When have you been less excited for the start of a Blazers season?

100%. I didn't blame Olshey much at the time because it appeared that he was trying to do it through free agency and trades. And it seemed like that's the reason that he was brought here.

And those were the best guys I thought that we could realistically get via free agency and trades. And being Portland, we have to overpay in free agency. We just do.

The problem was in thinking that Portland could build out the remaining three or four players of a competitive team after having one or two stars.

Portland can't do that. It has to be done through the draft. HAS to be.

If we do not trade Ant and Grant before they are allowed to win us games against bad teams then this season will be a wasted opportunity. It doesn't mean we can't luck out. But we will have wasted an opportunity to maximize our potential return. One thing that we can count on is that we will not luck out every year.

It is so critical over the next two or three years that we get maximum draft capital out of everything that we do. And that everything is about developing our young players into the best young core in the league. And putting together the best coaching staff for that young core.

 

This thread reminds me that once somebody is kicked off the forum for not being able to follow the rules, they shouldn't be allowed to simply change their name and return.

 

Certain posters cannot hide who they are. Once you drive for Uber you’re an Uber driver. Once you leave the key under the mat while you are out of town? Err…. Never mind.

 

good post
there is 1 Blazers rebuttal:

1974, Portland selects Bill Walton #1
1976, Portland selects Maurice Lucas with the #2 pick of the ABA draft.

1977 Blazers win the World Championship

 

* 1997: Spurs select Tim Duncan with 1st pick. 1999-2003-2005-2007-2014 Spurs win 5 championships

* 1978 Celtics draft Larry Bird with 6th pick; 1980 draft McHale with 3rd pick. Celtics win 3 championships

* 1970 Celtics draft Dave Cowens with 3rd pick. Celtics win 2 championships

* 1979 Lakers draft Magic Johnson with 1st pick. Lakers win 5 championships

* Miami drafts Dwayne Wade with 5th pick. Miami with 3 championships (yeah, I know)

* 2009 Warriors draft Stephen Curry with 7th pick. Warriors win 4 championships

*1969 Bucks draft Kareem with 1st pick. 1971 Bucks win championship

 

Out of habit I bought NBA2K24 when it went on sale in December and ended up never even installing it.

 

the kids are up to 2K27. They've saved up treasure tokens and spliced all the good players from high school & college.

 

ok, let's try and keep it basketball, there's probably threads in the OT forum for adult content

 

2007, Portland selects Oden #1.....we all know how that went

 

You do realize you're helping SharpeScooterShooter argument right? As all of those you just listed, only 2 were players #1 picks and the other 5 you listed were picked #3 and lower...and one of his points were we don't have to try to get a top #1-2 pick but also more so just make the RIGHT pick with a high pick and the odds of getting a generational talent is just as good or super close with a 3-7 draft pick...

So, you listed 7 players, 5 were #3 picked or worse... that means 5 out of your 7 (71%) were picked #3 or worse since probabilities were a big part of this discussion lol

Thanks for proving it's more so making the right pick with a top pick than just need to tank over and over every season until we get a top 1-2 pick...

 

Id counter that with the sam bowie and greg oden draft years.

Scout better than other teams and number one picks are not needed to win.

 

And some posters have no clue how they have been given special treatment. Running around the forum chasing people around a basketball forum for no basketball reason other than to create drama. Nothing to do with basketball just trying to stir the pot.
They come down on others for posting how bad the city is by posting their own rich ass neighborhood, as if everyone in portland lives in an area like that.
They chase people around deliberately calling them names they have been asked not to.

Some people are just clueless to what common folk deal with on a daily basis because they are spoiled and treated differently.

Thats what some of this thread reminds me…..

And for the record KJ. I asked for this moniker name change. I didnt create it to sneak back in here…im not trying to hide who i am.
But you are right. I cant hide who i am because im not some fake. I am who i am.
Some people respect that. Some people respect passive aggressive, fake posters more. i prefer blunt honesty.
To each their own….

 

Thats a poor counter argument. No amount of scouting could foresee Bowie or Oden's future injuries. Both were incredible talents who physically just couldn't hold up to the pounding of running and jumping on the hardcourt. And to head you off on the but but but they got injured in college so the staff should have known it would happen again, lots of guys (like Dame for one) suffered bad injuries in college and yet went on to enjoy long successful careers. Hell, MJ broke his foot his 2nd year in the league. Every single player gets injured as people are fragile, some are more so then others. I'm pretty sure teams are limited in their access to draft prospects medicals. If they could get to perform full body MRI type scans on players to check for bone density and skeletal alignment that would help, but I don't think thats the case. Thorough medical exams might have helped avoid drafting your two examples, but again I don't think teams have that sort of access or that medical science was that advanced back in Bowie's day. Luck still plays a role

STOMP

 

Im pretty sure there was talk about Oden having one leg shorter than the other, prior to being drafted?

