@Natebishop3 ...I've actually been surprised by some of the most die-hard Dame fans that I know starting to think that regardless of good Dame has been individually, perhaps it is time to get assets for him while his price is as high as it will be, and built around younger players and see what happens. No one had any idea that Gobert would get such a haul until he did. Do I expect Cronin to pull an Ainge? Absolutely not, but Dame will never be worth more. One of these opinions comes from a die hard Blazers fan with ties to multiple NBA coaches and front office personnel. Dame is his favorite player but he is pleading for the Blazers to move Dame so he has a shot at a ring and in the process, the Blazers get assets to move on and move forward. There are some fans that say, 'don't trade Dame no matter what and just keep going like we have been' because they have such an emotional attachment to Dame. That is there prerogative, but it seems they are bigger Dame fans than Blazers fans. Guess that is why fan is short for fanatic. I love that they have that much passion for their basketball hero, but can also disagree with their direction for the franchise. Around the league, I haven't spoken to anyone that things Portland can make enough moves to get anywhere near being a real contender, so throwing assets at such an attempt would be a waste. More often than not, they think Portland should move Dame before he gets older and that contract becomes an albatross even with the cap going up. Then again, those aren't Blazer fans, but just NBA guys I've gotten to know over the years.
okay…. and this response reminds me of that viral video where the customer asks if the clerk has any tampons and the clerk says “no, but kleenex is right over there”… as if they have the same affect and work the same… (Okay i made that up). Come on. If you sit 3/5ths of the starting line up of any team for a quarter of the season, your just not gonna win many games. Not sure what you should be expecting but comparing the two seasons to stotts is not an apt comparison. Period.
correct....Olshey never tried to build a contender around Dame. It was always around CJ and Dame and yeah, in Olshey's mind CJ came first. If Portland had actually tried to give Dame a contender, Olshey and CJ would have been out the door as the first and second act. And that would have been in 2015-16
are you guys able to equate context? Olshey shit the bed. Everyone agrees. We have more assets now than he ever did because he shit the bed. Joe said from the get go this is a process. Get out of your “drive-thru”, instant change, expectations. They are simply unrealistic aNd not accurate.
I'm not saying I agree with the OP, but the only way this is a winning situation is if the Blazers win. If the Blazers go Dame's way and end up in the play-in round, they're going to get roasted nationally and you know a significant chunk of this board is going to complain they didn't do enough or were smart about it even if they trade five firsts for Anthony Davis and get Siakam, too. If the Blazers draft the BPA because they got no reasonable offers for 3 and that player turns into a star in 2-3 years along with Sharpe and the Blazers are in the WCF, no one is going to remember that Dame wanted vets or that Cronin didn't gamble the house on OG Anunoby and Jaylen Brown. The front office just needs to be smart and not give in to desperation or pressure. We hired a great scout and I have little doubt if they make the picks at 3 and 23 they're going to get good players. The freaking Heat are in the finals with seven undrafted players, four of whom are in their rotation.
So Dame Grant Brown core. No probably not a title core. Now if Sharpe becomes an allstar and the core is Dame Brown Sharpe? Yes. Blazers would still need production from Grant and another couple key vets. They probably wouldn't be favorites, but they'd be somewhere between a dark horse and legit contender.
I just don't see how this ever becomes an issue. Teams that trade for Dame would all be aiming to be possible contenders. At worst it's a Kawhi to Raptors thing and he even got a title there. Or it's a young lottery team like CP3 to the Suns, but similarly they'd have upside. Blazers just need to shop for the best return if trading Dame. The other team will inherently have to make it a good situation to Dame in order to give the Blazers the best return.
And what is LBJ? He runs the point. Is a PG someone who runs the point or someone who guards the other team's smallest player? STOMP
