“On the offensive side, you want to start games and get the ball moving,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “We don’t have an ‘alpha’-type dude on our team.” Last night after the game.
He's not lying. I think we all hope Shaedon becomes that guy, but he might be too Canadian to become that guy. Soooorry
In my view that is Chauncey's job, to be the alpha on the team that gets guys going, directs traffic and sees ahead of the game. Chauncey is spending to much game time 'watching" the games in my view and he needs to be more of a part of the game
Chauncey can't play the game for them. They need to show it on the court and not expect him to hold their hands and coddle them
I think the head coach is the gameplan...he's absolutely responsible for what goies on on the court and if it's bad to look to his bench. If not he needs to coach the vets into that role and hold them accountable. Chauncey has gotten too comfortable with losing.
So change the starting lineup, Billups. Aren't you the coach? Send a real message, not something that can go in one ear and out the other.
Spot on. If the guys are bought in, showing effort, and losing at home to the likes of the Wizards, it’s ‘also’ a coaching thing—unless you believe this team isn’t as talented as the Wizards which I guess is a different conversation.
There’s more to coaching than substitutions and minute allocation, even if coaching in the NBA is less important than in other sports.
My opinion here is debatable. I believe the most important position in bb is to have your best player/alpha guy at small forward. Which has been a weak positioning for us, for too many years. Just one example. Look at the Magic and how Wagner @ SF has vaulted them from the basement to becoming a very good team. The problem. How do we get that guy?
I wouldn't restrict it to small forward. I'd just broaden the definition to wing and say that is the formula that works well in a lot of templates. And has been the most common path to contention for decades. Bird...Worthy...MJ...Kobe...Lebron...DWade...Giannis. Yeah, there are exceptions like Magic (played kind of like a wing), Dirk (who played like a wing), Duncan, Shaq, Curry, Jokic... but by and large the 'surest' path is to have a fairly elite 2-way wing
Why was this thread made in the first place? You had to go create a new thread just for that quote with no context behind it? It’s quite clear the poster wants to turn this into a bashing of Billups, what a joke.
No, I didn't make it to bash Billups. It was a discussion I heard on 620am this morning and is an ongoing discussion on Twitter. As far as bashing goes, on the radio they were "bashing" Grant for thinking he's the alpha and taking that shot at the end of the game last night.
Chauncy reminds me of Mike Singletary....a rah-rah coach that is dumb as rocks. The jailblazers team didn't have anyone that looked for their own shot. Rasheed was their best player, but he didn't force his own shot. The team is lacking in overall talent, and in coaching as well.
Here's an article about the quote that isn't bashing Billups. https://www.blazersedge.com/2023/12...lups-after-41-point-game-from-anfernee-simons
I'm not sure Chauncey was wrong even though I'm sure there will be plenty of blowback towards the words. Players can be scorers but that doesn't necessarily make them "alphas". I don't think they have that type of player on the roster, at least right now. Ant and Grant can both score a lot, but I don't think anyone outside of Portland would describe them as an alpha type player.