The fact remains tanking hard for the number one pick is still a crapshoot.
In this discussion we have three number ones. One panned out and two didn't. 33% chance. And thats IF you luck into a number one pick.

You are validating my opinion that tanking hard until we land a generational talent or land a number one pick is just as much crapshoot as just being bad but playing hard and landing where you land in the draft, but scouting better than others.
My point stands.

History is black and white and defies odds and percentages all the time.

 

you guys are helping his argument though! do you guys realize that?

 

of course it's making the right pick...who the fuck is arguing in favor of wasting a top-5 pick? And I wasn't really coming down on one side of that particular argument or the other

what people are advocating for is priority #1 is Portland adding some elite talent, and it's a lot easier to add elite talent with a top-7 or top-3 pick than with a pick outside the lottery or at the back end of the lottery. Brandon Roy 6th pick; Aldridge 2nd pick; Dame 6th pick (and Blazers could have had Chris Paul with a 3rd pick). The other side of that coin: Sebastian Talfaire 13th pick; Jerryd Bayless 11th pick; Luke Babbitt - 16th pick; Meyers Leonard 11th pick

We all know that the Blazers will not be signing any elite talent; that path is closed. So that leaves trades and draft picks. As for trades, the last 'elite' talent Portland landed in a player trade was Scottie Pippen 25 years ago; and Rasheed 28 years ago. And the reality is that Pippen was 34 and Rasheed, while a 4-time all-star, was not really elite. And of course those deals were made about 4-5 CBA's ago and trade rules have changed pretty dramatically since then....and Portland doesn't have Paul Allen or Bob Whitsitt

so then, if free agency is off the table, and trades are teetering on the edge, the only remaining path is draft picks and that path needs to run thru a series of high draft picks in order to offset the inevitable mistakes. Whether it's the bones of Sam Bowie & Greg Oden; or the brain of Ben Simmons; or the mirages of Larue Martin & Anthony Bennett, there will be dice rolls that crap out. So it's important to roll those dice several times. Otherwise, the Blazers will end up with boring, flawed, 4th tier players like Simons-Grant-Ayton as their best players, only capable of leading the Blazers to perpetual Purgatory

 

It was a jab at the HCP brother. And by the way he lives in Grant district though it does have some nice spots. That is not a "Rich Ass" neighborhood. He knows exactly what that area is all about. I don't have to defend HCP he can do that himself but I will defend Portland. It's a great city and a wonderful place to live with some of the best people in the country. It went through some growing pains for a while. City leaders made some mistakes they are now doing a bunch to fix.

Now how did that Moniker change work out for you? I got no animosity toward you at all bro. Seriously none. One of the nicest guys I've ever dealt with and truly a very giving member of this forum.
My suggestion is bury the hatchet and move along then let some stuff go. I certainly had to learn to. I used to get caught up in huge back and forth conversations. @Phatguysrule is a great poster here. He has a bunch to add. Yes he has his way. We don't agree on guns. I just let that shot go and actually just got off the OT altogether.

Hope you have a good day and I had some fab I needed done and couldn't reach that number I had? Wondering If it changed?

 

This is what it comes down to. Hard tanking for a number one or generational talent is all but ensuring a losing team for many years and its still a crapshoot to get either the number one or a gen talent.

Where as its still a crapshoot and requires luck to field a competitive team and then somehow find the pieces needed to take it to the next level and win a ring. But this way provides a team that goes to the playoffs more often than not and wins more often than not.

Some people believe that both paths are a crapshoot and so would rather be competitive and go to the playoffs than be a cellar dweller year after year.

This isn't an “illogical” thought. This isn't “living in your own reality”. This isn't an “uneducated” post.

This is personal preference to what the team should do.

Some people are not capable of understanding there can be more than one valid opinion and tend to belittle others who don't share their opinion.

If we would all be more tolerant(including myself) of others’ opinions without trying to minimize theirs and shovel yours down everyones throats, this place would be much more pleasant.

 

All good. Just tired of the constant passive aggressive comments from that guy anytime I have any type of disagreement with someone else. It’s near stalker like vibes….has nothing to do with basketball and is only trying to create drama, which is what i was banned for previously. He doesn't understand he is doing the very thing that got me banned.
If anyone needs to learn to move on, its him.

 

Wow, you’re so good at always finding a way to make everything about you without even trying!

jk

I just wanted to get in on the passive aggressiveness