last few games they've had different players bring the ball up rather than just Dame. That in itself makes us not so damn predictable.
When we have the three guards in the line up we are super quick so, we have been using that more with our Power Guard Norm bringing the ball up and driving and even CJ on occasion. Our guard quickness can be a problem for the other team, especially if we mix it up.

 

There are lots of variables going on.
1. Nurk played like crap at the start of the season and then post-injury requires some games to get back into shape & flow. Nurk's TS% early on was terrible. Far below his 2018-2019 season. Getting better now.
2. Nurk plays against starting defenses. Yes he plays with our starting offense but who knows exactly how that balances out.
3. Nurk changes the way we play and with that comes mistakes. But with time we'll get better at playing through Nurk.
4. Most of all - Variance. Nurk has played 648 minutes = 13.5 full games. Standard deviation of an NBA score is around 12 points. Standard deviation of Blazers' offensive rating with Nurk in is about 12 / sqrt(13.5) = 3.7. 2.4 if not even close to one full standard deviation. Sample size is too small.

 

Still FIRE STOTTS!!!

 

Do you mean to tell me "Ignoring" is an actual act also?

I have a number of posters on "Ignore" but none are functionally on "Ignore". I did have one once but i turned it back off. I do ignore a bunch of posters here.

 

I was worried about you there for a minute?

 

Probably has something to do with Dame and Norm really struggling over the past month.

 

3 good games wont change the fact that come playoff time teams gonna trap the hell outta Dame and Stotts still wont know what to do against

 

Both the Nets and Grizzlies just tried to trap Dame. (the pacers also but they are not as good) In the first two games against the Griz Dame made the right passes but the players around him didn't make the them pay enough and the Blazers suffered close losses. In the Third game against the Yogi's obviously other players made them pay the price for trying to trap Lillard. In both the third game against Memphis and the Nyets game both teams had to give up the trap and start switching. Lillard killed them when they did that.

This has been what Stotts, Kerr, Dantoni, Stevens, Carlisle and pretty much every NBA coach in the league does when teams trap. The difference is Lillard gets trapped much much farther away from the basket than most and he is 6'-2" tall. Another answer has been to have either CJ or Simmons bring the ball up. This creates problems for other teams because now they have to guard the ball handler and still worry about Lillard. Teams must do this because of Damian Lillard's range. By the way it was Stotts that told Lillard to become the range shooter he is today. He has done this because of the way teams were guarding him.

The old worn out narrative that Stotts doesn't know what to do has not only been debunked but time and time again we have seen what happens when 2-3 other players actually hit some shots. Terry Stotts has destroyed the trap but as usual it's up to the players to play the game the right way. It also helps to have a mobile 7 footer to help out in those situations. You do realize both Collins and Nurk have been hurt most of the last 2 years right?

To take a page out of King Speed's book. "They Can't Guard Us" is a very real possibility come playoff time.

 

Except i misspelled "Simons".

 

I sure didn't see it; at least not with anything close to the focus and intensity that happens in the playoffs

and it hasn't been Dame passing to other Blazers out of traps that has been the problem. It's been that the other Blazers can't run the offense and can't get scores consistently enough against good playoff defense.

the last two times the Blazers have faced that kind of defense in the playoffs was against the Warrior and Lakers over the last two seasons. And Portland was 1-8 against those teams and the one win was what woke the Lakers up. And that's clearly the goal of that kind of defense: get the ball out of Lillard's hands because nobody else on the Blazers is feared by opponents